I have my part 107 license. The rules for recreation flying and commercial flying are quite different. My question is, can I use the recreation rules when I am not making money? I have researched this and found conflicting answers. Does anybody know the real answer?
commercial vs recreational
- Thread starter THE FLY'N PUNKIN
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That is a great question. I have wondered the same. Based on my assumption that the answer is no, I halted my 107 effort midstream as there was no benefit to a hobbyist, and far more restrictions.
Knowing a little about the FAA I would wager the price of a bird that their rationale will be that there is no practical way for them to know on an incident by incident basis whether you are 'on the clock' or not. It would be great for us, but a nightmare for the FAA. Say if you take some pics as a hobbyist at 450 ft up and decide later to sell them.
There are people on here who are far more knowledgeable in this area than me, and I'll betcha you will get a more concrete answer soon.
This has been a topic almost since Part 107 went into effect. Do a bit of searching here on the forums and you'll find that the FAA has stated that Part 107 pilots can still fly as hobbiest. Only have to determine what type the flight will be before you fly and follow the appropriate rules throughout the flight. No different than a Part 61 commercially rated pilot flying for fun or personal use when he wants to. Virtually all of my flying is within the rules/recommendations of both. But it is convenient to be able to fly in my backyard under 107 and not have to worry about contacting the airports (both public and private) within 5 miles of my home. I did recently take part in a fun fly close to a Class C airport. Since we were hobby flying, we didn't need to get a waiver/authorization, just coordinated with the tower.
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The answer is YES. It's all about your intent for each flight before you takeoff.
Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Frequently Asked Questions
And yes intent could be difficult to prove.
Reality is you're much more likely to run afoul of local City UAS Laws with local police than Federal as the FAA has virtually no enforcement force.
I'm confused, Richard. Those two statements seem to contradict. (I'm more familiar with the commercial rules.)
No conflict. I determine that I am usually flying under Part 107 at home. My local airport is about 4 miles away, but no tower. So it's class G. Before 107, I called the airport managers office to notify them before each flight. And still do if my grandson is flying one of my birds (consider that hobby). If flying under 107, I am not required to contact the airport. During the flying, we were within 5 miles of the airport so called them to let them know as required - all hobby, no 107 flights. 107 flights from the same location would have required us to go online and request authorization. Got to keep track of the different conditions and the rules that apply.
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