Say if my brother in law has a haunted trail and he wants to make a video/commercial(I don't like the word commercial, it's more of a promotional video) of/for the trail to put on Facebook. Would I need a part 107 license to do this in part with my Phantom 4? I will not be getting paid for doing this and it will only be on his website and Facebook. Of course I told him that I didn't have my part 107 license so I couldn't but I wanted to have a direct answer. Thanks.
Would I need a part 107 license for this...
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You would need a part 107 license regardless of whether money changes hands or not, money doesn't have anything to do with it. If you are flying for any reason whatsoever other than for your own enjoyment, a flight falls under part 107.
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So if you want to inspect your house's roof, does that require 107? It is obviously not an enjoyable thing to do.
Thanks guys. No he would not sell it or get paid for it but of course it would be seen on his website and Facebook in hopes of bringing more customers.
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Well in the eyes of the FAA, this is commercial and 107 is required.
As the FAA regulation and interpretation is written then yes - that would not be recreational (it would have a different purpose) and would require a Part 107 certification.
The intent (bringing more customers) makes this unambiguously non-recreational.
As far as I understand, it would not fall under part 107 since your intention is to fly for yourself and there is no commercial benefit. In the above case, someone else asked and it was for commercial purposes.
Edit: For the benefit of anyone reading this in the future, this is not an accurate statement.
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I think I kind of agreed with that statement. For the FAA, there are only two kinds of video purposes: recreational or commercial.
That's not an unreasonable idea, but your understanding is incorrect. The determining factor is not whether there is commercial benefit, it is whether the flight is purely recreational. Inspecting a roof is not recreational by any stretch of the imagination.
Yeah, you're probably right. It seemed like kind of an edge case, but I suppose when in doubt, a flight is 107.
It seems pretty clear under the language of Part 107. Now whether that is a use case that would be likely to attract the ire of the FAA is a quite different question, since I'm sure, with their finite resources, they are focusing on reported or obvious infractions that most likely do involve commercial interests.
If I were not licensed would I be willing to inspect my roof - almost certainly yes.
You are right it is pretty clearly stated. I'll argue "spirit of the law" if I ever get prosecuted for inspecting my own roof, ha!
I don't think there is much risk of that. How would anyone even know the purpose of your flight, over your own property, and at low altitude, unless you posted it on social media for example?
Right, I was just joking. I imagine they have more pressing matters to deal with than amateur roofing!
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The time the FAA will have any care about you flying to inspect your roof is if you cause an aviation safety risk in doing it.
The FAA aren't there to police who does and who doesn't sell photos or video.
Their only business is maintaining a safe aviation environment.
The FAA periodically trolls uTube for infractions and has been known to act on those leads .. aka Work for Hire. But they're stretched thin and debating if yours is hobby giving you enjoyment isn't likely. Compensation is more clear cut. A home storm damage check, not so much, IMHO. It's personal use. Not 'enjoyment' per se, but I think the guideline is aimed at clear transactional compensation, a WFH.
What if I do roofing as a hobby because I enjoy it? Inspection would then be part of that hobby.
And I really doubt the FAA is going to give two twitches if I inspect my own roof to then do my own work on it.
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