Before the flight01
Recreational or Part 107? Decide by the purpose of the flight
In the United States, the reason you launch matters more than whether money changes hands.
3 MIN READ
FIELD LIBRARY / BEFORE THE FLIGHT
Before the flight.
Separate the purpose of a flight from the place you fly. A US-focused foundation for recreational pilots, with practical checks to take into the field.
Start with the essentials ↗
7 GUIDES / ONE CONNECTED DESK
All field guides ↗Permission. Preparation. Perspective.
Before the flight02
Under 250 grams is not a free-flight category
A light drone can avoid one US recreational registration trigger while remaining subject to the rules that make a flight safe and lawful.
3 MIN READ
Before the flight03
Airspace authorization and land permission are two different checks
LAANC can answer an FAA airspace question; it cannot give you the right to stand, launch or recover on someone else's property.
3 MIN READ
Before the flight04
Remote ID basics: choose the compliance path before the launch site
Start with registration status, then match the aircraft and location to one of the FAA's three ordinary Remote ID paths.
3 MIN READ
Before the flight05
FPV does not replace visual line of sight
Goggles can be the flying view, but US recreational operations still need eyes on the aircraft and an observer who can actually perform the job.
3 MIN READ
Before the flight06
Travel with drone batteries: pack by watt-hours, not guesswork
For US passenger flights, spare lithium batteries stay in the cabin, protected from short circuits, with airline approval needed in the larger permitted range.
3 MIN READ
Before the flight07
A first-flight site assessment you can finish before arming
Turn a promising pin on a map into a go, adjust or no-go decision by walking the site in a fixed order.
3 MIN READ
PUT IT INTO PRACTICE
Open the workbench ↗Take a useful tool along.
Use the battery-label calculator and session checklist. Neither replaces your aircraft manual or a current authority check.
SCOPE / UNITED STATES FIRST
Read the editorial boundary ↗Keep the jurisdiction attached.
These new operating guides focus on US recreational flying. Overseas rules, import restrictions, FCC proceedings, tariffs, and product availability are not verified here. Earlier precise summaries are held back; inherited claims remain labelled in the research notebook.