Part 107 (the FAA regulation — formally 14 CFR Part 107, meaning Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 107 — that governs commercial drone flight) draws a bright line: the moment a drone flight is for work — real-estate photos, roof inspections, footage you hope to sell — a certificated person called a remote pilot in command must be in charge. A remote pilot in command is the person directly responsible for, and the final authority over, the operation. The eligibility rules in § 107.61 call for no flight test at all. You must be at least 16 years old; be able to read, speak, write, and understand English; not know or have reason to know of any physical or mental condition that would interfere with safe operation; and demonstrate aeronautical knowledge — either by passing an initial aeronautical knowledge test or, for qualifying Part 61 pilots, completing training instead. The logic behind testing knowledge rather than stick skills is that nearly everything that makes a drone operation dangerous — busy airspace, deteriorating weather, people below — is a matter of judgment, not thumb dexterity.

Part 107 also lets a person without a certificate fly under the direct supervision of a remote pilot in command who has the ability to immediately take direct control of the small unmanned aircraft’s flight (§ 107.12(a)(2)) — a capability requirement, not a prescribed method. The regulation requires that the supervising remote PIC (pilot in command) be able to step in and fly the aircraft directly at any moment; it doesn’t dictate how that hand-off must work, only that it must be immediate. This is how a trainee can practice legally, and Chapter 10 takes the crew arrangements it makes possible in full.

Passing the knowledge test or completing training doesn’t grant privileges forever. Every remote pilot must stay current, renewing within the previous 24 calendar months through recurrent training the FAA accepts — Chapter 9 sets out which training, and how that differs if you qualified by the Part 61 route. The recurring recency check exists for good reason: since Part 107 first appeared, several areas have added or changed requirements, and periodic retraining helps ensure pilots aren’t flying on outdated rules. Night operations, for instance, now require — under § 107.29 (a numbered rule section within Part 107) — that pilots have completed their initial knowledge test or training after April 6, 2021 and that they be equipped with anti-collision lighting. These conditions replaced the earlier night-waiver regime, which terminated in 2021. Flight over people (operating a small unmanned aircraft over human beings, per § 107.39 and subpart D) added its own requirements, and so did Remote ID (technology that broadcasts the unmanned aircraft’s identity, position, altitude, and velocity so nearby receivers can identify and locate it in flight) — it became required after September 16, 2023 for most operations of drones that are registered or required to be registered (§ 89.105). That is what the certificate requires of you before you fly, and enough to make sense of every rule that follows it. The machinery of actually earning one and keeping it valid — sitting the test, the Part 61 shortcut, and the administrative life of the certificate itself — waits until Chapter 9, and waits on purpose: it is work you do once, and it lands better once you know what the certificate buys you.