Geting licensed, insured- doing it the right way.

[Lance K]

I am in the United States but plan to operate soon in Greenland for an upcoming trip. I am very confused as to the legal status of commercial work for hire in the states regarding drone flying.

What is a good course of action to obtain a US UAV license as well proper insurance?

Thanks much-
Lance

 

[Mazz]

Hello Lance, and welcome. Currently if you want to operate legally in the USA you are going to need a pilots license as well as insurance and then you will be able to file for your exemption with the FAA. There are easier methods coming down the pipeline if you wish to wait a few months. Insurance can already be easily obtained from many aviation and risk management insurers. There is a grey area, however, currently. Some people just get their insurance set up and then just fly low key until the laws catch up the times.

 

[Lance K]

Thanks Mazz. I want to do this properly... I will not be getting a pilot license so I guess that will restrict my commercial work to outside the states until things sort out.

What are general practices in Canada right now?

 

[777Ben]

Canada is a lot easier to deal with. Flew "drones" for a major movie production in the summer of 2013 and the movie studio got the permits, so I don't know all the details. But it didn't appear to be a big deal.

The FAA has their proposal out now and it appears you won't need a pilots license, but you will need to pass a written (to insure airspace knowledge) and some other hoops. The problem is that, like any bureaucracy, they are so slooooow.

Ben