DRTS Instructor Theory cheat sheet

Part 107 small UAS limits: maximum groundspeed 87 knots (100 mph), maximum gross weight 55 lb, operations in Class G without authorization and in Class B, C, D, or E surface areas only with FAA airspace authorization.

Remote Pilot in Command must hold a current remote pilot certificate with small UAS rating; recurrent knowledge test every 24 calendar months keeps currency.

Operations over people require Category 1 (under 0.55 lb), Category 2/3 (declared in the FAA-accepted means of compliance), or Category 4 (Part 21 airworthiness) eligibility.

Night operations require anti-collision lighting visible for at least 3 statute miles and, since April 2021, no separate night waiver if the pilot has completed updated recurrent training.

Waivers under Part 107.205 cover operations such as beyond visual line of sight, flight over moving vehicles, and multiple aircraft; each waiver is operation-specific and time-limited.

Class G ceiling is 14,500 ft MSL in most of the contiguous US; controlled airspace floors vary, so consult the sectional chart and the UAS Facility Map before flight.

Temporary Flight Restrictions and NOTAMs override normal airspace authority; a TFR violation can trigger certificate action regardless of prior authorization.

LAANC provides near-real-time authorization in grid-tagged areas up to published facility map altitudes; requests above those altitudes go through the FAA DroneZone.

Visual line of sight means the remote PIC or a visual observer can see the aircraft unaided (corrective lenses allowed) at all times; the aircraft must remain close enough to identify orientation and hazards.

Right-of-way rule: the small UAS must yield to all manned aircraft; it may not pass over, under, or ahead of a manned aircraft unless well clear.

Preflight inspection covers airframe, propellers, motors, battery state of charge, firmware, gimbal, and control link; log discrepancies and do not fly with unresolved airworthiness items.

Crew briefing items: roles, airspace and altitudes, lost-link and return-to-home behavior, emergency landing areas, communication protocol, and abort criteria.

Weather decision thresholds should be numeric (for example sustained wind, gust spread, visibility, ceiling, temperature vs battery limits) so go/no-go is not subjective.

Battery management: launch with reserve margin, monitor voltage sag under load, and plan landing with at least 20-30 percent remaining capacity; cold temperatures reduce usable capacity.

Automated features such as return-to-home depend on a current home point and adequate altitude; verify the set altitude clears all obstacles on the return path.

See-and-avoid remains a human responsibility; detect-and-avoid equipment supplements but does not replace the remote PIC's obligation to scan for traffic.

Emergency authority: a remote PIC may deviate from Part 107 to the extent necessary to respond to an in-flight emergency, and must report the deviation to the FAA on request.

Public safety agencies may operate under Part 107 or under a Certificate of Waiver or Authorization (COA); the COA defines approved aircraft, areas, altitudes, and special provisions.

Incident command integration: UAS crews should check in through the incident command system, obtain an air operations branch assignment, and coordinate altitude and geography deconfliction with manned aviation.

Thermal and visual payload use must respect privacy expectations and agency policy; document the operational justification for imaging people or property.

Lost-link and flyaway procedures should include last known position, predicted flight path, notification chain, and reporting to the FAA and local law enforcement.

Emergency landing site selection prioritizes people on the ground over hardware; controlled descent with warning is preferred to uncontrolled impact.

Post-incident documentation includes time-stamped flight logs, crew statements, damage assessment, and notification records; preserve data before firmware overwrites it.

Mutual aid and multi-agency responses require common radio terms, shared airspace deconfliction, and a single point of contact for UAS operations.

Adult learning principles (Knowles): adults need relevance, self-direction, problem-centered content, and immediate application; instruction should draw on learner experience.

Cognitive load: working memory handles a limited number of novel elements, so sequence instruction from simple to complex and chunk procedures into manageable steps.

Learning domains: cognitive (knowledge), psychomotor (skill), and affective (attitude); objectives should name the domain and the observable performance.

Bloom's taxonomy order: remember, understand, apply, analyze, evaluate, create; assessment items should match the intended level.

Scenario-based training and guided discovery improve transfer compared with lecture-only delivery; brief, demonstrate, practice, then debrief.

Feedback should be specific, timely, and behavior-focused; corrective feedback paired with a correct demonstration is more effective than criticism alone.

Instructor modeling and standardization: demonstrate the maneuver to the same standard used for evaluation, and state the standard before practice begins.

Retrieval practice and spaced review strengthen retention of regulatory and emergency knowledge more than rereading notes.

Valid assessment measures what the objective states; reliable assessment yields consistent results across raters and occasions.

Norm-referenced scoring compares learners to each other; criterion-referenced scoring compares performance to a fixed standard, which is appropriate for certification training.

Knowledge test items should have one defensible correct answer, plausible distractors, and no cueing; avoid negatives and 'all of the above' where possible.

Practical evaluation uses a task checklist with observable standards (for example altitude tolerance, heading tolerance, and completion without instructor intervention).

Item analysis metrics include difficulty (proportion correct) and discrimination (how well the item separates high and low performers); flag items that are too easy, too hard, or non-discriminating.

Documentation should be contemporaneous, legible, and retained per policy; training records typically include date, aircraft, maneuvers, duration, instructor, and outcome.

Remediation records should identify the deficiency, the corrective training provided, and the re-evaluation result.

Grade inflation and halo error are common rater biases; mitigate with standardized rubrics and periodic calibration among instructors.

Risk = severity x likelihood; assess each hazard on both axes before deciding to accept, mitigate, or avoid the risk.

The risk management process: identify hazards, assess risk, analyze controls, make a decision, implement, and supervise or feedback.

Crew resource management elements: communication, situational awareness, workload management, decision-making, team briefing, and assertiveness.

Authority gradient: steep gradients suppress junior crew input; flatten with explicit invitation for challenge and standard callouts.

Sterile cockpit concept: limit non-essential conversation during takeoff, landing, and high-workload phases.

Checklists reduce omission errors but must be read and verified, not recited from memory; use do-verify or read-do as designed.

Hazardous attitudes (impulsivity, invulnerability, macho, resignation, anti-authority) are countered by specific antidotes such as 'not so fast' and 'it could happen to me'.

Post-flight debrief should capture what went well, what deviated, and what changes to procedures or training are warranted.

Instructor duties: ensure learner eligibility, deliver approved curriculum, maintain records, evaluate to standard, and report outcomes accurately.

Currency and qualification: instructors must meet the operator's qualification standards and maintain their own remote pilot currency and training records.

Standardization: maintain a current syllabus, lesson plans, and evaluation standards; revisions require version control and instructor briefing.

Safety management system basics: safety policy, safety risk management, safety assurance, and safety promotion.

Occurrence reporting: define reportable events, timelines, and the notification chain to the FAA, insurer, and agency leadership.

Records retention should follow regulatory and organizational requirements; protect personally identifiable information and flight telemetry.

Learner records and privacy: share only on a need-to-know basis and follow retention and disposal policy.

Continuous improvement: track training-related mishaps, near misses, and evaluation failure rates, and feed findings back into curriculum and instructor training.