FAA Part 107 sUAS Recurrent (ALC-677) common mistakes
FAA Part 107 sUAS Recurrent (ALC-677) · Understand the traps and how to avoid them.
Treating the 400 ft above ground level ceiling as a fixed altitude above sea level or above the launch point, and answering that a flight over rising terrain or a tall structure is legal only if the aircraft stays under 400 ft MSL.
Candidates memorize '400 feet' without attaching it to the AGL datum, and sectional charts and altimeters are read in MSL, so the two get conflated under time pressure.
What to do instead
Before every practice question, restate the rule with its datum attached: 400 ft AGL. When a structure is involved, recall the exception is 400 ft above the structure's immediate uppermost limit, still bounded by the 400 ft AGL rule when no structure is present. Practice converting between MSL chart readings and AGL clearance using terrain elevation.
Classifying Class E surface area extensions and Class G ceilings incorrectly, for example assuming all Class G airspace goes to 14,500 ft MSL or that Class E always begins at 1,200 ft AGL everywhere.
The default Class E floor of 1,200 ft AGL is taught early and then over-applied; the shaded magenta vignette and the dashed magenta surface-area boundary are visually similar on a chart and are rarely drilled to automaticity.
What to do instead
Build a chart-symbol drill: dashed magenta = Class E surface area (floor at the surface); shaded magenta = Class E starting at 700 ft AGL; faded blue = Class E starting at 1,200 ft AGL. For every practice question, name the floor and ceiling of the airspace at the aircraft's position before selecting an answer.
Answering that a Part 107 operation in Class B, C, or D airspace requires only prior notification to the tower, or that Class G operations never require any authorization.
The prior-notification concept belongs to the recreational statutory exception, and mixing the two rule sets produces a plausible-sounding but wrong answer under exam pressure.
What to do instead
Memorize the pairing explicitly: Part 107 requires ATC authorization (e.g., LAANC or a waiver) for Class B, C, D, and Class E surface areas; prior notification is the recreational-exception path. When a question mentions Class B/C/D, look for 'authorization' in the answer choice.
Selecting an answer that describes the remote pilot 'seeing and avoiding' other aircraft as the sole means of compliance, while ignoring right-of-way rules, and failing to yield to all manned aircraft.
See-and-avoid is emphasized so heavily in training that it crowds out the specific right-of-way hierarchy the exam tests.
What to do instead
Learn the yield order as a ranked list: give way to all manned aircraft; among unmanned aircraft, the more maneuverable yields to the less maneuverable. Then answer the specific question asked rather than defaulting to see-and-avoid.
Computing weight and balance or loading answers by adding payload weight to the aircraft without checking whether it pushes the small unmanned aircraft over 55 lb, or ignoring how a shifted payload changes the center of gravity and controllability.
Candidates treat 55 lb as a registration or category threshold only, and treat CG as a fixed characteristic rather than something payload placement changes.
What to do instead
For every loading question, write two checks: total weight against the 55 lb limit (including payload, attached equipment, and anything else carried) and CG location against the manufacturer's envelope. Note that a rearward or forward shift degrades stability even when under weight limits.
Underestimating density altitude effects, answering that high temperature, high elevation, or high humidity improves or does not affect small unmanned aircraft climb and hover performance.
Density altitude is learned as a manned-aircraft concept and not mapped onto electric multirotor performance, where reduced air density means less thrust and shorter endurance.
What to do instead
Anchor the chain: hot, high, humid = less dense air = less lift and less propeller efficiency = reduced climb rate, reduced payload capability, and shorter battery endurance. Practice applying it to a scenario with a high-elevation launch site on a hot afternoon.
Answering that a remote pilot may operate with a blood alcohol concentration below 0.04 percent, or that a disqualifying drug or alcohol situation requires only that the flight be postponed until the pilot 'feels fine.'
The 0.04 figure is remembered as a permitted limit rather than a prohibition threshold, and the 8-hour bottle-to-throttle rule is often dropped entirely.
What to do instead
Memorize the actual rule: no operation within 8 hours of consuming alcohol, while under the influence, or with a BAC of 0.04 percent or greater; no operation while using any drug that adversely affects safety. Treat any nonzero BAC as disqualifying for the purposes of the exam.
Failing to report an accident, or reporting it to the wrong place or on the wrong timeline, when a small unmanned aircraft operation results in serious injury, loss of consciousness, or property damage other than to the aircraft.
Candidates conflate the NTSB reporting threshold with FAA notification, and confuse the 10-day window with other deadlines in the regulations.
What to do instead
Memorize the trigger and the clock together: serious injury, loss of consciousness, or damage to property other than the small unmanned aircraft, then notify the FAA within 10 calendar days. Practice sorting scenario outcomes into 'reportable' and 'not reportable.'
Answering night-operation questions as though a remote pilot certificate alone authorizes night flight, or as though anti-collision lighting is optional at night.
The night-training and lighting requirements changed over time, and candidates rely on older study material or on the day-operation default.
What to do instead
State the current requirement precisely: night operations under Part 107 require the remote pilot to have completed the required knowledge and training on night operations (or hold the appropriate rating), and the aircraft must have anti-collision lighting visible for at least 3 statute miles. Verify the current rule text before the exam, since this area has been revised.
Choosing 'continue the flight as planned' or 'immediately land' as the reflexive answer to an in-flight emergency or lost-link scenario, without considering the pre-briefed lost-link procedure and the requirement to give way to manned aircraft.
Emergency and CRM questions reward a specific sequence, but candidates answer from instinct rather than from the programmed failsafe behavior and crew briefing.
What to do instead
For lost link, recall the programmed failsafe (typically hover, land, or return to home per the preflight configuration) and the obligation to maintain separation from manned traffic. For emergencies, recall that the remote pilot in command may deviate from the rules to the extent necessary and must report the deviation to the FAA if requested.