Yesterday, I went to Watsonville, CA and took my FAA part 107 test which - in words, is the "Certified Commercial Drone Pilot's License" test. I passed.
Without this license, it is illegal to sell drone services commercially. In other words, if someone asks you to use your dji Phantom 4 to take pictures of his house for sale, or to check his roof and you charge money for the service, you have just done something illegal.
With this certificate, I can legally charge for drone services. But more importantly, it allows me to apply for waivers. Waivers are used to selectively remove any restriction or set of restrictions, such as - flying at night, flying beyond Line of Sight. It is the beyond Line Of Sight that I'm particularly interested in. Without that waiver, I can't legal fly further than about a half mile away, since that is about as far as I can see the aircraft and sense its orientation. If you don't have a part 107 license, getting a waiver is almost impossible.
The test itself consisted of several parts, such as:
Knowledge of the various types of airspace and how to read aeronautical charts;
Knowledge of how weather affects aircraft - wind, clouds, altitude, temperature and humidity effects
Reading weather information as provided by various agencies.
Aircraft loading - what happens when a craft is overloaded or in sharp turns
Human factors (alcohol, fatigue, attitude, etc)
Safety and what to do in case of accident
Where it is safe and legal to fly.
Aircraft maintenance to insure safety
Who to contact when you desire to fly in normally restricted airspace.
