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Australia G'Day from Australia

Thanks for your help Southerndoug, Had the assessment last week on the S900 and received the UOC today!!
All I have to do now is find some work to pay for all the outlay!!
Well done that man! I know what you mean about trying to make some money back... lots of outlay; now for the insurance and marketing and door knock appeal! Oh, and the back-up Inspire....
 
Hey Tyrone, if you update your manuals to the new template (if you haven't already) you may save yourself 10 hours assessment fee... $1500 at least. And yes, as a one man band you can be the fat controller AND the maintenance controller.
Thanks mate , I have now got UOC developed by Aviaassist $450

Great Job and very professional.
 
Hi Guy

I received UOC guidance info pack from CASA today after email then , here is reply from CASA RPAS;

UNCLASSIFIED

Thank you for your enquiry in which you asked about the requirements to operate a remotely piloted aircraft (RPA)/Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) for commercial use.
Firstly I suggest you read through the information provided in this email and then contact us at the above email address if you have any further questions.
RPA operations generally fall into two categories—model aircraft flights, which are conducted exclusively for sport and recreational (personal use) purposes; and RPA flights conducted for any other purposes, including business-related activities. Different rules govern how, when, where and by whom RPA may be operated. In many cases the use of RPA for commercial purposes (hire and reward) requires an Operator’s Certificate, which CASA will issue only after assessing the competence of the operator and pilots to conduct the kind of operations for which an application has been made.
Commercial operations of RPA must comply with the terms of the applicable provisions of the legislation ((Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 (CASR) 101A, B,C and F), as well as the terms of any approvals under which they are conducted. The regulations set out clear limitations on the general and recreational use of RPA, limiting the height at which they may fly, how visible the RPA must remain to the operator/pilot, how far they must be from aerodromes and other aircraft, and how close they may come to other people on the ground. Some of these generally applicable regulations may apply in conjunction with the terms of a specific approval. You can locate a copy of the regulation by clicking on the following link:
http://www.comlaw.gov.au/Details/F2014C01256/Html/Volume_3#_Toc403541324

If you wish to obtain certification as a RPA operator there are two requirements to be met before you can commence any operation; they are:
· Obtain a RPA Controller Certificate, and
· A RPA Operators Certificate.
The specifics of these two requirements are detailed in the above attachments.
Costs

· In relation to the Operators Certificate, this is issued by CASA and I can advise that CASA is currently experiencing a huge increase in the number of requests for RPA operator certificates (OC), which has necessitated longer time frames in CASA’s consideration and processing of these applications. CASA has moved to deploy additional resources to the RPAS Office and is endeavoring to consider application as quickly as possible. The current waiting time for a new OC is approximately 4-5 months. Once the application assessment process is commenced the time to issue a certificate is 4-6 weeks depending on the complexity of the operation and the quality of the submission.

Assessment includes the manual suites, the flight assessment and the Chief Controller and Maintenance Controller Interviews. The cost is currently averaging approximately $2,300.00 but is dependent on the quality of the submission, your knowledge of the regulations and your flying skills.

Controller Certificate
For information on the options available to obtain a UAV Controller Certificate please refer to the attached document ‘CC Information v8.-_Feb 2016.docx’.

Please be advised that proposed amendments to Part 101 of the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations 1998 to permit the operation of a RPA under 2kg for commercial operations if certain conditions are met, without the need to be authorised by an Operating Certificate or controller certificate are not expected before the end of 2016, however notice of any amendments will be published on CASA’s web site.
To clarify the proposed amendment to the regulation (CASR Part 101) for flying RPAs under 2kgs is:
· If you are flying a <2kg drone under the following conditions you will not require a licence.
o Outside controlled airspace
o Within VLOS and Day VMC
o Under 400 feet
o Not within 30 metres of people
o Outside populous areas
o Not within 3nm of ANY aerodrome, airport or HLS
· If you intend operating outside ANY of the above conditions it is anticipated that current licensing regulations will apply.
Furthermore, as new information and requirements are approved, they will be advertised on the CASA web site at Remotely Piloted Aircraft | Civil Aviation Safety Authority
I hope this information is of some benefit to you in your future considerations, and we look forward to working with you in the future. If you have any further queries please contact the RPAS Office through an email to [email protected]
Kind regards

CASA\OPERATIONS\Administration Officer
Also attached were Sample operational manual, my question is is that the operation manual template everyone is talking about, it seems all training provider are dropping their price now because CASA has provide template or guideline to submit UOC? Any comments?


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Hi Guys,
Anyone have any contacts or pointers for insurance.
Not sure if I will go for aircraft or just public liability..
 
Hey my fellow Aussies new inspire owner coming from mini quad racing, just started my journey into getting licenced, any of you guys take the ppl route rather then the rpas course? That's the route I'm going to take I believe
 
Hey my fellow Aussies new inspire owner coming from mini quad racing, just started my journey into getting licenced, any of you guys take the ppl route rather then the rpas course? That's the route I'm going to take I believe
Yep. Much easier path especially if you have passed PPL theory and radio licence. It's like and endorsement. Minimum 5 hours flying required on type (generally 50 flights @ 10 minutes each) One day manufacturer's course ($500?). Practical exam identical to MAAA Bronze Wings exam. Gets you your UAV Controller's Certificate. Be careful who you go with. There are good and very bad operators out there.
 
Yep. Much easier path especially if you have passed PPL theory and radio licence. It's like and endorsement. Minimum 5 hours flying required on type (generally 50 flights @ 10 minutes each) One day manufacturer's course ($500?). Practical exam identical to MAAA Bronze Wings exam. Gets you your UAV Controller's Certificate. Be careful who you go with. There are good and very bad operators out there.

Hey dude yeah going through Roger at drone commander, got a reccomendation from a friend who is going through UOC now. He recommended the PPL pathway as he is helping CASA brainstorm atm for a BVLOS ticket as its so hard to get under current laws ect but he said that having PPL done will be part of the requirements, also I'm excited to learn about it all.
 
Last I heard they were considering requiring instrument rating theory pre-requisite for BVLOS. Takes 2 weeks full time to pass the exam ($3000) and most of the info would be irrelevant to drone flight. Irex would be a massive overkill for drone pilots in it's present form. CASA guy I spoke to said it's possible a more relevant qualification will emerge in the near to medium future.
 
Last I heard they were considering requiring instrument rating theory pre-requisite for BVLOS. Takes 2 weeks full time to pass the exam ($3000) and most of the info would be irrelevant to drone flight. Irex would be a massive overkill for drone pilots in it's present form. CASA guy I spoke to said it's possible a more relevant qualification will emerge in the near to medium future.

Yeah that's the current system, he discussed that he is currently part of the group coming up with ideas to update the system with CASA, so hopefully that's not too far away next year or 2 would nice even
 
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well finally after a lovely 5 month wait and $5860 in CASA's hot little hand, i have completed and PASSED my UOC so now im a fully licensed / certified operator .

I had Carl Brown as my assessor, and seriously you could not find a nicer guy that was very respectful and super knowledgeable.
He answered all of my questions and calmed me down as it is a big moment in ones life this test. My hat goes off to him.
and for the record , if i was not passed i would still say the same about him !!
so now hunter drone services is 100% good to go .

I would also like to thank Jasper from Ground Control Picture Pty Ltd for letting me work under his UOC until i passed my assessment.
 
well finally after a lovely 5 month wait and $5860 in CASA's hot little hand, i have completed and PASSED my UOC so now im a fully licensed / certified operator .

I had Carl Brown as my assessor, and seriously you could not find a nicer guy that was very respectful and super knowledgeable.
He answered all of my questions and calmed me down as it is a big moment in ones life this test. My hat goes off to him.
and for the record , if i was not passed i would still say the same about him !!
so now hunter drone services is 100% good to go .

I would also like to thank Jasper from Ground Control Picture Pty Ltd for letting me work under his UOC until i passed my assessment.
Hi mate.
Well done and congrats.
I have mine in the next month or so.
Any tips or advice
 
Hey guys,

Glad to see an Aussie thread.
I just completed my RPAS licence and waiting for my UOC now. CASA will attended to it in August. Quite a little wait and they have taken my money :) and my head still hurts from all the paperwork!

I done my course through wicked copters and they are extremely helpful and really great people. I would recommend them again!

In the meantime, I do have my licence for under 7kg and if anyone needs a pilot for work let me know, I'd be only thankful to come along.

I'd love to build a network of friends/pilot for the future too.
 
Hi guys. Haven't been back for a while.

Now the proud owner of UOC.0624. I actually got a rebate, because it took fewer hours than their estimate. Thank you CASA.

Seeking insurance. My Inspires 1 and Pro supplement my normal ground-based video work, so I am trying to find Public Liability to cover the whole business. Got a couple of quotes, but they didn't cover everything or had too many exemptions.

My sampler is light on, due to only shooting freebees while I worked through the UOC process and getting a schedule from CASA.
 
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contact drone worx i think his mate is a broker , look back through this page.
i am seriously disappointed in CASA, we go through a lot and pay a lot more to be legal / certified . But dont for one second think that CASA have your back now.
ive sent numerous emails to CASA in regards to uncertified guys in surrounding areas doing stupid stuff and acting as a commercial opp guy with no UOC, and to put it blunt they dont give a fkk.
i have not received ANY response. In fact i have heard second hand yes , that they have only fined 2 people since the rules came in.

so seriously whats the point in doing any of this ??? its like paying protection money to a monkey...

And then as if that wasnt bad enough, ive email and called in relation of getting night flying and weed spraying quals and still i cant get a reply or a call back.
All these faa, caa casa are all just daylight thieves that make us pay ridiculous amounts of money to fly in free airspace without any governing it correctly and protecting us the rule followers with relevant penalties to the rule breakers.
There is so much on you tube and facebook , im sure the government has the capabilities to identify and penalize these dangerous pilots.

just my frustration coming out here !!!!!
 
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