Guide · Austin, Texas
How to hire a drone pilot
What to ask before you book, what the certificate actually proves, and where the legal risk sits if you hire the wrong person. Written from the operator side.
- Legal minimum
- FAA Part 107
- Ask to see
- Certificate & COI
- Austin airspace
- Mostly controlled
- Read time
- 6 minutes
The certificate
Part 107 is not optional, and the risk is not only theirs
Anyone paid to fly a drone commercially in the United States must hold an FAA Part 107 remote pilot certificate. Flying for fun does not require one. The moment money changes hands, it does.
Ask to see the card
A Part 107 certificate is a government-issued card showing the pilot’s name, certificate number and the letters UAS — unmanned aircraft system. Asking to see it is a normal request, and any working operator will have it to hand.
If the answer is vague, that is your answer.
Hiring an uncertificated pilot exposes you, not just them
Under 49 U.S.C. § 46306(b)(8) it is an offence to knowingly and wilfully employ, in any capacity as an airman, someone who does not hold an airman’s certificate. Penalties run to fines and up to three years’ imprisonment, and aircraft used in the violation can be forfeited.
This is the part most people hiring a drone do not know.
What the certificate does not prove
It proves the pilot passed a written knowledge test on regulation, weather and airspace. It says nothing about whether they can fly smoothly, expose a shot correctly, or deliver a usable file.
Treat it as the floor, not the qualification.
Insurance
Ask what the policy actually covers
Two different things get called “drone insurance”. Hull insurance covers their aircraft. Liability insurance covers damage to your property or injury to a person. You care about the second one.
Liability, not hull
A policy that only covers the operator’s own drone does nothing for you if a flight goes wrong over your building, your site or your client’s roof. Ask which one they carry, and for how much.
Ask for a certificate of insurance
A COI is a one-page document from the insurer confirming coverage. It can name your company or the property owner as additional insured, which is what a general contractor or brokerage will usually want on file before anyone flies.
Match the cover to the job
A one million dollar liability policy is a common baseline. Over an active construction site, near occupied buildings or around critical infrastructure, higher limits are worth asking about — and a working operator can usually arrange them per project.
Airspace
In Austin, the airspace question comes first
Operations in controlled airspace below 400 feet need FAA authorization. A large part of the Austin metro sits under Austin-Bergstrom’s shelf, so for a lot of local properties this is not an edge case — it is the default.
LAANC, and what it is
LAANC stands for Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability. It grants near-real-time authorization up to the pre-approved altitude the FAA has published for that grid square on its UAS Facility Maps.
Ask whether your address needs it. A pilot who works the area should know within a minute.
Above the grid ceiling takes longer
If the shot needs more altitude than the map allows for that square — still under 400 feet — it goes to further coordination, which the FAA asks to be filed at least 72 hours ahead. Not a problem, unless nobody mentions it until the morning of the shoot.
That is a scheduling question, so raise it when you book.
Restrictions are not only about airports
Proximity to critical infrastructure, stadium and event restrictions, and temporary flight restrictions all apply. An operator who says “we can fly anywhere” is telling you they have not checked.
The honest answer is usually “let me look at the address.”
Equipment
Ask what it can do, not what it is called
Model names date fast, and a long list of them tells you very little. What matters is whether the aircraft and the person flying it can produce the file you need.
Sensor and resolution
Ask about sensor size and what the stills actually come out at. A larger sensor holds detail in shadow and in a bright Texas sky, which is where cheaper aircraft fall apart.
Do they shoot RAW
RAW files can be graded and corrected properly. Baked-in JPEGs cannot. If the work is going into a listing, a brand campaign or a report, this is the difference between usable and nearly usable.
Backup and redundancy
On a job that cannot be reshot — a pour, an event, a listing going live Friday — ask what happens if an aircraft goes down mid-shoot. A second airframe in the case is a reasonable expectation on commercial work.
Experience
The portfolio tells you more than the certificate
Flying is a manual skill and it shows on screen. Look at the work before you look at anything else.
Watch the video, not the highlight reel
Movement should be smooth and deliberate. Jerky corrections, drifting horizons and abrupt stops are what inexperience looks like from the ground.
Ask to see a full delivered set, not a thirty-second cut.
Look at the stills at full size
Clean, level, correctly exposed, and sharp into the corners. A gallery of small thumbnails is easy to hide behind.
Ask for two or three frames at full resolution.
Ask how long they have been operating
Not how long they have owned a drone — how long they have been doing it for clients, and what kind. Someone who shoots construction every week is a different proposition from someone who shoots a listing occasionally.
Both can be right. It depends on your job.
What you get back
Settle the deliverables before the flight, not after
This is the step most people skip, and it is where the disappointment usually happens. A folder of raw exports is not a deliverable.
How many, and edited to what standard
Agree the number of finished stills and the length of any video up front, and confirm they arrive colour-corrected rather than straight off the card.
“We’ll send you everything” usually means nobody has edited anything.
File format and aspect ratio
Say where the work is going. A listing platform, an MLS field, a report, a social cut and a printed board all want different crops and different resolutions.
Asking after delivery means a second round of work.
Who owns the files, and for how long
Confirm what you are licensed to do with the images and how long the operator keeps the originals. If a set is going into a brochure or a paid campaign, put it in writing.
Before you book
Common questions
The questions we get asked most often by people hiring a drone operator for the first time.
How do I check a drone pilot is really certificated?
Ask to see the Part 107 card, which shows the pilot’s name and certificate number. You can also ask for the certificate number and confirm it against the FAA airman registry. A working operator will not find the request unusual.
Am I liable if the drone pilot I hire is not certificated?
You can be. Under 49 U.S.C. § 46306(b)(8) it is an offence to knowingly and wilfully employ someone as an airman who does not hold an airman’s certificate, with penalties including fines and up to three years’ imprisonment. This is not legal advice — but it is the reason the certificate is worth checking rather than assuming.
What insurance should a drone operator carry?
Liability cover is the one that protects you. A one million dollar policy is a common baseline, and a certificate of insurance naming your company or the property owner as additional insured can usually be issued on request.
Does my property need FAA authorization to be flown?
If it sits in controlled airspace, yes — authorization is required below 400 feet, normally obtained through LAANC before the flight. A large part of the Austin metro falls under Austin-Bergstrom’s airspace shelf, so this is routine here rather than exceptional.
How much does it cost to hire a drone pilot?
It varies with the property, how much you need delivered, time on site and location, which is why most operators quote per job rather than from a rate card. Ask for a fixed number against a defined deliverable list rather than an hourly rate.
What should I send when I ask for a quote?
The address, what you want shot, what you need back, and the date you are working to. That is enough for an operator to check the airspace and give you a real number.
Hiring for a job in Central Texas?
Send the address and what you need shot. You get a fixed quote back the same day, with the airspace already checked.