Part 107 test questions about airports check whether you can understand what manned pilots are doing, even though a drone pilot rarely talks on the radio.
Flying near an airport
Unless the airport is in controlled airspace, no notification or authorization is needed to fly near it. The remote pilot must still avoid traffic patterns and approach corridors and must not interfere with airport operations. A drone hovering over a runway that makes a manned aircraft delay its takeoff has interfered, even without breaking a right-of-way rule.
Traffic patterns
Turns in the pattern are to the left unless a pattern indicator shows right turns. Propeller airplanes fly the pattern at 1,000 feet AGL. Inbound pilots self-announce about 10 miles out, then entering downwind, base and final.
Frequencies
- CTAF (Common Traffic Advisory Frequency) is the frequency pilots use at an airport without an operating control tower.
- UNICOM is a non-government station that may give airport information where there is no tower or flight service station.
- MULTICOM 122.9 is used to self-announce where there is no tower, FSS or UNICOM.
- A recorded weather and runway broadcast is ATIS, not a CTAF.
A remote pilot may listen to aviation frequencies but should not transmit on an active one except in an emergency.
Runway numbers
A runway's number is its magnetic direction to the nearest 10 degrees, without the last zero: 183 degrees is runway 18, and 87 degrees is runway 9.
Radio phraseology
- Numbers are said digit by digit ("one zero" for 10), and 9 is "niner".
- N123AB is "November One Two Three Alpha Bravo", using the phonetic alphabet.
- Aviation uses UTC (Zulu) time: add 5 hours to Eastern Standard Time, 6 to Central, 7 to Mountain and 8 to Pacific.