A DJI Mini 3 Pro and a Part 107 certificate from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) can be a powerful combination and could kickstart your professional drone pilot career.
DJI Mini 3 Pro for commercial work
In recent years drones, such as the DJI Mini 3 Pro, have become so good that you could for sure starts your drone career with this $909 mini drone from DJI.
I say $909 because that buys you the DJI Mini 3 Pro and the DJI RC with a built-in display, which is the combo I would recommend. If you get this setup together with the DJI Fly More Kit Plus for $249, you will be ready to take on many projects.
The DJI Mini 3 Pro features a 1/1.3-inch sensor that shoots up to 48 MP aerial photos and 4K video in HDR. The DJI mini drone also features obstacle avoidance sensors to keep you out of trouble.
The regular batteries for the DJI Mini 3 Pro will give you 34 minutes of flight time. However, the batteries in the DJI Fly More Kit Plus have a higher capacity and will provide you with 47 minutes of flying.
These higher batteries will push the DJI Mini 3 Pro over the 250 weight limit and will require you to register the drone even when you fly it purely for recreational reasons.
Keep in mind that when you fly any drone, no matter how light it is, for commercial reasons, you will have to register the drone with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
Drone Pilot License or Part 107 certificate
Next, you will need to get your FAA Remote Pilot Certificate — also known as your drone pilot license or Part 107 certificate — so that you can start your career as a professional or commercial drone operator.
You can watch videos online for free and study yourself, but I would recommend teaming up with Greg from the Pilot Institute. They offer a great online course that will help you prepare for the UAS Aeronautical Knowledge Test.
The Pilot Institute also offers you a great network of almost 17,000 people who are flying their drones commercially as well. Being able to tap into this network will help you get up to speed faster and turn your hobby into a profession.
“So stoked. Recently bought a used DJI Mini 3 Pro and wanted to get FAA certification. Tried all the free resources I could find and quickly became overwhelmed. Too much to remember. So, bought a course from Pilot Institute, and they TEACH, not get you to memorize. I aced it!”
Congrats, Michael on your 97% score!
Once you have your DJI Mini 3 Pro and Part 107 certificate, you may want to consider starting and LLC and get general liability insurance before you start taking on commercial drone projects.
Reach out to DroneXL!
If you recently started your career as a commercial drone pilot, please reach out to us at DroneXL. We’d love to hear about your experience and may feature your story with a link to your work or business on our site as well.
DroneXL is dedicated to helping people learn about drones and fly them safely and responsibly, whether they do so recreationally or professionally.
Photo credit: Michael Staggs
