What to Expect at Your Advanced RPAS Flight Review (From a Flight Reviewer)
If you've passed the Transport Canada Advanced exam, the flight review is the last step before your Advanced pilot certificate. As a Transport Canada Advanced RPAS flight reviewer working with Caswell Aviation in Manitoba, I sit on the other side of these reviews. Here's what to expect, and how to walk in prepared.
What the flight review is for
The review checks one thing: can you operate your drone safely and legally in the kinds of conditions Advanced operations allow? It isn't a trick-flying test. It's a practical assessment of planning, judgement, airmanship and handling.
Before you book
Pass the Advanced exam first. You'll need your results to book.
Read the Flight Reviewer's Guide. Transport Canada publishes the exercises you'll be assessed on. If you've read it, nothing on the day should surprise you.
Use a drone you know. It must be registered, and you should be comfortable flying it with GPS assistance off if it allows.
Keep it current. If your knowledge lapses for more than two years, your results may no longer count.
What to bring
Your passed exam results (digital or printed)
Valid government-issued photo ID
The Certificate of Registration for the drone you'll fly
Your drone, enough charged batteries for a long session, and your controller
Your site survey, checklists and flight plan
What you'll be assessed on
The exercises follow Transport Canada's standard and fall into a few groups:
Pre-flight planning: airspace, weather, NOTAMs, site survey, and whether the flight is legal where you're standing. In controlled airspace, that includes the NAV CANADA authorization process.
Pre-flight checks: a proper walkaround and a checklist you actually follow.
Normal operations: takeoff, hover, controlled maneuvers and landing, with smooth, deliberate inputs.
Emergency procedures: what you'd do on lost link, a fly-away, a low battery or a person entering your area, and how you'd communicate with your crew.
Post-flight: shutdown, inspection, logging and anything you'd report.
Common mistakes
No site survey, or one that's clearly been filled in on the drive over
Skipping the checklist because you "always do it in your head"
Not knowing the airspace you're standing in
Over-relying on automation and getting rattled when asked to fly without it
Talking through emergencies vaguely. Say exactly what you'd do, in order.
On the day
Arrive early, set up calmly, and talk the reviewer through what you're doing and why. Narrating your decisions shows your judgement, and judgement is what the review is really about. If something goes wrong, say so and handle it. That's airmanship.
After the review
If you pass, your results are submitted to Transport Canada, usually within 24 hours, and you can apply for your Advanced pilot certificate. If you don't, you can try again, often as soon as the next day.
Booking a review in Manitoba
I run Advanced RPAS flight reviews in Manitoba through Caswell Aviation. Get in touch to book or ask questions, and see Transport Canada's flight review page and the Flight Reviewer's Guide.
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