Operations guide · 9 min read · Updated September 2026

Operating Over People Under Part 107: Categories, Requirements, and How to Know Which Applies

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The Four Categories and What They Allow

Category 1

A small unmanned aircraft may qualify for Category 1 if:

• It weighs 0.55 pounds or less, including everything attached to or carried by the aircraft, throughout the operation; and
• It contains no exposed rotating parts that would cause lacerations if they struck a person.

Category 1 does not require an FAA-accepted Means of Compliance or Declaration of Compliance.

A qualifying Category 1 aircraft may be operated over people when the other Part 107 requirements are met.

There is an additional restriction for open-air assemblies: sustained flight over an open-air assembly under Category 1 requires compliance with the applicable Remote ID requirements.

Category 2

Category 2 is a performance-based category. The aircraft must meet FAA requirements intended to limit the severity of an injury if it strikes a person.

Among other requirements, a Category 2 aircraft must:

• Not be capable of causing an injury equivalent to or greater than the severity associated with an impact from a rigid object transferring 11 foot-pounds of kinetic energy;
• Have no exposed rotating parts that could cause lacerations; and
• Have no safety defects.

Unlike Category 1, Category 2 requires an FAA-accepted Means of Compliance and Declaration of Compliance.

Category 2 aircraft may be operated over people when the aircraft and operation meet the applicable requirements. Sustained flight over an open-air assembly also requires Remote ID compliance.

Category 3

Category 3 is also performance based, but it permits a higher injury-severity threshold than Category 2.

Among other requirements, a Category 3 aircraft must:

• Not be capable of causing an injury equivalent to or greater than the severity associated with an impact from a rigid object transferring 25 foot-pounds of kinetic energy;
• Have no exposed rotating parts that could cause lacerations; and
• Have no safety defects.

An FAA-accepted Means of Compliance and Declaration of Compliance are required.

Category 3 has significantly tighter operating restrictions than Category 2.

You may not conduct a Category 3 operation over an open-air assembly of people.

For other operations over people, the operation generally must either:

1. Be within or over a closed- or restricted-access site where everyone on site has been notified that a small UAS may fly over them; or
2. Avoid sustained flight over people who are not directly participating in the operation, unless those people are under a covered structure or inside a stationary vehicle that provides reasonable protection from a falling small unmanned aircraft.

Category 4

Category 4 applies to eligible small unmanned aircraft that have an airworthiness certificate issued under Part 21.

The aircraft must be operated according to the operating limitations in its FAA-approved Flight Manual or other limitations specified by the FAA, and those limitations must permit operations over people.

Category 4 aircraft are also subject to applicable maintenance, inspection, and continued-airworthiness requirements.

Sustained flight over an open-air assembly under Category 4 requires Remote ID compliance.

How to Determine Which Category Your Drone Qualifies For

The answer depends on the category.

Determining Category 1 eligibility

Category 1 does not use the same Declaration of Compliance process as Categories 2 and 3.

The remote pilot needs to verify that the aircraft, in the configuration actually being flown:

• Weighs no more than 0.55 pounds, including attachments and payload; and
• Has no exposed rotating parts that would cause lacerations.

Adding accessories matters. An aircraft that weighs less than 0.55 pounds by itself may exceed the Category 1 weight limit after adding a battery, propeller guards, lights, a payload, or other equipment.

Propeller guards also do not automatically make an aircraft Category 1. They may help address exposed rotating parts, but the completed aircraft still has to satisfy both the weight requirement and the rotating-parts requirement.

Determining Category 2 or Category 3 eligibility

Do not try to determine Category 2 or Category 3 eligibility simply by looking at propeller shape or estimating how hard the aircraft might hit someone.

These categories require the aircraft or qualifying configuration to have an FAA-accepted Declaration of Compliance supported by an FAA-accepted Means of Compliance.

Before conducting a Category 2 or Category 3 operation over people, also verify that the aircraft is labeled as eligible for the applicable category. If the Category 2 or Category 3 label is damaged, destroyed, or missing, the remote pilot in command must correctly relabel the aircraft before conducting operations over people. The replacement label must be in English, legible, prominent, and remain on the aircraft for the duration of the operation.

The FAA maintains a public Declaration of Compliance system where pilots can search accepted Operations Over People declarations.

Check the exact manufacturer, model, configuration, and any required equipment associated with the declaration. Remote ID compliance and Operations Over People compliance are separate declarations, so do not assume that finding an aircraft on the Remote ID list automatically means it qualifies for Category 2 or Category 3.

See FAA Drones home for the FAA's Operations Over People resources and compliance information.

Determining Category 4 eligibility

For Category 4, confirm that the aircraft has the required FAA airworthiness certificate and review its approved operating limitations.

Having an airworthiness certificate does not by itself mean every operation over people is permitted. The applicable operating limitations must allow the operation you intend to conduct.

Open-Air Assemblies and Sustained Flight

An open-air assembly is treated differently from ordinary operations over individual people.

Category 3 operations are not permitted over an open-air assembly under the standard Category 3 rules.

Categories 1, 2, and 4 can allow operations over open-air assemblies, but sustained flight over an open-air assembly requires Remote ID compliance.

The FAA describes sustained flight as activity such as:

• Hovering above people in the assembly;
• Flying back and forth over the assembly; or
• Circling in a way that keeps the aircraft above some portion of the assembly.

A brief, one-time transit over part of an assembly that is merely incidental to a point-to-point flight is treated differently from sustained flight.

This distinction matters at concerts, sporting events, festivals, demonstrations, outdoor ceremonies, and similar gatherings.

Operations Over Moving Vehicles

Flying over a moving vehicle is not automatically prohibited under Part 107.

For Category 1, 2, or 3 operations, flight over moving vehicles may be permitted if the applicable category requirements are satisfied and one of the following conditions applies:

• The operation remains within or over a closed- or restricted-access site, and people inside moving vehicles within that site have been notified that a small UAS may fly over them; or
• The aircraft does not maintain sustained flight over moving vehicles.

Outside a closed or restricted site, that generally means a brief transit may be permissible, but hovering over, following, or repeatedly remaining above moving traffic is not.

Category 4 aircraft may operate over moving vehicles when their applicable FAA-approved operating limitations allow it.

This is separate from the rule governing operation from a moving vehicle.

Operating From a Moving Vehicle Is a Different Rule

Part 107 treats flying over a moving vehicle and controlling a drone from a moving vehicle as different issues.

Operating a drone from a moving land or water vehicle without a waiver is permitted only when:

• The operation is conducted over a sparsely populated area; and
• The operation does not involve transporting another person's property for compensation or hire.

Operations outside those conditions may require a waiver of §107.25.

However, Part 107 does not allow a §107.25 waiver to authorize carriage of another person's property by aircraft for compensation or hire.

Other Part 107 Rules Still Apply

You must still comply with applicable requirements involving:

• Airspace authorization;
• Visual line of sight;
• Right-of-way rules;
• Altitude and groundspeed limits;
• Weather visibility and cloud-clearance requirements;
• Night operations;
• Remote ID;
• Preflight responsibilities; and
• The prohibition against careless or reckless operation.

An Operations Over People category answers one particular regulatory question. It does not provide blanket permission for the rest of the flight.

When You Still Need a Waiver

A Part 107 waiver may still be necessary when your planned operation cannot meet the standard rule.

Examples include:

• Flying over people with an aircraft that does not meet the conditions for Categories 1, 2, 3, or 4;
• Conducting an operation over people in a manner that exceeds the restrictions of the applicable category;
• Flying over moving vehicles in a way that does not satisfy §107.145;
• Operating from a moving vehicle where the standard §107.25 conditions are not met; or
• Operating multiple small UAS simultaneously with one remote pilot when a waiver of the multiple-aircraft restriction is required.

The waiver must cover the specific regulation from which you need relief. A waiver for one rule does not automatically waive other Part 107 requirements.

See FAA Drones home for current FAA waiver guidance and application information.

Common questions

Can I fly over my family in my backyard?

Possibly. Your relationship to the people on the ground does not by itself create an exemption.

A qualifying Category 1 or Category 2 operation can allow flight over people when all applicable requirements are satisfied.

Category 3 is more restrictive. Unless the operation is within or over an appropriate closed- or restricted-access site where everyone has notice, you generally may not maintain sustained flight over a person who is not directly participating unless that person is under a covered structure or inside a stationary vehicle that provides reasonable protection.

Category 4 depends on the aircraft's applicable operating limitations.

Does adding propeller guards automatically make my drone Category 1?

No.

Category 1 requires the entire aircraft to weigh 0.55 pounds or less, including attachments, and to contain no exposed rotating parts that would cause lacerations.

Propeller guards may help with the rotating-parts requirement, but they can also increase the aircraft's weight. Evaluate the aircraft in the exact configuration you intend to fly.

Can a Category 2 drone fly over people standing outside?

Yes, if the aircraft is eligible for Category 2 and the operation meets the applicable Part 107 requirements.

Category 2 is not limited to people under covered structures or inside stationary vehicles.

That protection concept is especially important to certain Category 3 operations.

Can I fly over workers at a construction site?

Potentially.

A qualifying Category 1 or Category 2 operation may be conducted over people if all applicable requirements are met.

Category 3 may also be useful at a construction site when the site is closed or restricted access and everyone on site has been notified that small UAS operations may occur overhead.

The exact operating category, site controls, aircraft eligibility, airspace, and other Part 107 requirements all need to be evaluated before the flight.

Can I fly over cars on a public road?

Part 107 allows some operations over moving vehicles, but the aircraft cannot simply hover over or continuously follow traffic under the ordinary Category 1, 2, or 3 rules.

Outside a qualifying closed- or restricted-access site, the operation must not maintain sustained flight over moving vehicles.

Category 4 operations depend on the aircraft's approved operating limitations.

Does being under a tree count as being under a covered structure?

Do not assume that it does.

Where Part 107 relies on protection from a covered structure or stationary vehicle, the protection must be capable of providing reasonable protection from a falling small unmanned aircraft.

A tree should not be treated as the regulatory equivalent of a protective covered structure simply because a person is standing beneath its branches.

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Reviewed and updated September 2026.

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