Drone pre-flight checklist

Print from the browser (Ctrl+P / ⌘P) and it fits on one A4 page. Numbers — wind limits, battery voltage — differ by aircraft, so they are not printed here. Write the values from your manual in the margin.

The rules behind the first section are inHow to fly a drone in Japan.

• Checked on the map that the site is not airport airspace, above 150 m, a Densely Inhabited District or emergency airspace (or a permit is in hand)
• Checked that the flight is not night, beyond line of sight, within 30 m, over an event, hazardous cargo or dropping objects (or an approval is in hand)
• Landowner or site manager consent obtained; park or river authority rules checked
• Flight plan filed on DIPS 2.0 if this is a specified flight
• Weather forecast read. Strong wind, thunder or rain forecast: decided to cancel
• Registration still valid; registration ID displayed on the aircraft
• Batteries fully charged; spares counted
• Controller, phone and tablet charged
• Memory card has space; last flight's data moved off

• Aircraft, controller, batteries, spare propellers, tools, landing pad packed
• Permit or approval (or the DIPS screen), registration proof, licence if held
• Insurer's contact details noted
• No alcohol. Feeling well
• If flying with others, roles agreed: pilot, observer, recorder

• No people nearby, or everyone at 30 m or more, or access controlled
• No manned aircraft, birds, power lines or overhangs above
• Felt the wind. Above the manufacturer's limit: not flying
• No cracks or loose parts on the airframe. Propellers undamaged and tight
• Battery not swollen; charge near full
• GPS has enough satellites; home point updated
• No compass warning (common near metal and buildings)
• Controller link stable; return-to-home altitude set above surrounding obstacles
• Camera settings and storage checked
• Hover a few seconds after take-off to confirm attitude and response

• Aircraft in visual line of sight (unless approved otherwise)
• Watching battery level; leaving enough to return
• If a manned aircraft appears, descend and give way immediately
• If people or vehicles approach, move away or land
• Wind picking up, behaviour changing, or a warning — any one of these means land

• Motors stopped before removing the battery
• Airframe and propellers inspected; anything found is fixed before the next flight
• Photos, video and flight log saved
• Specified flight: log entry made — date, place, duration, pilot, maintenance
• Any accident (injury, third-party damage, collision with an aircraft) reported to MLIT

The point of a checklist is not to tick every box. It is to have decided in advance that one unticked box means you do not fly. Cancelling at the site hurts, which is why the weather line is on the day before: decide at home, not in the field.

A flight log is mandatory for specified flights in Japan. For every other flight, a pilot with a record and a pilot without one have very different conversations after an incident. Airffic World keeps position and altitude history for registered aircraft — a backing for the log.