Exam Day and the Under-Taught Topics

The topics test-takers keep reporting from real exams that standard study guides skip, plus the mechanics of the test itself.

The mechanics

• 60 questions, three choices each (A/B/C), 2 hours, 70% to pass, $175 at a PSI center. Basic calculator allowed; the testing supplement (FAA-CT-8080-2H) with all figures and the chart legend is handed to you.
• Every candidate gets a different question form. Some forms run harder.
• FAA's study-time guidance: 15–20 hours. Don't book the test date until practice scores say you're ready - a deadline before competence just adds stress.
• Missed questions print as ACS codes (UA.I.B.K21b-style) on your test report. Match them to the ACS document to target a retake or the recurrent training. (LegalToFly's whole reporting model is built on these codes.)

Test-taking tactics worth stealing

• Reframe the question before touching the answers. Reword the FAA's formal phrasing into plain language, decide what's being asked, THEN look at choices. On chart questions: solve first, then find your answer in the list.
• Distractor anatomy: typically one absurd choice, one plausible trap, one correct. The correct answer is often positioned so you read the traps first.
• When two answers both seem right, pick the most complete/closest one - the exam asks for the best answer, not a perfect one.
• Chart-figure questions eat clock. Bank the fast questions first.

Manned-aircraft flight controls (yes, it's on the drone exam)

Three axes intersect at the center of gravity. The pairs to memorize cold:

Operations over people (§107.39 categories)

• Category 1: ≤ 0.55 lb (250 g), no exposed rotating parts (prop guards), Remote ID compliant.
• Category 2: < 55 lb, impact below 11 ft-lb of kinetic energy, no exposed rotating parts, manufacturer Means of Compliance + Declaration of Compliance filed with the FAA.
• Category 3: same as 2 but 25 ft-lb, with tighter operational limits (closed/restricted-access sites, or people under cover / not gathered).
• Category 4: the only category requiring an FAA airworthiness certificate. That question appears verbatim.
• Sustained flight (hovering) over open-air assemblies is the restricted concept - transit is treated differently from loitering.
• Intuition for the energy limits: 11 ft-lb is roughly a baseball arriving at a firm toss - it hurts, it doesn't hospitalize. 25 ft-lb is the same ball thrown hard. The category limits are set where impacts stop being bruises.

Drugs, alcohol, and the FAA

• Conviction (federal OR state) for growing/possessing/selling/transporting marijuana or other controlled substances → certificate application denied for one year from the conviction date ("never" and "18 months" are the distractors).
• Operating while using marijuana → immediate suspension/revocation action.
• Medical marijuana: federally, marijuana is still a controlled substance, and the FAA recognizes no medical exemption. State cards don't matter to §107.57.

FAA inspection

"On FAA request, the remote PIC must..." → make the sUAS available for inspection or testing, and produce the required documents (certificate, registration). "Refuse without a warrant" is the bait choice.

Part 107 applicability sorting

• 0.5-lb toy flown for fun → recreational (49 USC 44809), not Part 107.
• 12-lb drone shooting real-estate footage for pay → Part 107.
• 45-lb agricultural sprayer → Part 137 (chemical dispensing), regardless of weight.

After you pass

Recurrent training every 24 calendar months (free, online). Address change: notify the FAA within 30 days. Keep the certificate on you when flying.