New Zealand Courses

CAA certification for flying in New Zealand

Every course here is delivered under DroneTrust’s CAA Part 141 certification (#TR104722). Theory and exams are online and self-paced; the certificate courses add an in-person flight assessment with an examiner, and examiners operate nationwide.

Which one you need depends on how you fly, not on whether you are paid. Flying within visual line of sight, below 400 ft, away from people and property without consent and outside 4 km of an aerodrome is Part 101 territory and needs no certificate at all. The Part 101 Pilot Certificate ($695) matters when your sites sit within 4 km of an aerodrome, and because most clients and councils expect to see it.

Part 102 ($1,295) is for work that falls outside those rules — agrichemical spraying, aircraft over 25 kg, beyond visual line of sight, or over people and property without consent. It includes all the Part 101 content. The Part 102 OCA ($629) is the recurrent competency check for pilots already operating under a UAOC; most expositions require it annually, though the interval is set by each operator’s exposition rather than by a CAA rule.

Prices exclude GST. All courses must be completed within 12 months of purchase.