Height, Uninvolved People and Crowds
Drone Code points 3-5. The 120m height limit, the standard 50m people cylinder, small-aircraft exceptions and the absolute crowd-overflight prohibition.
How to prepare for the Flyer ID test
Start with aircraft weight, class and IDs, then apply the people, place, airspace and pre-flight rules to practical scenarios before rehearsing the 40-question format.
Core concepts
Concept 1
Except for an applicable special rule, the aircraft must remain no more than 120m from the closest point of the earth's surface.
Exam cue: Measure height from the closest earth surface when terrain rises or falls.
Concept 2
The standard rule creates a 50m horizontal no-fly cylinder around uninvolved people, including people in buildings and transport.
Exam cue: Identify involved versus uninvolved people and the aircraft's class or weight.
Concept 3
Eligible sub-250g and UK0/UK1/C0 aircraft, plus C1 during the recognition period, may fly closer to and over uninvolved people but never over crowds.
Exam cue: Test for a crowd separately because no small-aircraft exception permits crowd overflight.
Risk pitfalls and guardrails
Measuring 120m only from the take-off point over a cliff or hillside.
Guardrail: Do not confuse Flyer ID with Operator ID, treat a legal minimum as universally safe, or extend points 37-39 into the official test scope.
Flying above a person because vertical distance exceeds 50m.
Guardrail: Do not confuse Flyer ID with Operator ID, treat a legal minimum as universally safe, or extend points 37-39 into the official test scope.
Treating a group as safe to overfly because the aircraft is below 250g.
Guardrail: Do not confuse Flyer ID with Operator ID, treat a legal minimum as universally safe, or extend points 37-39 into the official test scope.
Memory anchors
120m Limit
Stay no more than 120m or 400ft from the closest point of the earth's surface.
People Cylinder
The standard 50m horizontal separation extends upward to the height limit.
People in Transport
People inside cars, trains, boats and buildings still count.
Small-aircraft Exception
Eligible sub-250g and recognised UK0/UK1/C0/C1 aircraft have different people-distance rules.
Crowd
A crowd is a group unable to move away quickly because of surrounding people.
Never Over Crowds
No Open-category small-aircraft exception permits crowd overflight.
Checkpoint rule
Do the check-up only after you can summarize each concept in one sentence and identify one dangerous pitfall from memory.
Knowledge Check (after reading)
Short check-up to confirm understanding of this module.
Check-up Questions
From where is the ordinary 120m height limit measured?
A drone flies from a cliff edge out over lower ground. What must the pilot do?
Answer all questions to submit.
Next step personalized recommendations
Continue learning
Move forward only after this module is stable.
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