Fly within the rules
This page explains what aviation authorities, model-aircraft associations, racing bodies and researchers publish. It is not legal advice and not a substitute for your aviation authority's own rules, a club safety officer or proper training.
This section is a reference to FPV racing equipment as the published rules describe it. It names the parts and says what each body requires of them. It does not cover building, soldering, wiring, tuning, flight-controller configuration, or charging, balancing, storing or disposing of batteries: those belong with a club, a qualified person and the maker's own instructions. No page here says a drone, transmitter, battery or setup is legal, compliant, certified or safe. Each page says instead which authority's rule or list decides.
Makers' figures, such as video latency or output power, are given as the maker's claims and were not tested for this site. Racing rules and association rules are sport rules, never law, and the law is always given country by country.
Who sets the rules on equipment
| Body | Document used on these pages | Where it applies |
|---|---|---|
| FAI (world air sports federation) | Sporting Code Section 4, Volume F9 Drone Sports, 2025 edition, effective 1 May 2025, chapter C (class F9U). A 2026 edition exists but could not be opened; its effective date is reported as 1 January 2026 and as 1 June 2026, both from search summaries | FAI drone racing events; the FAI says national air law takes precedence |
| MultiGP (organiser) | Its Race Class Specifications page, read 30 October 2026. Its Rule Book was not read | MultiGP races only |
| Aviation authorities | US: 14 CFR Part 89 (Remote ID). UK: CAA Remote ID pages and the Drone and Model Aircraft Code (March 2026). EU: EASA guidance on Regulations 2019/945 and 2019/947. Canada: a Transport Canada proposal only (NPA 2026-005); no final rule was found | Each in its own jurisdiction |
| Radio regulators | US: FCC documents (a 2018 Notice of Apparent Liability, an enforcement advisory, fact sheets). Europe: CEPT ERC/REC 70-03. UK, Canada and Australia: partly unconfirmed | Each in its own jurisdiction |
| Air transport bodies | IATA passenger guidance of 31 March 2026, based on the ICAO Technical Instructions; UK CAA dangerous goods page | Batteries carried by air passengers |
| Product safety regulators | US CPSC recall notices | The products each notice names |
The pages
The aircraft
- Frames and classes: the FAI's 1 kg and 330 mm limits, MultiGP's class frames, indoor micro aircraft and propeller guards.
- Motors and propellers: electric motors only, the 6-inch FAI propeller limit, motor-size labels and propeller material rules.
- Flight controllers and ESCs: the fail-safe and pit mode the FAI requires, the automation it bans, and the firmware projects named by MultiGP.
- Video transmitters and cameras: 5.8 GHz video at 25 mW under F9U, analogue and digital systems as makers describe them.
On the ground
- Goggles, analogue and digital: the FAI's goggle rules and makers' goggle claims.
- Radios and receivers: control-link rules, and the link systems and firmware named by their own projects.
Batteries
- LiPo batteries: cell counts and voltages as racing rules use them, the terms IATA defines, and the hazard as safety bodies describe it.
- Flying with batteries: the IATA limits of 31 March 2026, the UK CAA changes of 27 March 2026, and the unconfirmed US position.
Rules and lists
- Remote ID: US, UK, EU, Canada and Australia, each with its own dates.
- Class marks, EU and UK: C0 to C6, UK0 to UK6, legacy and privately built drones.
- Radio equipment rules: certification and marketing rules for transmitters, by regulator.
- The FCC Covered List: what the December 2025 additions mean for new drone parts in the US.
- Recalls: battery and charger recalls as the regulators' notices state them.
Gaps to know about
- The FAI's 2026 F9 edition and MultiGP's full Rule Book were not read, so racing limits here may have changed.
- Every faa.gov page tried and the PHMSA pages refused access, so US battery transport rules and any FAA Remote ID statement after July 2024 are unconfirmed. Every Ofcom page tried also refused access, so UK radio rules rest on search summaries.
- No standards body text was read for drone batteries or radio equipment; the standards are named only from search summaries or as other documents cite them. No standard was found that defines the "S" cell-count or "C" rating terms used in the hobby.
- The text of Regulation (EU) 2019/945, which sets the C classes, could not be read; EU class limits come from the German transport ministry and Spain's aviation safety agency.
Sources
- FAI Sporting Code Section 4, Volume F9 Drone Sports, 2025 edition (effective 1 May 2025)
- FAI, SC4 volume CIAM F9 Drone sports 2026 (listed; host did not resolve, not read)
- Prism News, drone racing's 2026 rules (search-result summary only)
- MultiGP, Race Class Specifications
- MultiGP, Rule Book page
- Cornell LII, 14 CFR Part 89, Remote Identification of Unmanned Aircraft
- UK CAA, Remote ID policy page
- UK CAA, The Drone and Model Aircraft Code, CAP2320 (March 2026)
- UK CAA, changes to rules on the carriage of lithium cells, batteries and power banks (effective 27 March 2026)
- FAA, Remote ID talking points (1 July 2024, published on FAASafety.gov)
- EASA, Drone Open Category: applicable requirements to fly from the 1st of January 2024 (20 December 2023)
- FCC, Notice of Apparent Liability FCC 18-71 (released 5 June 2018)
- FCC Enforcement Bureau, Enforcement Advisory No. 2018-02 (DA 18-581, 5 June 2018)
- FCC Fact Sheet, Covered List updates and FAQs (7 January 2026)
- CEPT, ERC/REC 70-03 document page
- German Federal Ministry of Transport (dipul), C-classified drones
- AESA (Spain), design and production of UAS
- IATA, Passengers Travelling with Lithium Batteries (31 March 2026)
- US CPSC, HTRC C240 battery charger recall (12 December 2024)