Record keeping

Commercial operators must keep records of your operations to show us that you’re complying with the drone safety rules.

Keeping records

You must keep records if you are:

flying a small (2-25 kg) and medium (25-150 kg) remotely piloted aircraft over your own land
flying a drone of any size under a Remotely Piloted Aircraft Operator’s Certificate (ReOC)
a manufacturer conducting a test flight of RPA or model aircraft that is less than 150 kg after manufacturing.

You do not need to keep records if you are flying an RPA that is:

very small (2 kg or less)
micro (250 g or less).

These fall under the excluded category or a model aircraft for sport or recreation. They also include a drone which you have built or repaired yourself.

Learn about the different types of drone weight categories and requirements.

You must be able to present a copy of these records to us if required. If you sell your drone, the person buying it may also ask to see a copy.

Guide to record keeping requirements

The following information provides a basic guide to the requirements.

For a full understanding of the rules, we recommend reading CASA Part 101 (Unmanned Aircraft and Rockets) Manual of Standards 2019.

You can also read the relevant amendment instrument to make sure you're correctly creating and maintaining all required documentation.

Test flight log

Keep for: 3 years.

CASA instrument 63/21 prescribes certain RPA which are not required to be registered, mainly for the purpose of flight testing after maintenance or repair. For any operation performed under the provisions of the instrument, a record must be kept of each test flight. Refer to CASA 63/21 for the required information to be recorded.

You must keep a record of each test flight for any operation performed under the provisions of the instrument.

Test flight logs must be kept for 3 years. They must include:

the serial number of the RPA or model aircraft flown
the name, address, and ARN (if any) of the owner of the RPA or model aircraft
the time and date of the test flight
the location of the test flight
the reason for the test flight
any accident, incident or malfunction that occurred during the test flight
the name of the remote pilot.

We may disclose the personal information you provide in your test flight logs to a person other than us. This is only if the disclosure has the consent of the owner of the aircraft or the disclosure is required by law.

RPA Operator's Certificate (ReOC) holders

Chief Remote Pilot duty records (MOS 10.03)

Keep for: 7 years.

Information that the Chief Remote Pilot must keep include:

operational records:
- job safety assessments for RPA operations
- risk management plans
- operational flight plans
internal training such as induction or procedural training:
- full name and ARN of each individual who attended the training course
- the dates of the training
- the nature, extent, and purpose of the training
the outcome of the training for each individual record of qualifications for each person operating an RPA for the operator.

RePL training course records (MOS 10.03A)

Keep for: 7 years after the day the course ends

Information that you must keep includes:

full name and ARN of each applicant who attended the training course
the name and nature of the course, including RPA category, type and complexity
the dates of the training
the RePL MOS units covered in the training course
the outcome of the training course for each applicant
the theory exam as completed by each applicant and assessed by the examiner
a record of examination attempted by an applicant, including:
- the applicant’s full name and ARN
- the date of the examination
- whether the examination was a second or subsequent attempt
- the mark awarded and whether the applicant passed
a record for each flight test attempted by the applicant, including:
- the list of questions asked of the applicant to demonstrate knowledge
- for each listed question, whether the applicant demonstrated a satisfactory level of knowledge
- if the examiner invoked Part 101 MOS subsection 2.31 (5)
- the overall assessment of the applicant’s level of knowledge
- whether the applicant demonstrated competency with each unit of competency, item and manoeuvre, and accuracy and tolerance
the overall assessment of the applicant’s level of practical competency the RPA category, type, and complexity for each flight test attempted by each applicant
mode of operation IAW Part 101 MOS subsection 2.06 (1).

Operational release (MOS 10.04)

Keep for: 7 years

You must include the following records for operational release. This is unless the ReOC holder operating the RPA is the sole remote pilot for the RPA in any operation under the ReOC. Information includes:

nature and purpose of operation
information identifying the relevant RPA, including the type and model
remote pilot station for the operation
dates and times of the operation
the location of where you operated the RPA to and from
the maximum height (AGL) permitted for the operation
full name and ARN of the remote pilot in command and any other remote pilot
crew member’s full name, ARN (if any) and position. You do not need to include this record if the RPA is 2 kg or less in a VLOS operation
whether you operated the RPA at VLOS, EVLOS 1 or 2 or BVLOS. You do not need to include this record if the RPA is 2 kg or less in a VLOS operation
details of any CASA-issued instruments of approvals, authorisation, direction, instruction, permission or exemption for the operation. You do not need to include this record if the RPA is 2 kg or less in a VLOS operation
that the relevant RPA is serviceable for the operation.