Part 107 Operations Over People: § 107.39 and Categories 1–4

Federal Part 107 flight over people is governed by 14 CFR § 107.39 (Operation over human beings) and by Subpart D of part 107. This article restates those rules for commercial remote pilots as published in the eCFR and summarized on the FAA’s Operations Over People page. It is a law explainer, not legal advice. Read the live CFR text and the FAA overview before a job that will pass over non-participants, and consult counsel when the operation sits outside the plain language of the rule.

Section 107.39 is a prohibition with three listed exceptions. If none of those paths applies, the flight over a human being is not authorized under that section as written.

§ 107.39: three paths over human beings

Under 14 CFR § 107.39, no person may operate a small unmanned aircraft over a human being unless one of the following is true:

(a) Directly participating. That human being is directly participating in the operation of the small unmanned aircraft.

(b) Covered structure or stationary vehicle. That human being is located under a covered structure or inside a stationary vehicle that can provide reasonable protection from a falling small unmanned aircraft.

(c) Subpart D operational category. The operation meets the requirements of at least one of the operational categories specified in subpart D of part 107.

Those three clauses are the complete § 107.39 gate. A remote pilot certificate alone does not rewrite them. Client preference or an assumption that “everyone on site agreed” does not substitute for paragraph (a), (b), or (c) as stated in the regulation.

Paragraph (b) is limited to a covered structure or a stationary vehicle that can provide reasonable protection from a falling small unmanned aircraft. Moving vehicles are addressed separately in Subpart D (§ 107.145) and are outside the plain text of § 107.39(b).

Subpart D: Categories 1–4 at a high level

When § 107.39(a) and (b) do not cover the people under the aircraft, § 107.39(c) points to Subpart D. Under § 107.105, except as provided in §§ 107.39(a) and (b) and 107.145, a remote pilot in command may conduct operations over human beings only in accordance with Category 1 (§ 107.110), Category 2 (§§ 107.115 and 107.120), Category 3 (§§ 107.125 and 107.130), or Category 4 (§ 107.140). The FAA’s Operations Over People overview describes the same four categories for commercial operators.

Category 1 (§ 107.110)

Category 1 is weight- and design-limited. Under § 107.110(a), the remote PIC must use a small unmanned aircraft that:

1. Weighs 0.55 pounds or less on takeoff and throughout the duration of each Category 1 operation, including everything on board or otherwise attached to the aircraft; and
2. Does not contain any exposed rotating parts that would lacerate human skin upon impact with a human being.

Category 1 does not use the Category 2/3 declaration-of-compliance path. Eligibility turns on the weight and laceration limits in § 107.110(a).

Categories 2 and 3 (performance-based; declaration of compliance)

Categories 2 and 3 cover small unmanned aircraft above the Category 1 weight path under performance-based eligibility, an FAA-accepted declaration of compliance, and labeling. The remote PIC must use an aircraft that is eligible under the applicable section, listed on an FAA-accepted declaration of compliance under § 107.160, and labeled for the category (§§ 107.115 and 107.125; eligibility in §§ 107.120 and 107.130). Category 2 and Category 3 use different injury-severity thresholds in the eligibility sections; read §§ 107.120 and 107.130 for the aircraft design limits that apply.

Category 3 adds operating limits that Category 2 does not. Under § 107.125(b), the remote PIC must not operate the small unmanned aircraft over open-air assemblies of human beings. Under § 107.125(c), the aircraft may operate above any human being only if:

1. The operation is within or over a closed- or restricted-access site and all human beings located within that site are on notice that a small unmanned aircraft may fly over them; or
2. The small unmanned aircraft does not maintain sustained flight over any human being unless that human being is directly participating, or is located under a covered structure or inside a stationary vehicle that can provide reasonable protection from a falling small unmanned aircraft.

Those Category 3 site-and-notice and sustained-flight limits are operating requirements in § 107.125. Do not treat a Category 2 declaration as authorizing Category 3 operating conditions, or the reverse.

Category 4 (§ 107.140)

Category 4 is the airworthiness path. Under § 107.140(b), to be eligible to operate over human beings under that section, the small unmanned aircraft must have an airworthiness certificate issued under part 21 of this chapter; must be operated in accordance with the operating limitations specified in the approved Flight Manual or as otherwise specified by the Administrator, and those operating limitations must not prohibit operations over human beings; and must meet the maintenance and inspection requirements stated in § 107.140. The remote PIC must use an eligible aircraft and operate it within those Administrator-specified limits (§ 107.140(a)).

Remote ID where Subpart D ties it in

Remote identification is not a substitute for § 107.39 or for category eligibility. Subpart D ties Remote ID in for sustained flight over open-air assemblies in Categories 1, 2, and 4: under §§ 107.110(b), 107.115(b), and 107.140(a)(2), no remote PIC may operate a small unmanned aircraft in sustained flight over open-air assemblies of human beings unless the operation meets the requirements of either § 89.110 or § 89.115(a) of this chapter. Category 3 separately prohibits operations over open-air assemblies (§ 107.125(b)).

For what Remote ID requires on a Part 107 flight generally, see Remote ID on a Part 107 flight. That post does not replace the sustained-flight-over-open-air-assembly clauses in Subpart D.

Practical takeaway for commercial Part 107 jobs

Map the people under the aircraft to § 107.39(a), § 107.39(b), or a Subpart D category before launch. Confirm Category 1 weight and laceration limits, Category 2/3 declaration-of-compliance listing and labeling, Category 3 closed-site or sustained-flight limits, or Category 4 part 21 airworthiness and Flight Manual limits, as applicable. Where Categories 1, 2, or 4 involve sustained flight over an open-air assembly, read the Remote ID cross-references in those sections.

Night work remains a separate rule. Part 107 night operations under § 107.29 are addressed in Part 107 night operations and do not rewrite § 107.39.

Official sources: 14 CFR § 107.39, 14 CFR part 107 Subpart D, and the FAA Operations Over People overview. Confirm the current eCFR text and FAA page before relying on any summary, including this one. This article is not legal advice.