In-House Drone Program or Aerial Documentation Service?
What it takes to fly your own program under FAA rules, what agencies have learned running them, and when hiring a documentation service fits better.
Cities, districts, HOAs, and property managers that need regular aerial records face an early choice: build an in-house drone program, or hire a documentation service. Both work. The right answer depends on how often you fly, who will own the program, and what happens to the data afterward.
What an in-house program requires
Commercial drone flights in the U.S. fall under FAA Part 107. An organization flying its own program takes on these requirements:
- Certified pilots. Each pilot passes the FAA knowledge test, clears a TSA background check, and completes free online recurrent training every 24 calendar months (FAA).
- Registered aircraft. Each drone is registered with the FAA, marked with its registration number, and renewed every three years (FAA).
- Remote ID. Every drone that must be registered must also broadcast Remote ID, except within FAA-recognized identification areas (FAA).
- Airspace authorization. Flights in controlled airspace need FAA authorization, often through LAANC, and operations outside Part 107 limits need a waiver (FAA).
- Accident reporting. Pilots must report qualifying accidents to the FAA within 10 calendar days (14 CFR 107.9).
- Insurance. Federal law does not require drone insurance, but contracts and agency policies often do.
- Equipment planning. The FCC's Covered List limits new authorizations for foreign-made drones and parts, which affects what an organization can buy next (Holland & Knight). See our FCC explainer.
- Processing and storage. Raw images become useful records only after processing into orthomosaics and models, then stored where they can be compared over time and protected.
What public agencies have learned
Transportation agencies have run drone programs for years, and their reviews are candid. A 2018 Federal Highway Administration peer exchange of state transportation departments found that agencies with advanced programs had a champion who pushed for adoption, that leadership buy-in kept groups aligned on equipment, policies, procedures, and insurance coverage, and that some created a dedicated UAS coordinator role (FHWA). A December 2023 report prepared for the New Jersey Department of Transportation found wide differences among state transportation departments in how they used consultants, from none at all to consultants only, and recommended that drone data processed by NJDOT or its consultants follow NJDOT policies (NJDOT).
Side by side
| In-house program | Documentation service | |
|---|---|---|
| Pilots | You certify, train, and keep pilots current | The provider's certified pilots |
| Aircraft and sensors | You buy, register, maintain, and replace them | The provider's fleet, insured and maintained |
| Insurance | Your organization's policy and risk | The provider's coverage, with additional insured requests |
| Processing | Your software and staff time | Included, delivered as finished records |
| Consistency | Depends on staff availability and turnover | Flown on a set schedule by the same process each time |
| Best fit | Frequent, varied, on-call flying by staff who use drones daily | Scheduled records of specific sites, without building a program |
When each makes sense
An in-house program fits an organization that flies often, for many purposes, and can dedicate trained staff, for example public safety teams on call. A documentation service fits when the goal is a consistent, dated record of specific properties on a schedule, and the team would rather not own pilots, aircraft, insurance, processing, and storage. Some organizations do both: in-house for on-call needs, a service for the scheduled record.
How FlyCRE works
FlyCRE flies annual plans with flights every two weeks, monthly, or quarterly. Every flight captures RGB, thermal, and multispectral imagery, flown by FAA Part 107 certified pilots on insured aircraft. We process each flight and deliver it through FlyCRE Intelligence, an encrypted private platform, where every record keeps its date for comparison. Public agencies can find our credentials, insurance, and data handling on one page: information for public agencies.
Common questions
Do we need our own Part 107 pilots to use FlyCRE?
No. FlyCRE's certified pilots fly every mission, and your team receives the finished record.
Can we run an in-house program and still use FlyCRE?
Yes. Many organizations keep drones for on-call needs and use a service for scheduled, comparable records of specific sites.
Who owns the data from a documentation service?
With FlyCRE, the client who orders the flights owns the data and decides who has access. FlyCRE does not publish client data.
This page summarizes FAA requirements and public agency reports as of October 21, 2026. It is general information, not legal advice; confirm current FAA rules and your organization's policies.