Flying with goggles: who has to be watching, country by country.

This page has three parts that must not be mixed: first the law, one jurisdiction at a time; then the model-aircraft associations' own rules, which bind their members but are not law; then the racing rules. A rule in one section says nothing about any other.

The law, by jurisdiction

United States

What this rests on: the statute and regulation texts as published by Cornell's Legal Information Institute, and one FAA notice of 2019 published in the Federal Register. Every faa.gov page tried returned an error, so the FAA's current guidance on goggles was not read.

• Recreational flying, 49 U.S.C. 44809(a)(3) (enacted 5 October 2018, last amended 16 May 2024): the aircraft must stay within the visual line of sight of the operator, or of a visual observer who is co-located and in direct communication with the operator.
• FAA notice of 17 May 2019 (84 FR 22552, "Exception for Limited Recreational Operations of Unmanned Aircraft"): the FAA said that for flying under 44809 a visual observer is generally optional but is required for FPV, because FPV limits the operator's scan of the surrounding airspace. This is a 2019 notice, issued before the statute's 2024 amendment; whether the FAA's current guidance says the same could not be checked.
• Part 107 flying, 14 CFR 107.31: without visual aids other than corrective lenses, the remote pilot in command, the visual observer (if any) and the person at the controls must be able to see the aircraft well enough to know where it is, its attitude, altitude and direction, to watch for other traffic and hazards, and to confirm it endangers no one. That capability may be exercised by the remote pilot and the person at the controls, or by a visual observer.
• 14 CFR 107.33: when an observer is used, the pilot, the person at the controls and the observer must keep effective communication at all times and coordinate to scan for hazards and keep track of the aircraft by direct sight.
• Waivers: under 14 CFR 107.205, the FAA can waive 107.31 and 107.33, among other Part 107 rules.

United Kingdom

What this rests on: the CAA's Drone and Model Aircraft Code, CAP2320 (March 2026), and the CAA's FPV web page.

• CAP2320 p.11 (Code point 2): the aircraft must be kept in direct sight, clearly enough to tell which way it faces, without electronic viewing equipment; the Code names video goggles as an example of what does not count. Ordinary glasses and contact lenses are allowed.
• CAP2320 p.12: anyone flying by first-person view must have an observer with them. The observer stands next to the pilot, the two must be able to talk to each other at all times, and one of them must keep the aircraft in direct sight with a full view of the surrounding airspace. The observer needs no Flyer ID but must be told what to look for, and the pilot stays responsible.
• CAA FPV page (undated): FPV equipment does not permit flying beyond visual line of sight in the Open category. The CAA gives the reason for the observer as the reduced depth perception and peripheral vision of flying from a screen.

European Union

What this rests on: Regulation (EU) 2019/947 in its 2019 as-adopted text (the regulation has since been amended, and the consolidated text could not be read), and EASA's FAQs. National variations were not researched.

• Article 4(1)(d): an Open-category flight keeps the aircraft in visual line of sight at all times, except in follow-me mode or when an unmanned aircraft observer is used. Article 2 defines visual line of sight as the remote pilot's continuous, unaided visual contact with the aircraft.
• EASA FAQ 116511 (last updated 14 October 2020): goggle flying is allowed in the Open category if an observer is present who keeps the drone in sight, scans the airspace and can direct the pilot, for example to land, and who is located alongside the pilot so they can communicate immediately. EASA cites Article 4(d).
• Annex, UAS.OPEN.060(4) (as adopted): the observer is beside the pilot, watches the aircraft unaided, and the two communicate clearly.
• EASA FAQ 140038 (updated 25 June 2024): goggles do not give visual line of sight because of their narrow field of view. EASA says this answer covers non-racing FPV only. In the Specific category, standard scenario STS-02 allows FPV with an airspace observer and an unmanned aircraft observer, while STS-01 does not currently allow it.
• EASA FPV topic page (updated 26 September 2022): the observer must know the rules but needs no formal qualification.

Canada

What this rests on: Transport Canada's Aeronautical Information Manual, RPA chapter, effective 19 March 2026, which quotes and explains the Canadian Aviation Regulations (CARs). The CARs are the law; the manual is guidance.

• CAR 901.11(1): visual line of sight at all times during flight. CAR 900.01 defines it as unaided visual contact sufficient to keep control, know where the aircraft is and scan the airspace (AIM 3.2.1.1).
• AIM 3.2.1.1: visual line of sight may be kept by the pilot or by one or more trained visual observers; binoculars and zoom lenses are not allowed, ordinary glasses are.
• AIM 3.2.26, First-person View Devices: a pilot using an FPV system that reduces their field of view must use visual observers. The number depends on how complex and large the operation is, and the manual notes that FPV also cuts the pilot off from their surroundings.
• CAR 901.20 and AIM 3.2.8: pilot and observers must stay in constant and immediate communication; observers must be trained for the duties assigned and need no pilot certificate for basic or advanced visual-line-of-sight operations.

Australia

What this rests on: CASA instruments and explanatory statements on the Federal Register of Legislation, and a CASA instrument hosted by the MAAA. Every casa.gov.au page tried timed out, so CASA's own web wording appears only as unconfirmed search summaries.

• CASR regulation 101.073 (as described in the explanatory statement for CASA EX64/24, registered 21 October 2024): without a CASA approval, it is an offence to fly an unmanned aircraft outside the operator's visual line of sight. Within line of sight means the operator can continually see, orient and navigate it, with or without corrective lenses but without binoculars or similar devices.
• CASA.RPAS.0572 (made 26 August 2022; in force 1 September 2022 to the end of August 2027), section 4(2): MAAA affiliate members and listed visitor classes are approved to fly beyond their own line of sight only by first-person view, only under the MAAA FPV policy MOP066 (version D, 19 August 2019), and only at registered MAAA club fields or CASA-approved MAAA events.
• CASA's own pages, unconfirmed: search summaries say flying solely by goggles outdoors is possible only for members of an approved association or people CASA has approved, and that FPV indoors inside a building needs no CASA approval.

Association rules (not law)

These bind members of each association. In the UK and Australia an association's rules carry weight because the aviation authority has issued an authorisation or approval that refers to them.

AMA, United States: Document 550 (updated 3 March 2021)

Every FPV flight needs an AMA FPV spotter next to the pilot, keeping visual line of sight throughout (para 2(d)). The spotter tells the pilot when the aircraft is leaving line of sight, warns of approaching aircraft, and must be ready to take the transmitter and fly by sight whenever safe operation is in doubt (2(f), 2(g)). An AMA blog post of 31 August 2016 told members that FPV with a spotter under AMA Document 550 remained acceptable; a search summary had credited that post with a ratio of spotters to racing pilots, but the post, when read, gave no ratio, and the 2021 text of Document 550 contains none either.

BMFA, United Kingdom: Article 16 authorisation

For general FPV flying under the BMFA's CAA authorisation, a competent observer keeps direct visual contact, with FPV aircraft of at most 3.5 kg. For racing, the BMFA allows flying in a cordoned-off sterile area, at up to 50 m (160 ft) above the surface, under the race director's instructions, and individual observers are not required there (BMFA guide, updated 21 December 2021, section 3.1).

FPV UK, United Kingdom: 2026 Article 16 authorisation

A December 2025 trade report says FPV UK's 8th-issue authorisation lets members fly FPV without a competent observer in a sterile area such as a closed race venue, and as close as 30 m to uninvolved people (15 m for take-off and landing), provided members accept the authorisation and the FPV UK Handbook. The authorisation itself was not read.

MAAA, Australia: MOP066 (19 August 2019)

For models under 2 kg or below 100 ft, an FPV model is flown by two affiliate members; the observer keeps it within visual range, must be able to take control at once through a radio handover, and is solely responsible for the flight's safety (sections 8.1 to 8.5). In racing, pilots follow the flight line director and, where individual spotters are used, the spotter (9.2).

Canada's MAAC exemption (NCR-011-2019, condition 6) requires the pilot or a visual observer to keep the aircraft in sight and does not mention FPV; MAAC's own FPV documents could not be read, and whether the exemption is still in force is unconfirmed.

Racing rules (not law)

At FAI events, every FPV pilot has exactly one helper beside them for the whole flight, who keeps the model in sight, warns of anything affecting safety and may switch off the pilot's transmitter in an emergency (F9 2025, Section C introduction). The FAI's rule book says national air law takes precedence wherever it applies. More on what FPV drone racing is.