Part 107 Loading & Performance Practice Test

The smallest section of the exam at 7–11% — but among the easiest points to bank, because the physics never changes: weight vs endurance, center of gravity, the 60°-bank/2g load factor question, and LiPo battery handling. Ten focused questions and you'll have this area covered.

Prefer to read? Jump to all 15 questions with answers ↓

Density altitude connects this area to weather — take the weather practice test next, or go straight to the full mock exam.

All 15 loading and performance questions, with answers and references

The drill above shuffles the answer choices on every attempt. Below is the same 15-question set written out in full, in a fixed order, so you can read it straight through, print it, or check a single rule without restarting a quiz. Each answer carries the reasoning and the FAA source it rests on.

Compared with the same aircraft lightly loaded, a heavily loaded multirotor will have:
- A. Longer endurance
- B. Reduced climb performance and shorter endurance Correct answer
- C. A faster maximum climb rate due to added momentum
- D. No measurable difference
Why: More weight demands more thrust and power, which drains the battery faster and reduces climb margin and gust tolerance.

Reference: FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide; PHAK ch. 10 concepts
Operating with the center of gravity outside the manufacturer's limits is most likely to cause:
- A. Improved maneuverability
- B. Longer flight time
- C. Control difficulties or instability Correct answer
- D. Nothing, if the aircraft is under 55 lb
Why: CG position outside limits degrades stability and control authority — for camera drones, a badly mounted payload is the usual culprit.

Reference: FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide
Which situation creates the greatest fire risk with lithium polymer (LiPo) batteries?
- A. Storing them at about 50% charge
- B. Storing them in a cool, dry place
- C. Charging with the manufacturer's recommended charger
- D. Physical damage, puncture, or overcharging Correct answer
Why: Damaged or overcharged LiPo cells can enter thermal runaway. Inspect packs after any hard landing and never charge a swollen or punctured battery.

Reference: FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide; SAFO guidance
The safest guidance for charging sUAS batteries is to:
- A. Follow the manufacturer's charging instructions Correct answer
- B. Use any USB charger that fits
- C. Always store packs fully charged so they're ready to fly
- D. Charge unattended overnight
Why: Manufacturer procedures govern charge rates, balance charging, and storage voltage — deviating is the most common cause of battery incidents.

Reference: FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide
You launch from a high-elevation site on a hot day. What performance change should you expect?
- A. More thrust available
- B. Reduced thrust and a smaller performance margin Correct answer
- C. Faster battery charging thanks to the thinner air
- D. Improved GPS accuracy
Why: High and hot means high density altitude: thinner air, less thrust and lift, harder-working motors, and reduced endurance.

Reference: FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide
In a level, coordinated 60° bank turn, the load factor on an aircraft is approximately:
- A. 1 g
- B. 1.4 g
- C. 4 g
- D. 2 g Correct answer
Why: Load factor = 1/cos(bank). At 60° that is 2 g — the structure and lift must support twice the aircraft's weight.

Reference: PHAK ch. 5 concepts
For a fixed-wing sUAS, increasing the load factor causes the stall speed to:
- A. Decrease
- B. Stay the same
- C. Increase Correct answer
- D. Become irrelevant
Why: Stall speed rises with the square root of load factor — steep turns or abrupt pull-ups can stall a fixed-wing UA well above its normal stall speed.

Reference: PHAK ch. 5 concepts
Exceeding the manufacturer's maximum gross weight risks:
- A. Nothing, provided the overload lasts only a few minutes
- B. Structural overstress and degraded performance Correct answer
- C. Only a shorter warranty
- D. Better stability in wind
Why: Weight above design limits eats into structural margins and performance — and any payload attached counts toward the 55-lb Part 107 limit too.

Reference: FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide
How does cold weather typically affect drone battery performance?
- A. Voltage sag and reduced capacity shorten flight time Correct answer
- B. Capacity improves in cold air
- C. There is no effect
- D. Cold prevents overcharging
Why: Cold slows the chemical reaction in lithium cells: expect voltage sag, shorter flights, and possible sudden capacity drops. Pre-warm packs and hover to warm them gently.

Reference: FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide; manufacturer guidance
Loading an aircraft so its CG sits at the aft limit tends to make it:
- A. More stable in gusts
- B. Increasingly nose-heavy during landing approaches
- C. Less stable and harder to recover from upsets Correct answer
- D. Fly with greater range
Why: An aft CG reduces longitudinal stability. For any aircraft — manned or unmanned — recovery from a departure becomes harder as CG moves aft.

Reference: PHAK ch. 10 concepts
You are flying on a hot afternoon at a high-elevation site, so density altitude is high. The effect on a multirotor is:
- A. reduced thrust and a lower usable payload Correct answer
- B. improved efficiency, because thinner air produces less drag on the propellers
- C. no measurable change, since electric motors are unaffected by ambient air density
- D. increased endurance, because the motors draw less current in less dense air
Why: Propellers generate lift from the air they move. Less dense air means less thrust for the same rpm, so the motors work harder to hover, endurance falls, and the weight the aircraft can carry safely falls with it.

Reference: FAA sUAS study guide, performance; PHAK ch. 11
Adding a heavy camera to a forward mount shifts a multirotor's center of gravity ahead of the hub. In flight this usually shows up as:
- A. a complete loss of attitude control immediately after takeoff
- B. reduced maximum groundspeed with no change to hover behaviour
- C. longer flight time, because a forward CG improves aerodynamic efficiency
- D. a constant tilt the flight controller must correct, costing endurance Correct answer
Why: The controller holds the aircraft level by running some motors harder than others. That correction is continuous, so the affected motors run hot and the battery drains faster. It is a performance and endurance problem long before it becomes a control problem.

Reference: FAA sUAS study guide, weight and balance
Your aircraft's published maximum takeoff weight is 4.0 lb. The airframe with battery weighs 3.1 lb and the gimbal weighs 0.6 lb. You want to add a 0.5 lb parachute. You may:
- A. not fly, because the total would be 4.2 lb Correct answer
- B. fly, because safety equipment is excluded from the maximum takeoff weight calculation
- C. fly, provided the sortie is kept under 10 minutes so battery burn keeps the average weight legal
- D. fly, because Part 107's 55 lb ceiling is the only weight limit that legally applies
Why: 3.1 + 0.6 + 0.5 = 4.2 lb, over the manufacturer's limit. Part 107's 55 lb ceiling is a regulatory maximum, not a substitute for the aircraft's own limitation, and 107.49 requires the remote pilot to determine the aircraft is in a condition for safe operation before every flight.

Reference: 14 CFR 107.49; manufacturer limitations
A steady 15 kt wind is blowing at your site. Compared with a calm day, your flight planning should assume:
- A. a shorter flight only if the aircraft heads directly into the wind for the entire sortie
- B. no change at all, provided the wind stays under the aircraft's published maximum wind resistance
- C. a longer flight, because the aircraft can glide downwind and save battery on the way back
- D. higher power draw and less endurance, especially returning upwind Correct answer
Why: Holding position in wind costs power even when the aircraft is not moving, and the upwind leg costs the most. Plan the return upwind while the battery still has margin, because a downwind outbound leg flatters the range you appear to have.

Reference: FAA sUAS study guide, performance and preflight planning
Operating a lithium-polymer battery in near-freezing conditions most commonly causes:
- A. higher usable capacity, because cold cells have lower internal resistance
- B. no effect at all until the ambient temperature drops below minus 20 degrees Celsius
- C. longer flight time, offset by a permanently reduced number of charge cycles
- D. a sharp drop in available capacity and voltage sag under load Correct answer
Why: Cold raises internal resistance, so voltage sags the moment the motors demand current and the low-voltage cutoff arrives far earlier than the indicated charge suggests. Warm the packs before flight and treat the published endurance as optimistic.

Reference: FAA sUAS study guide; manufacturer battery limitations

Ready for the real format? Take the full 60-question timed mock exam, which draws from all seven topics using the FAA's published area weighting.