Train with working pilots
Ground school, flight reviews and real workflows for mapping and inspection, taught by a commercial helicopter pilot and Transport Canada Flight Reviewer who flies drone jobs every week.
Training from the people who fly the work
DroneLink's training is led by David Olivier, founder of Elite Drone Solutions in Victoria: a commercial helicopter pilot with more than 20 years of flying, a Transport Canada Advanced Operations pilot certificate and Transport Canada Flight Reviewer certification. He flies commercial real estate, construction, mapping and inspection jobs on Vancouver Island every week. The point of the training is not only to pass an exam. It is to leave able to plan and fly a job a client would pay for, legally and safely.
We train in Victoria, British Columbia. Ground school content can be delivered in a classroom or online; flight reviews and practical sessions happen in person. We do not publish course prices or promise pass rates. What we can promise is that you will be taught the rules as they stand, including the November 2025 changes, by someone who uses them every week. Start with Canada's drone rules.
What we teach
| Training | For | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Basic exam preparation | New pilots flying far from people in uncontrolled airspace | Air law basics, airspace, weather, the drone and its limits, safe flying habits |
| Advanced exam ground school | Pilots who will fly commercially near people, buildings and airports | Air law in depth, airspace classes and charts, NAV CANADA authorization, meteorology and METAR/TAF, navigation, human factors, flight operations, the safety assurance standard, sheltered and EVLOS operations |
| Advanced flight review preparation | Pilots who have passed the Advanced exam | Site survey, pre-flight, the manoeuvres a reviewer asks for, emergency procedures, crew communication. David holds Transport Canada Flight Reviewer certification, so the Advanced flight review itself can be booked with us in Victoria |
| Recurrent training | Certified pilots who need to meet the 24-month recency requirement or catch up on the 2025 changes | What changed, refresher on airspace and procedures, case studies |
| Mapping workflow | Pilots and survey staff | Coordinate systems, GSD and overlap, ground control and checkpoints, RTK and PPK, processing, QA and deliverables |
| Inspection workflow | Pilots working on roofs, facades, solar and utilities | Close-proximity flying, zoom and thermal capture, sheltered operations, report structure |
| Safety management | Operators building a business | Standard operating procedures, risk assessment, occurrence reporting, crew roles, maintenance records, and what an RPAS Operator Certificate requires |
From first lesson to Advanced certificate
Register and get your bearings
Create your Drone Management Portal account and learn the categories of operation. If you already own a drone of 250 g or more, register it.
Ground school
Work through the Advanced knowledge areas with an instructor who can answer the questions the textbook skips: why an approach path matters, how to read a METAR, what a reviewer means by a site survey.
Pass the online exam
Transport Canada's exams are online and multiple choice. The Advanced exam is timed and needs a higher pass mark than the Basic; check the current format in the portal.
Practise the flight review
Fly the manoeuvres, handle simulated emergencies, and brief a site survey out loud. Most people who struggle at a flight review struggle with the planning and the talking, not the flying.
Book the flight review
Within 12 months of passing the Advanced exam, with a Transport Canada-recognized flight reviewer.
Keep current and keep learning
Log every flight. Meet recency every 24 months. Add mapping, inspection or Level 1 Complex training when your work calls for it.
Beyond Advanced, and across the border
Level 1 Complex. Since November 4, 2025, lower-risk beyond visual line-of-sight flights are possible without an SFOC. The pilot needs at least 20 hours of ground school at a flight school, the Level 1 Complex exam and flight review, and must fly under an RPAS Operator Certificate held by an organization. We cover what that involves for pilots and for operators, and how it connects to mapping work on large rural sites. Ask us which parts we can deliver as your training provider under the current rules.
United States. A Transport Canada certificate does not let you fly commercially in the United States. You need an FAA Remote Pilot Certificate under Part 107, which means passing the FAA knowledge test at an approved testing centre. Our mapping, inspection and safety management training applies on both sides of the border, and we cover the Part 107 differences in context. Read the US rules.
Why new commercial pilots struggle
Passing the exam but failing the flight review
The exam tests knowledge; the review tests planning, judgment and communication.
Flying a map that does not line up
Good flying, wrong coordinate system, no checkpoints.
No system when the business grows
Logs in a notebook, no SOPs, nobody knows when a battery was retired.
Who training serves
New pilot
- They need from you
- A clear path to a certificate
- You need from them
- Time to study and practise
- On the DroneLink record
- Ground school, then supervised practice
Survey or engineering firm
- They need from you
- Staff who can fly a map the firm can sign off
- You need from them
- Your standards and software
- On the DroneLink record
- Mapping workflow training built around your deliverables
Future DroneLink operator
- They need from you
- To fly to DroneLink's standards in their own territory
- You need from them
- Certification, insurance and commitment
- On the DroneLink record
- The licensed operator program is coming; see operators
Questions
How do I get a drone licence in BC?
In Canada it is a drone pilot certificate. Register your drone, pass Transport Canada's online Basic or Advanced exam, and for Advanced, pass an in-person flight review with a recognized flight reviewer.
How hard is the Transport Canada Advanced exam?
It covers a lot of ground: air law, airspace, weather, navigation, human factors and flight operations, with a higher pass mark than the Basic exam. Structured ground school makes it manageable.
Do I need ground school for the Advanced certificate?
Ground school is not mandatory for Advanced, but most people find it worth it. For Level 1 Complex, at least 20 hours of ground school at a flight school is required.
What happens at a drone flight review?
A recognized flight reviewer checks your planning (site survey, airspace, weather, emergencies) and your flying, including emergency procedures and crew communication. You must pass to receive the Advanced certificate.
How do I stay current as a Canadian drone pilot?
Within every 24 months, pass an exam or flight review, or complete recurrent training such as a Transport Canada-endorsed seminar or the self-paced study program. Keep proof.
Does a Canadian drone certificate work in the United States?
No. For commercial work in the US you need an FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate.
Do you guarantee I will pass?
No. We teach the material and prepare you properly; the exam and the flight review are yours to pass.
Tell us about your Vancouver site.
An address and what you need is enough to start. We reply with the price, who will fly it and when.