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C-DRONE GUIDE · 4 AUGUST 2026

The French drone pilot theory exam (CATS): syllabus, registration, preparation, price

For the open category, certificates are obtained online or in a centre depending on level (A1/A3 training, A2 certificate). But as soon as a pilot targets the European standard scenarios — STS-01 and STS-02, essential for working in populated areas or beyond visual line of sight — the step is higher: a supervised theory exam in a DGAC centre, the CATS (remote pilot theoretical aptitude certificate), completed by attested practical training. It is the drone equivalent of the written driving test: selective if you turn up unprepared, very accessible with serious preparation. Here are the syllabus, the registration mechanics and where the exam fits in a professional path.

Published on 4 August 2026, reviewed on 5 August 2026 — regulations in force as of August 2026.

Who needs the CATS — and who does not

Many professional pilots do not need the CATS: photography, video, inspection or surveying over clear ground is flown in the open category, with the A1/A3 training and A2 certificate. The CATS becomes necessary when the work requires the specific category under a standard scenario: flights in built-up areas close to third parties (STS-01), beyond visual line of sight with observers (STS-02) — the daily bread of urban inspection, city construction monitoring or long linear assets.

The complete professional's winning trio in 2026: operator registration on AlphaTango, open category certificates, then CATS + attested STS practical training with a recognised entity. That path is described in our guide to becoming a professional drone pilot.

The syllabus: aviation knowledge, not just drones

The exam is a computer-based multiple-choice test, sat in a DGAC exam centre, sweeping an aviation syllabus applied to drones: air law (categories, airspace, prohibited and restricted zones), human performance (vigilance, fatigue, stress management), meteorology (wind, turbulence, local phenomena), navigation and chart reading, aircraft knowledge (radio links, batteries, failure modes) and operational procedures (mission preparation, emergency handling). The level is not that of an aeroplane pilot, but the questions assume you have genuinely studied the material, not just flown.

That theoretical bar is not gratuitous: the analysis of civil drone accidents and incidents by Graham Wild, John Murray and Glenn Baxter, published in 2016 in the journal Aerospace, shows that a large share of occurrences involves operational and human factors — precisely the syllabus chapters — rather than technical failure alone (see the study on Google Scholar).

Registering, preparing, passing

Registration is online on the DGAC's exam portal (the OCEANE system): create an account, pick a centre and session, pay a fee of a few tens of euros set by ministerial order. Sessions run in the main metropolitan areas; convocation lead times range from days to a few weeks depending on the centre. Results come quickly, and the exam can be retaken after a fail.

For preparation, three routes: self-study on commercial manuals and past-paper banks (2 to 6 weeks of steady work for a beginner), online preparation platforms with mock exams, and training organisations that package theory with the STS practical — which is required anyway to make use of the certificate. Recruiters and clients look at the whole file: our guide to drone pilot salaries shows that complete STS profiles access the best-paid missions (urban inspection, linear assets, industry).

And for companies training an employee

For a company bringing drones in-house, an employee's CATS is a modest investment in money (exam fee, optional preparation course from a few hundred to around two thousand euros depending on format, often fundable as professional training) but a real one in time: several weeks across preparation, exam and practical training. Our guide in-house or outsource helps decide whether that path is justified against hiring an STS-qualified contractor.

Newcomers to the trade will find the full panorama — status, equipment, clientele — in becoming a professional drone pilot; and to locate training organisations near you, our drone pilot training offer covers the main French cities. Need an already-qualified pilot for a standard scenario mission? Request a quote describing the area and the operation.

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Put it into practice

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