EuroUSC BNUC (TM) Theory Course Review

I've noticed there is very little out there on this course so I thought I would provide you with my thoughts on the whole things from start to finish! This first post is all about the run up to the course. I'll be posting others about the Operations Manual, Flight Exam and Permissions for Aerial Work in the future.

Pre Course

When you pay your course fee or deposit EuroUSC send you two booklets, one is a generic to all UAS operations and the second is specific to your country (i.e. if you’re in the UK it will be about UK CAA rules). I found booklet 1 most useful however there were a few mistakes, silly things like typos and errors in tables, these kind of things shouldn’t really happen so unfortunately that was a little disappointing. Book 2 was less useful, it repeated many things that were in Book 1 and only had a few bits that were actually unique. Book 2 could’ve been delivered as a few sheets rather than an entire book. However I can see why other nations would need a book, such as the Netherlands with much stricter rules and probably more deviations from the Norm.

Prior to the course we also received a couple of emails, one was confirmation/joining instructions email which also included some really useful hints and tips. Second is a survey to fill out to let the course instructor know your background in UASs and Aviation.

Day 1

Arrived at venue and signed it at reception, Elise was present and she took us up to the room where we presented our photo ID for verification. Our instructor was John Moreland, obviously very experienced and knowledgeable in UAS’ and was always able and happy to answer questions throughout. The day starts off with a quick around the room who are you, what UAS do you have etc etc. This is really useful for networking (and maybe even knowledge of your competition!) we all shared our contact details at the end of the course so we can keep in touch. Day 1 covered just about everything in booklet 1 plus additional map reading exercises. It is very much repetitive of the notes but the instructor covers the key bits of information you need to know for the exam. A nice lunch is provided as well as refreshments throughout the day.

At the end of the day I spent most of my evening back my accommodation reading the notes and revising some map reading exercises.

Day 2 and Tips

Prior to starting, the morning can be used to review anything you’ve not understood from the previous day, so it’s well worth getting there early to ask any questions. The remainder of the day is all about the operations manual and safety management system. As with day 1, it’s very much just covering the handbook notes but the instructor also has a number of useful points to consider that you probably wouldn’t get from the handbook. After lunch it’s time for the exam. The exam is a multiple choice 60 question paper with 1 hour and 15 minutes to complete. There were one or two questions in the exam that I disagreed with all of the options presented however I knew what they were getting at so answered them as I saw fit.

Then once you’ve completed the exam it’s one more presentation about the next stage of the process, the flight exam. The exam location is not revealed as it is part of the exam to locate the area and conduct an analysis of whether the area is safe or not.I’ll provide more information on this when I reach this stage.

With regards to the written exam, thankfully I passed, I was very very pleased with the turnaround by EuroUSC, it was very quick and I got the outcome by the end of that week. I won’t giveaway the questions but I will advise that you thoroughly read the handbook, then read it again, then one more time! And take notes during the course. If you do this then you will be in a very good position during the exam. It is worth putting some things to memory as you do not want to be going through the book during the exam. But be prepared to do this anyway, I spent an hour or so making post it notes with labels on so i could quickly open the book to ‘GPS’ for example. This saves 10 seconds looking for the contents page then page numbers then sections etc. 10 seconds might not seem long but with just over a minute for each question it can quickly eat away at your time.

Overall

You have the option to just take the exam and skip the course for half the price so the question is, is it worth it? For me the answer is most definitely a yes. For knowledge and experience of safe UAS operations yes it is definitely worth it. From my experience in aviation, nothing is cheap when it comes to aircraft operations. Safety is the priority and unfortunately it does cost money. You’re paying for the knowledge and time with this instructor so make the most of it, network and ask questions!