How to log FPV flights
By the BeaconUAV team. Updated
Log every session right after you land: the quad, the packs you flew, the duration, where you flew, and any crash. Keep simulator time on its own line. Those few fields are enough to work out hours per frame, pack health, repair history, and what flying costs you.
Why log FPV flights at all
A flight count alone tells you very little. The value of a log is what it lets you work out later: which quad has the most hours, which pack is weakening, which part keeps breaking, and whether your practice is actually adding up.
Those answers only exist if each flight records what you flew, not just that you flew. A notebook works for a week. After a season, you need records you can add up.
The fields worth recording
This is the checklist we built BeaconUAV's session form around. Each field earns its place by feeding something you will want to know later.
| Field | What it gives you later |
|---|---|
| Date and duration (to the second) | Total airtime and streaks. Short packs add up, so rounding to the minute hides real wear. |
| Quad (airframe) | Hours per frame and service timing. |
| Battery packs flown | Cycle counts and which packs are carrying the set. |
| Radio and goggles | Which gear you actually rely on, for when something fails. |
| Location | Where you fly most, and context for crashes. |
| Crashes | Crash counter per quad and a repair list. |
| Notes and conditions | Wind, temperature, and what you practised, for the sessions you want to remember. |
| Sim or real | Practice time that does not inflate real airtime. |
Sim time: log it, but separately
Simulator hours build real skill, so they belong in your log. They should not be added into real airtime, because they put no wear on your gear and are not the same as flying outdoors.
Keep two timecards, one for sim and one for real, and look at the split. A pilot with forty sim hours and five real ones has different next steps from the reverse.
When to log
- Log at the field, between packs, while the details are fresh. A phone form that takes a few seconds beats a perfect entry you never make.
- If you have no signal, log anyway. BeaconUAV keeps the entry on the phone and syncs it when you are back online.
- Edit later, not never. Add notes or fix a pack number when you are home; a slightly wrong entry is easier to correct than a missing one.
What a good log lets you see
- Which quad is due for service, from its hours since the last service.
- Which packs are aging, from cycles and internal-resistance readings.
- What an hour of flying costs, from parts and packs divided by hours.
- Whether your practice is consistent, from streaks and weekly totals.
Key takeaways
- Record quad, packs, duration, location, and crashes for every session.
- Keep sim and real time on separate timecards.
- Log at the field; fix details later.