Vocational & certification training
Books and taxes for drone pilot training schools.
Exam prep course sales, corporate group training for utilities and photographers, drone fleet repairs, and insurance all move differently through the bank. Gus sorts it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
April came in at $9,000. The two replacement drones went in as equipment, not flight supplies.
- Part 107 exam prep courseExam prep tuition
- Utility company group trainingCorporate group training
- Replacement drone orderFleet equipment
- Drone insurance premiumInsurance
- Field training site rentalField training sites
Why your books are different
Drone pilot school books go wrong around the fleet.
A generalist sees course sales and an equipment bill. Your school runs online exam prep, in-person field flight training, and a fleet of drones that crash, need repairs, and get replaced far more often than typical classroom gear.
-
1
Online exam prep and in-person flight training get counted the same
A student who only buys the Part 107 written exam prep course costs almost nothing to serve, while in-person field flight training requires drones, sites, and instructor time, but both often land in one course revenue line.
What we doKeeps exam prep tuition and in-person field training apart, so you can see what each format really earns. -
2
Crashed and replaced drones get filed as supplies
A training drone that goes down during a student's first flight and needs replacing is a real equipment loss, not a routine supply cost, and lumped together, the school cannot see its real equipment turnover cost.
What we doFlags drone replacements the day they happen, logs them as equipment, and gets the accountant's call on how to write off the loss. -
3
Corporate group training gets mixed with individual course sales
A utility company or a real estate photography firm booking a group training session pays very differently than an individual signing up online, but both often land in one revenue line, hiding which side is actually growing.
What we doKeeps corporate group training and individual course sales in separate lines, so you can see what each is really worth. -
4
Drone insurance gets treated like a routine bill
Liability and hull insurance for a training drone fleet often costs more than a typical small business policy and comes due annually, which can make one month look like a loss instead of the cost of staying insured.
What we doKeeps annual insurance costs visible on their own line and tells you when a normal month just happens to carry the premium. -
5
Field training site fees disappear into travel costs
Renting a field or open lot for live flight training is a real, recurring cost, but it is easy to lose track of when it gets mixed in with general travel and mileage expenses.
What we doKeeps field training site rental in its own line, apart from travel and mileage.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a drone pilot training school.
Set up once for how the school gets paid and what a drone fleet costs to keep flying. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Exam prep tuitionPart 107 written exam prep course sales.
- Field flight trainingIn-person hands-on flight instruction.
- Corporate group trainingSessions booked by utilities, real estate firms, or other businesses.
- Recurrent trainingRefresher courses for pilots renewing their certification.
Money out
- Instructor payPayroll wages and per-session pay for flight instructors, kept in its own line.
- Fleet equipmentTraining drones and replacement units, logged so they get written off right.
- Drone repairs and partsPropellers, batteries, and repair parts for the training fleet.
- InsuranceLiability and hull coverage for the drone fleet.
- Field training sitesRental of fields or lots used for live flight training.
- Course hosting softwareThe learning management system that hosts exam prep courses.
- Marketing and leadsGoogle ads, local listings, and any lead-generation spend.
What we watch for you
- Fleet replacement cost
What drones cost to repair or replace, against training revenue.
- Corporate training share
Corporate group training against individual course sales, the biggest growth signal.
- Insurance cost per session
Annual premium spread across sessions taught, worth knowing before growing the fleet.
- The set-aside
What the school will owe, tracked every month, so tax season is not a surprise.
Ask Gus
Things drone pilot school owners ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
I log it as an equipment loss, not a supply cost, and flag it so the accountant handles the write-off correctly instead of it just vanishing into expenses.
It just looks that way. I keep the premium on its own line, so a renewal month reads as what it is, the cost of staying insured, not a loss.
In its own line, corporate group training, apart from individual course sales, so you can see which side is actually growing.
The tax side
The tax side of a drone pilot training school.
Most of what goes wrong here is labels and timing around the fleet. Equipment losses filed as supplies, insurance treated as routine, and a set-aside nobody started until April.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Drone fleet depreciationTraining drones can usually be written off the year they are bought. Bonus depreciation is back to 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
- Instructor classificationAn instructor who trains on your drones, your sites, and your schedule is usually an employee, even paid per session. Getting it wrong gets expensive, so Gus flags it before it becomes a habit.
- Contractor 1099sA guest instructor or outside help paid $2,000 or more in 2026 gets a 1099-NEC by January 31. Gus keeps that list all year.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operated schools can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when the books are right all year.
Deductions drone pilot training schools miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Replacement drones and parts
- Propellers and batteries
- Drone fleet insurance
- Field training site rental
- Course hosting software
- Instructor certification renewal
- Google ads and listings
- Storage cases and transport gear
- Certificate printing
- Website and enrollment software
- Mileage to field training sites
- Charging equipment
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
A drone pilot school year, kept every month.
Field flying slows in bad weather more than any calendar season. Taxes come on a schedule. Your team keeps you ahead of both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Plan the year
Last year's return gets started, the 1099 list is ready, and the school gets a monthly set-aside so April is already handled.
- April
Filed. Done.
The return is filed and signed. No surprise bill, because the set-aside has been running since January.
- July
Halfway check
Where the school stands, what it will owe, and whether corporate training is growing.
- October
Before insurance renewal
Gus looks at the coming insurance renewal and any fleet upgrades worth making before December.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for drone pilot training schools. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions drone pilot school owners ask first.
Can Gus track drone crashes and replacements separately from routine supplies?
Yes. He logs each one as an equipment loss and flags it, so the accountant can handle the write-off correctly instead of it vanishing into ordinary expenses.
Our insurance premium is high and paid once a year. Won't that always look like a bad month?
No. Gus keeps the annual premium on its own line so a renewal month reads as what it is, the cost of staying insured, not a loss.
We do both online exam prep and in-person flight training. Should those be tracked differently?
Yes. Gus keeps them in separate lines so you can see which format is actually earning more, not just one blended course number.
Our instructors are paid per training session. Does that change the books?
It changes where the money goes, not what you do. Gus keeps instructor pay in its own line and flags anyone paid like a contractor who works like staff.
Our books are a year behind. Is that a problem?
No. Send the bank statements you have. Gus sorts them, the accountant checks them, and most owners know where they stand inside a week.
Does Gus handle our FAA certification or corporate contract paperwork?
No. Gus keeps the books ready and tracks the costs, but certification and contract paperwork stay with the school.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
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What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever