The Best Early Years FPV Freestyle Drone Videos

Iceland has one of the most unique landscapes in the world. The Nordic island nation is ripe with Viking history and features top destinations like the Blue Lagoon (a geothermal spa and outdoor lagoon), Thingvellir Church and the Öxarárfloss waterfall, Gullfoss (the multi-section waterfall), Jökulsárlón icebergs and more. Top AirVuz contributor JohnnyFPV became one of the first FPV pilots to visit the island, and took in its dramatic landscape of volcanoes, geysers, hot springs and lava fields with his mini quad.

In this video, legendary Canadian first person view (FPV) pilot Matty Stuntz shows off his awesome technical freestyle flying skills in one of his trademark British Columbia locations.  Known for his "need for speed" as well as his outstanding precision with the sticks, it's a great example of pure unadulterated freestyle flying talent.  A talented skateboarder, he has an outstanding sense of knowing exactly where his quad is at all times, a skill which allows him to pull off some truly unbelievable flying tricks.  

AirVuz contributor Stingerswarm is another charter member of the Atlanta Crew, the legendary group of first person view (FPV) pilots who took the FPV world by storm beginning in late 2016.  One of the world's top FPV freestyle pilots, he's been an active member of the Rotor Riot web series and has competed in numerous high-profile FPV racing events.  He's known particularly well for his outstanding technical freestyle skills, which are on full display in this rather amazing "bando" video shot in an old rail yard. 

In late 2016, technology giant Intel sponsored a trip by some of the world's top first person view (FPV) pilots to fly their racing quads over one of the ultimate "bando" sites: a giant "parking lot" in the western USA for retired commercial aircraft.  Top AirVuz contributor and FPV pilot SFPV naturally jumped at the chance to hit this truly epic spot, bringing us this truly epic FPV video of the experience.  Watch how he tears up the field shredding these gigantic aircraft, making for some highly entertaining video content.  

As first-person view (FPV) drone flight began to enter public consciousness beginning in 2015, one of the earliest FPV stars was a noted Atlanta pilot named Mr. Steele FPV.  The winner of the Freestyle competition at the widely-followed Drone Nationals event in New York City in mid-2016, he became one of the core members of the Rotor Riot crew before parting company a couple of years later.  In this piece, you will see clips of him interviewed in connection with the Droned TV series which aired on the Science Channel in the summer of 2016.  

At the fabled Atlanta Makers Fair drone racing in late 2015, an Atlanta native who went by the handle of SkitzoFPV won the event's Freestyle competition.  One of the original Atlanta Crew of FPV freestylers, he continues to be one of the most widely-recognized FPV pilots.  In this piece, you'll see clips of his appearance on the season finale of the Droned TV series, which aired on the Science Channel in the Summer of 2016 and was the first TV show to focus exclusively on the world of drones and drone racing. 

While most drone filming of sports cars continues to be with gimbal stabilized rigs, first person view (FPV) pilots have been getting into the act as well.  FPV racing drones can fly much faster and thus keep up with sports cars even traveling at significant speed.  It's not for the faint of heart though; one false move and the drone can be destroyed and an expensive car dented.  Legendary pilot JohnnyFPV shows us how it's done with this epic FPV video from Miami, in which he chases a very expensive Italian sports car.

An isolated volcanic archipelago smack-dab in the center of the Pacific Ocean, Hawaii is a tropical paradise. Legendary first person view (FPV) drone pilot and Rotor Riot crew member ummagawd had the opportunity to head out there to scout locations for Drone Worlds in 2016 and, boy, did he take advantage of the amazing trip. The final choice for a Drone Worlds location was Kualoa Ranch on the windward coast of O’ahu in Hawai’i, where movies like “King Kong: Skull Island,” and “Jurassic Park” were filmed.

Amongst the early "stars" of the FPV world which began to emerge in 2015 was a Canadian pilot who goes by the handle MattyStuntz.  Hailing from British Columbia, he became known as a "speed demon" as well as one of the strongest technical FPV flyers in the world.  His early videos, most of which were shot around an iconic bridge or in the forests of BC, are the stuff of legend; he's also credited with helping to initiate the shift to 5S and later 6S power setups.  Here he is being interviewed in connection with the Droned TV series.  

Over the course of 2016, Rotor Riot emerged as a force in the world of freestyle first-person view (FPV) flight.  Started by the founder of the highly successful Flite Test YouTube channel, Rotor Riot put some of the world's top FPV pilots together, not to race against each other but to fly freestyle in epic spots around the world.  One of them was the old Chernobyl site in Ukraine, the location of one of history's worst nuclear accidents.  In this video, you'll see long-time Rotor Riot member stingerswarm take on this legendary bando site.

First person view (FPV) drone pilot JohnnyFPV is one of the legends of FPV flight.  While he was a competitive drone racer, he found his groove in freestyling, and eventually left the racing world to focus entirely on making FPV content.  He was one of the first freestyle FPV pilots to focus on the cinematic aspects of his videos, rather than simply demonstrating his (considerable) technical flying skills.  In this classic piece, he flies his mini-quad on the coast of Miami Beach, using the skyscrapers and the sea as his canvas.  

The talented first person view (FPV) drone pilot Phil Freybott (call sign: Freybott) has always been known as one of the most photogenic as well as most skilled FPV pilots.  Hailing from Germany, he actually did a fair amount of fashion modeling work before jumping head-first into the world of FPV flight that began to emerge around 2015.  In this now-classic FPV piece, he gives us what can be thought of now as an early example of cinematic FPV flight, using a racing quad to flm his very photogenic friends enjoying the great outdoors.  

AirVuz contributor and first person view (FPV) pilot Pshaw emerged as one of the world's top FPV pilots beginning in 2015.  While living in Raleigh, North Carolina, he became close to many of the core members of the Atlanta Crew and made countless trips to the Georgia city to fly with that august group of pilots.  He's known for his highly cinematic FPV pieces, which combine excellent technical flying skills with an eye for watchability.  This piece, which he shot while cruising the Atlantic coastline, is a great example of his early work.

The Drone Nationals event on Governor's Island in New York City was one of the events which made 2016 a breakout year for first person view (FPV) drone flight.  The invitation-only event was live-streamed on ESPN3 and later broadcast on the network's flagship channel.  The event's freestyle course was designed specifically for the views afforded of the Lower Manhattan skyline.  In this piece, you will see the Nationals freestyle run by AirVuz contributor and FPV pilot Pshaw, considered one of the world's best technical freestylers.  

AirVuz contributor and first person view (FPV) pilot Wild Willy FPV was one of the charter members of the so-called Atlanta Crew, a group of FPV pilots in the Georgia capital city who took the FPV world by storm during and after the Atlanta Maker Fair drone racing and freestyling event held in late 2015.  He has since beomce one of the world's most recognized FPV drone racing pilots, with multiple seasons on the Drone Racing League under his belt.  In this classic piece, he gives us an excellent FPV tour of Atlanta's Georgia Tech University.

Many of the first videos in the then-emerging world of first person view (FPV) freestyle flight were filmed at a small non-descript office park in Atlanta, Georgia.  While not particularly glamorous, the complex had everything needed to help the FPV fliers who became known as the Atlanta Crew to hone their technical freestyle flying skills: a small tower to dive, gaps to run, an open courtyard for speed runs.  In this piece by Wild Willy FPV, you'll get a look at this now-hallowed site where FPV freestyle flight emerged in the mid-2010's.  

In early 2016, the emerging world of first person view (FPV) drone racing and freestyle flight was captivated by the announcement of a very well-funded race in the ultra-modern Middle Eastern city of Dubai.  The World Drone Prix, with its announced US $1 million purse, was unliked any FPV or drone racing event that had come before.  The winner of the racing event was a British teenager named Luke Bannister, who continues to go by the "handle" BanniUK.  In this video, you will see his freestyle run at the event.  

The Drone Nationals drone race on Governors Island in New York City was held in August of 2016.  The race was strictly invitation-only; the qualifiers were the winners of various regional events that had taken place in the months leading up to the big event.  One of the events was the Liberty Cup, which was held at the Liberty Science Center in New Jersey just a week before the Nationals.  The winner of the Freestyle competition at the Liberty Cup was none other than top AirVuz contributor and FPV pilot SFPV.  This was his winning run.  

AirVuz contributor and first person view (FPV) pilot Humboldt710 is one of the pioneers in FPV freestyle flight.  Hailing from California, he honed his skills in 2014-15, when the FPV phenomenon was just emerging.  In this piece, he filmed some practice runs in preparation for his trip to Hawaii in late 2016 for the Aloha Cup and Drone Worlds.  It was a worthwhile endeavor, he went on to win the freestyle competition at the Aloha (the qualifying event) and then went on to win the freestyle prize at Drone Worlds.

Drone Trippin' was an AirVuz Original production that followed the antics of a group of the USA's top first person view (FPV) drone pilots.  In the first season, which was produced in between the Drone Nationals event in New York and the Drone Worlds in Hawaii, the crew headed out into the American West with an RV full of FPV equipment.  One of the highlights of the trip was this episode, in which the crew tried to re-create the famous "pod racing" scene of Star Wars lore with highly modified racing quads.  

The second season of the AirVuz original program Drone Trippin' was filmed on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, where the world's best first person view (FPV) drone racing pilots had gathered for the IDRA's Drone Worlds event.  With most of the show's cast staying at a rental house, and plenty of down time between events, what better way to spend the time than with some Tiny Whoop racing action?  In this episode, you will see some of the most well-known names in FPV going head-to-head with their tiny micro-drones.  

The second season of the AirVuz original programming series Drone Trippin was filmed in Hawaii in connection with the IDRA's Drone Worlds Event.  The series followed top FPV pilots like JohnnyFPV, NYTfury, ZoeFPV, and others as they competed for prize money and enjoyed some extra stick time flying in some of the world's most beautiful scenery.  In this segment, two of the most well-known pilots from the San Francisco Bay Area, SFPB and FlyingBearFPV, stage an impromptu race and have some great fun in the process.  

The early years of FPV were almost entirely dominated by maes.  An important exception was a California pilot named ZoeFPV, who quickly became something of a mini-celebrity as one of the only top-tier female FPV pilots.  Known for her freestyle flying skills, entertaining Vlogs, and her work with X-class giant FPV drones, she is still something of an FPV legend even as other female pilots have gradually entered the top ranks of FPV.  In this episode of Behind the Goggles, you'll meet ZoeFPV and see some of her flight footage highlights. 

Los Angeles-based first person view (FPV) pilot Ummagawd was one of the biggest names in the early years of FPV, and he continues to play an outsized role as FPV has continued to expand its appeal.  A longtime member of the Rotor Riot crew, he has been active in the DR1 racing league and was one of the first FPV pilots to secure corporate sponsorship.  In this episode of the AIrVuz original series Behind the FPV Goggles, you'll meet this talented FPV pilot and see some of his most epic flight footage.