The Fat Shark FPV drone kit could be the key to bringing drone racing to the masses

Drone racing has an adoption problem. It looks glamorous on ESPN. But for an average person, inspired by a drone race they just saw, the barrier to entry is often too high (or at least, expensive). That is, unless you’ve got the Fat Shark FPV drone racing kit.

Outside of the Fat Shark FPV drone, it’s difficult to find a drone racing kit that is easy to set up and fly. There is the Avata from DJI, which debuted in August 2022. But priced at more than $1,000, it’s prohibitively expensive.

But long before DJI got into making FPV drones, Fat Shark has been doing it. Alas, the same company arguably responsible for even making drone racing a thing to begin can arguably be credited with bringing drone racing to the masses.

Shenzhen-based Fat Shark is known for making FPV (first-person view) headsets for drone racing. Pros widely regard Fat Shark headsets as the gold standard.

At the very end of 2017, Fat Shark released the Fat Shark 101 Training system. The kit sells for $249. That includes everything you need to get started, including the drone, controller and FPV goggles. There are even some hoops to practice flying through.

Fat Shark isn’t the first company to create a drone racing introductory kit, but it may be the best. I absolutely love the Aerix Indoor racing drone kit as well.

But Fat Shark is unparalleled in its quality. Its strong brand name in the drone racing community could translate well to mainstream audiences as well.

The FPV goggles have a clear feed with no lag. Of course, my favorite part is that the drone itself is designed to look like a shark.

It can be easy to fly — the RC transmitter has two modes for beginners and more advanced pilots. Use the RC transmitter switch to instantly shut off the motors if necessary — useful during your inevitable crashes.

The drone is light and durable, with propeller guards on all sides. It’s not something you would likely literally race with, but it’s a gateway.

While all the pieces are ready to fly on their own, a racer wanting to upgrade can customize and swap individual pieces. You might want to exchange just the goggles, or just the drone and incorporate them into the kit.

With Fat Shark registration, each kit also comes with free access to the Drone Racing League simulator (a $20 value). You also get three months of free Academy of Model Aeronautics membership and insurance.

How to get your hands on the Fat Shark FPV drone

This drone is not only fun for racers, but it happens to be among my top picks for the best indoor drones.

Now for the bad news. As of publication, this drone is out of stock. However, GetFPV’s product page allows you to subscribe to alerts. There, the company will notify you when the product is back in stock, which you can do via this webpage.