By Matt Fleischer, aka MattyFleischFPV — FPV pilot since 2015.
Last updated: July 14, 2026

To powerloop an FPV drone, fly through or under an object, keep track of where its ceiling is above your quad, and once you’re past the point where you’d hit it, punch the throttle and hold back on pitch to come over the top. The more gently you feed in that pop, the rounder the loop. A harder pop — what I tend to do — gives you a more oblong shape. Then you cut throttle inverted, track the object back down, and catch it on the other side.

The short version: good subject → pass through where nothing is above you → pop and pull back → track the object over the top → catch it and follow through. Everything else is repetition.

What Is a Powerloop in FPV?

A powerloop is a vertical loop performed around a solid object — you fly under or through the object, loop up and over the top of it, and come back down through the same gap you started in. It’s one of the foundational FPV freestyle tricks, and it’s the move most pilots learn right after they get comfortable in acro mode.

The reason it’s called a power loop is the throttle punch. You’re not doing a lazy plane-style loop with constant power. You’re passing through a gap with almost no altitude to spare, then hitting the throttle hard the instant you’re clear so the quad climbs and rotates over the object rather than into it.

Learning how to powerloop takes a little bit of practice and some spatial awareness so that you don’t slam into anything. It also helps a lot if you’re paying attention to your stick movements, because you’ll need to get the hang of going to near-zero or zero throttle while upside down.

How Do You Powerloop an FPV Drone? (Step by Step)

Here’s the sequence I walk through in the video above, using a glass and concrete structure as the subject.

1. Find a Good Subject to Loop

First things first — you need a thing to powerloop. This matters more than people think. The whole trick comes down to having a good subject: something with a clear gap you can pass through and a defined top edge you can see and track. Playground equipment, a covered walkway, a bridge underpass, a doorway in a bando, a goalpost. Anything with a real “ceiling” and clean air above it.

Bad subjects are the ones with something above them you can’t see — wires, branches, an overhang. If you can’t picture the whole arc before you fly it, pick something else.

2. Line Up Your Entry and Commit to a Speed

Come at the object with a steady, deliberate line. You don’t need to be flying fast. In the video I try one at higher speed and stall myself out at the top — more entry speed isn’t automatically better, because you can outrun the moment where you’re supposed to pop.

3. Pass Through, Tracking the Ceiling

This is the part that separates a clean loop from a crash. As you’re going through, you’re keeping track of where that ceiling is above your quad. You’re not just aiming at a gap — you’re mentally holding onto where the top of the object sits relative to you the whole time.

4. Pop the Throttle and Hold Back on Pitch

Once you’re past that threshold where you’re going to hit something, you pop the throttle and hold back on your pitch, and come over the top.

Those two inputs happen together. Throttle gives you the climb, back-pitch gives you the rotation. Pop without pitch and you just go straight up. Pitch without pitch power and you flop over and fall.

5. Track the Object Over the Top

While I’m in the air above an object, I’m tracking where I’m going. As you go through, you know you’re clear up top, so you power up and head over — and you’re trying to catch that object in your view on the way around. You use it to guide you.

If the object disappears out of frame at the top, you’ve lost your reference and you’re now guessing. That’s usually where the ugly ones come from.

6. Go Near-Zero Throttle Inverted

At the top of the loop you’re upside down and gravity is doing the work. This is the stick habit that catches most beginners: throttle needs to come down to near-zero or zero while inverted, or you’ll rocket away from the object instead of arcing back around it.

7. Catch It and Follow Through

You come back under to catch it, and then you follow through. The loop isn’t finished when you’re right-side up — it’s finished when you’ve flown out of it on a line you chose.

How Do You Do a Mini Powerloop Around a Small Object?

It’s the same concept when you’re talking about doing something on a smaller object. Come up to it, know that you pass through it, give it a little pop, pull up, go through, pop over — and then you kind of catch yourself.

The word doing the work there is little. Everything scales down: smaller pop, tighter arc, faster hands. The margin for error shrinks with the object, so the input has to shrink with it too. Mini loops through tight gaps are less about bravery and more about restraint.

Practice order that actually works:

Big, forgiving subject with tons of clearance → same subject with less clearance → smaller subject → tight gaps. Don’t jump to the mini loop first. You’re building the throttle-and-pitch timing on the easy version so it’s automatic on the hard one.

Why Is My Powerloop Oblong Instead of Round?

Because of how hard you pop. The more gentle you are with it, the more round you get with your powerloop. I tend to do a bigger pop, so mine come out a little more oblong shaped. Some people really go for that nice round look.

Neither is wrong. A round loop looks composed and reads well in a freestyle line. An oblong pop-loop has more attitude to it and gets you over tall objects with less run-up. But if you want round and you’re getting oblong, the fix is your right hand, not your tune: ease into the throttle instead of slamming it, and feed the back-pitch in over the whole arc instead of yanking it at the bottom.

Why Does My Quad Stall Out at the Top of the Loop?

A stall at the top usually means the throttle pop came too late or wasn’t enough to carry the rotation through. In the video I try one with a little more speed and stall myself out — the extra speed carried me past the pop point, so by the time the throttle came in, the quad didn’t have the energy to complete the arc.

Two fixes, in order:

  • Slow your entry down until the timing is repeatable, then add speed back.
  • Pop earlier than feels natural. The instinct is to wait until you’re fully clear; by then you’ve already lost the window.

Why Do I Keep Hitting the Object?

Almost always because you popped before you were past the threshold. The rule is simple: you’re passing through that object where it’s not above you, so you don’t hit it. If any part of the structure is still overhead when the throttle goes in, you’re going to meet it.

The other version of this is losing the object in your view over the top. If you’re not tracking it, you don’t know where to come down, and you clip it on the back side instead of the front.

Should I Learn Powerloops in a Simulator First?

Yes — and it costs you nothing but time. The powerloop is a timing trick, and timing is exactly what a sim teaches well. You can throw yourself at the same gap fifty times in ten minutes without breaking a prop or driving home to get parts. If you’re not set up for it yet, here’s my FPV simulator guide and my radio recommendations.

The one thing the sim won’t give you is the pucker factor of a real concrete edge two feet from your props. That part you just have to go do.

Honest Note: You’re Going to Blow a Bunch of These

In the video I straight up say “that’s not a good one, let’s try again” more than once, and I’ve been flying since 2015. That’s not false modesty — it’s what the trick looks like when you’re actually working on it. Some pop too early, some stall out, some come over ugly and you save it on the follow-through.

It’s a simple idea. It really comes down to having a good subject to loop, making sure you’re passing through that object where it’s not above you so you don’t hit it, tracking it as you’re popping over the top, and coming back under to catch it and follow through. Everything past that is reps.

What Gear Makes Powerloops Easier?

Not much, honestly — this is a skill trick, not a gear trick. But two things genuinely matter:

Props you trust. You’re going to clip things learning this. I run the Gemfan Proxy 5127.5 — whether I’m performing power loops or hitting tight gaps, they deliver precision and control, and they hold their shape after crashes where other props snap.

Packs with punch. The pop is a current spike. A sagging pack gives you a mushy pop and a stalled loop. I fly 6S exclusively — see my go-to 6S flight packs.

If you’re shopping at GetFPV, my code MATTYFLEISCHFPV2026 gets you 4% off.

Frequently Asked Questions About Powerloops

What is a powerloop in FPV?

A powerloop is a vertical loop around a solid object. You fly under or through the object, punch the throttle to climb and rotate over the top of it, then come back down through the same gap. It’s a core FPV freestyle trick and usually the first one pilots learn after acro basics.

How do you powerloop an FPV drone?

Pass through the object while tracking where its ceiling sits above your quad. Once you’re past the point where you’d hit it, pop the throttle and hold back on pitch to come over the top. Track the object in your view, go near-zero throttle while inverted, then catch it on the way down and follow through.

Why is my powerloop oblong instead of round?

You’re popping the throttle too hard. The more gently you feed in the throttle, the rounder the loop gets. A bigger, harder pop produces a more oblong shape. Ease into the throttle and spread the back-pitch across the whole arc if you want the round look.

Why does my quad stall out at the top of a powerloop?

The throttle pop came too late or wasn’t strong enough to carry the rotation through. This happens most often when you enter with too much speed and blow past the pop point. Slow the entry down until the timing is repeatable, and pop slightly earlier than feels natural.

Why do I keep hitting the object during a powerloop?

You’re popping before you’re clear. Only add throttle once you’ve passed the point where the object is no longer above you. The other common cause is losing sight of the object over the top — if you stop tracking it, you have no reference for where to come back down.

What throttle do you use during a powerloop?

A hard pop on entry, then near-zero or zero throttle while you’re inverted at the top. Holding throttle inverted throws you away from the object instead of arcing you back around it. Learning to chop throttle upside down is the stick habit that makes the trick click.

What’s a mini powerloop?

A mini powerloop is the same maneuver performed around a smaller object or through a tighter gap. The concept is identical — pass through, little pop, pull up, pop over, catch yourself — but every input scales down. Smaller pop, tighter arc, much less margin for error.

What’s a good object to practice powerloops on?

Anything with a clear gap you can fly through and a visible top edge you can track, with nothing above it. Covered walkways, playground structures, bridge underpasses, and goalposts all work well. Avoid subjects with wires, branches, or overhangs you can’t see from the entry.

Can you learn powerloops in a simulator?

Yes, and you should. The powerloop is fundamentally a timing trick, which is exactly what simulators teach well. You can attempt the same gap dozens of times in minutes without breaking props. The sim won’t replicate the nerves of a real concrete edge, but it will build the throttle-and-pitch timing.

Related FPV Skill Guides

Got a trick you want broken down next? Leave me a comment — I’m trying to do more of these, and the weather’s perfect for it right now.