The invention provides a method for recording a flight path and controlling automatic flight of an unmanned aerial vehicle. The method includes: controlling, by a remote control or a smart mobile terminal device, the unmanned aerial vehicle to fly following a certain flight path according to user's requirement, triggering the unmanned aerial vehicle to record the flight path, storing tracking data, and selecting a learning track to fly automatically, where a flight mode comprises at least GPS learning mode, GPS automatic mode, and manual mode. The unmanned aerial vehicle having the control mode can be triggered to fly automatically following the tracking data stored in the flight control device according to different application scenarios, thus increasing the user experience and entertainment. In the process of recording track, the unmanned aerial vehicle can fly at a low speed and meanwhile avoid obstacles, when flying automatically, the unmanned aerial vehicle can fly fast in a racing mode, further increasing the user experience. Meanwhile, in the automatic flight at a low speed, the unmanned aerial vehicle can take photographs, and the shot images are stable and clear. In certain application scenarios requiring a terrain recorder to record the track, through learning the actual flight track, it is unnecessary to employ other devices, thus saving the user's costs.