Ascension Island is a remote South Atlantic equatorial site, ideal for monitoring tropical background CH4. In September 2014 and July 2015, octocopters were used to collect air samples in Tedlar bags from different heights above and below the well‐defined Trade Wind Inversion (TWI), sampling a maximum altitude of 2700 m above mean sea level. Sampling captured both remote air in the marine boundary layer below the TWI and also air masses above the TWI that had been lofted by convective systems in the African tropics. Air above the TWI was characterized by higher CH4, but no distinct shift in δ13C was observed compared to the air below. Back trajectories indicate that lofted CH4 emissions from Southern Hemisphere Africa have bulk δ13CCH4 signatures similar to background, suggesting mixed emissions from wetlands, agriculture, and biomass burning. The campaigns illustrate the usefulness of unmanned aerial system sampling and Ascension's value for atmospheric measurement in an understudied region. Key Points Methane mole fraction and δ13C have been measured from samples collected by UASs on Ascension Island over two campaigns CH4 mole fraction increases above the TWI, but isotopes have no consistent signal indicating input from Africa is close to background The campaigns illustrate the usefulness of UAS sampling and Ascension's value for atmospheric measurement in an understudied region