How to Build a Business Case to Use Drones in Your Construction, Engineering, or Architecture Operations

So, you've heard and read that drones are being increasingly used in the construction industry to realize multiple benefits: they are utilized to complete some tasks in commercial real estate development and construction workflows faster, cheaper, safer, and in many cases, more accurate than using traditional methods. The latest construction industry reports show that drone use cases in construction are expanding, and the number of flights is increasing.

At this point, you may be already convinced that bringing drones, or at least testing the inclusion of drones in your operations is the right thing to do. The main problem you are facing is that you know that trying this technology will take additional resource allocation from your organization (it may be time, budget, manpower, or all the above). And if you don't control any of these resources but see the opportunity and are eager to bring this to your managers, you will need to build a business case and present it to your superiors.

At the end of the day, you also want to keep yourself relevant and further your career in your organization or even create a new position job for yourself, so proposing using cutting-edge technology to make your company's operations more efficient will promote your reputation as forward-thinking and innovative. If you do control the decision-making and resources in your organization, you can contact V1DroneMedia today, and we can help you find the right drone solution and help incorporate drones into your operations.

Building a business case

steps on how to build a business case to incorporate drones into your operations:

1.   Understand the gaps that your organization must fill to build up this capability. They are:

·   Knowledge of national airspace regulations to gauge your ability to fly at any given site (resource allocation and cost – can be a drone pilot or drone operations manager)

·   Part 107 licensed staff or contractors that can legally and skillfully operate drones to accomplish required tasks (staff allocation and training cost, or cost to hire pilots)

·   Purchase drones that are suitable for your use cases (know-how and the cost)

·   Drone equipment maintenance (know-how and the cost)

·   Purchase Drone Insurance (unless your pilot contractors have it and can add your organization as an additional insured)

·   Establish Drone Operating procedures on work sites

·   Photogrammetry software (cost to purchase, human resources, and the know-how to process the data)

2.  Establish use cases in current workflows that can bring value to your organization and translate them into cost savings, a competitive advantage, new added value, or other benefits.

See our blog posts Photogrammetry, Top 4 Drone Uses in Construction, Drone Use in Construction Marketing, Drone Mapping: Unleashing the Full Potential of Aerial Data, What is Drone Mapping, and Drone Mapping Advantages vs. Conventional Mapping Methods for information on a variety of ways to incorporate drones into your operations. Benefits of these use cases include, but are not limited to:

·   Saving time in accomplishing tasks faster (translate that into saving $ as well)

·   Providing more accurate data for some use cases (translate into $ savings)

·   Potential for safety increase (can be one of the organizational goals, or translate it into insurance savings, or other $)

·   Add new value to your operations (translate that into a new product/service offering as a new stream of revenue, new customer benefit to differentiate you from the competition, etc.)

3.   Establish a budget range and other resources (like labor) necessary to acquire this capability.

You will also have to decide if you want to grow this capability from within, or outsource the data gathering and processing – i.e. Make or Buy decision)

4.   Run financial analysis with multi-year scenarios to show the Return on the Investment (ROI) of implementing drone technology into your workflows

5.   Develop a business case presentation that includes:

·   Industry trends with drone adoption data

·   Case studies of organizations that have adopted this technology (for example, see the article Ohio Department of Transportation Makes a Good Case for Their Drone ROI)

·   Pros/cons of not adopting drones

·   Outline your plan to build this capability for your organization

1.   How your organization will use the drones

2.   How drones will incorporate into workflows

3.   What resource investment is required (budget and timeline for labor, hardware, software, insurance, etc.)

4.   Financials with ROI. If you didn't have a financial professional from your workplace develop this model, make sure you can explain your assumptions. I recommend bringing a trusted finance team member on board to help you make the business case with concrete numbers

5.   Present risks of adopting drones into your organization and plans to mitigate them

6.   Finally, present your business case to your decision-makers.

Present your drone use business case

We hope you found this step-by-step guide on building a business case to include drones in your operations valuable.

V1DroneMedia is a Cleveland-based drone services company that was founded by an airline pilot with a background in remote control aviation and electrical engineering, and a marketing professional who has a couple of decades of experience in developing and pitching business cases to leadership (read more about V1DroneMedia here).

If you are looking for a consultant to help you include drones into your operation, help you train your employees to fly drones, build a business case, or are looking to outsource drone flying to a reputable company, contact us today, and learn more about our AEC Drone Services.

DJI Mavic 3 Waypoints: definition and flight planning tutorials.

The drone community has been wondering for a long time: will Mavic 3 consumer drones have waypoints as an option? Finally, on December 9th (an early Christmas present to all of us drone pilots), DJI released a firmware update in the DJI Fly App, which included waypoints.

What are Waypoints

Waypoints are points (or stops) on a route or line of travel that can be used to program a drone where to fly. Waypoint missions for drones also allow for setting altitude, speed, and gimble tilt among many other things. Using waypoints to plan where/how a drone will (and what you would like the drone to do) fly is like having an autopilot for your drone. 

Why is it important to have waypoints on a drone?

Creating (and saving) waypoint missions allows a drone to repeat the same flight path without having to try to recreate the flight manually every time. This allows for replicating a shot for video purposes or taking photos from the same point in space (lat/long and altitude), say, for a construction project.

Waypoints have uses in a variety of tasks, ranging from aerial video production to drone mapping. Here are a few ways we have used them when providing drone services to our clients:

1.      Re-creating the same video shot. Very useful if you use your drone for video production where you must do several takes that need to look exactly the same (usually a must for any type of commercial video work such as shooting a commercial, or on a TV or Film production set)

2.      Creating a hyper lapse video that allows showcasing changes in the environment quickly, but in reality, these shots are taken during different times (seasons) of the year along the same path of flight and are later stitched together to quickly show changes of the site over time making it look seamless.

3.      Capture photos of subjects and objects from the same vantage point repeatedly.

4.      Program the flight path to create a map of a site or create a video of a pre-determined path.

Previously we have programmed our other DJI drones to fly on an automated path (Phantom 4 Pro or Mavic 2 Pro) using the Litchi app. We have created hyper lapses for our company's social media content and for construction progress monitoring videos and photos for our clients, as well as programmed automated flight paths for commercial video production shoots.

The fact that DJI released the waypoints with the firmware update for Mavic 3 makes this drone a lot more useful (previously you couldn’t even use Litchi to program the waypoints with the Mavic 3 because DJI has not yet released an SDK (Software Development Kit)  allowing it to be used with third-party applications. 

Which DJI Mavic 3 drones support waypoints?

All DJI Mavic 3 Drones now support waypoints through the DJI FLY app (DJI Mavic 3 Classic, Mavic 3, and Mavic 3 Cine).

How to use DJI Mavic 3 Waypoints: 2 ways with step-by-step tutorials

In order to use the new waypoints feature with the DJI Mavic 3 you must be on the latest firmware (aircraft, remote, and DJI Fly app) that was released on December 9, 2022.

There are a couple of methods that can be used in order to create a waypoint mission:

1) Create the waypoint mission as you fly your drone to where you want the waypoints to be – this requires the drone to be powered on and in flight.

2) Pre-planning a waypoint mission with the DJI Fly App – this can be done without even powering on the drone and before you even arrive at the site you intend to fly!

We have created a video detailing a step-by-step process for both workflows. Our waypoint video tutorial also includes an overview of waypoint settings and customizations and shows some examples of missions we have set up, and the drone flying them. We also cover how you can save your waypoint missions in order to use them again at a later date/time.

Watch this video to learn a couple of different ways to program your DJI Mavic 3 Drone waypoints, download the firmware update, and start practicing creating waypoint missions! Happy flying, and please subscribe to our channel if you find this useful and would like to get updated when new tutorials and other informative content coming out!

We hope you found this video tutorial useful. Browse more content on our YouTube channel and Blog, and subscribe to those resources, and check out more of our channels to see more useful content in the future.

V1DroneMedia is a drone services provider in the Cleveland, Ohio, area. We provide aerial photography, videography, photogrammetry (drone mapping, 3D modeling), and full video production services. V1DroneMedia Chief Drone Pilot, Jason Damman, is also an airline pilot with 20+ years of aviation experience and is a drone flight instructor at several educational institutions, besides running his own drone classes with groups and individuals. We service Ohio, and other Midwest states, and can travel to other areas as needed.

Contact V1DroneMedia for your drone services, drone training, or video production needs!

Ohio Drone Laws

As a commercial drone services provider located in Cleveland, Ohio, we know a thing or two about flying in this state. One of the questions we get asked often is whether you can fly at a specific location in Cleveland. See our blog post Where to Fly Drones in Cleveland for that information.

Drone flights in Ohio are subject to FAA regulations for operating in the national airspace. Some municipalities are enacting their own ordinances for drone use, but these should only apply to launching and landing locations, as local municipalities don't control airspace. We recommend checking your city/county for any such drone restrictions.

FAA Part 107 Regulations

Under FAA regulations you must have either a TRUST Test Certificate (for hobbyists) or a Part 107 Drone License Certificate (for commercial drone pilots) to fly drones in Ohio. We offer Part 107 Prep classes locally as a 2-day in-person class that prepares anyone to take and pass the test. See our event schedule for the next available class and read our student testimonials (over 95% of students pass the Part 107 Test after taking our classes!).

Are There Drone Flight Restrictions in Ohio?

It all depends on what type of airspace you intend to fly in (Class B, C, D, E). You may have to apply for FAA authorization to fly your drone in a certain area, see our blog post Where Can I Fly My Drone for more detailed information and tutorial on how to do this through LAANC.

In addition, you cannot fly over moving traffic, over people, or during any sporting event where there is a Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) in place.  A TFR is typically active for all open-air stadium NFL and MLB games from one hour prior to the game start to one hour after the game ends. These rules do get enforced, see this article about drone pilots pleading guilty to illegal Ohio stadium flights in 2023.

Can You Fly a Drone in Ohio State Parks and Cleveland Metroparks?

As a rule of thumb, national parks do not allow drone use on their properties. Some Metroparks have enacted the same ordinance, so you should check with the specific Metropark system. There are several designated areas where you can fly your drone in the Cleveland Metroparks, see details in their Drone Policy.

Municipal parks don't have the same restrictions usually but check with the specific park and municipality before flying your drone.

Drone Registration

If you want to fly your drone in Ohio (and anywhere else in the United States), you are required to register your drone if it is 0.55 lbs or larger if you fly as a hobbyist, and all drones (regardless of weight) if you operate commercially (under Part 107). You can register your drone on the FAA DroneZone website. The cost for registration is $5 and is valid for three years.

So, if you have checked off all necessary registrations, FAA Airspace Authorizations, and hold an appropriate FAA certificate, you are ready to fly. Now to the fun part, where can you fly your drone in Ohio? We've compiled some of our favorite locations in Cleveland where we frequently fly, see them in the Where to Fly Your Drone in Cleveland blog post.

Why hands-on drone flight training is important for drone pilots

As a new year begins, many of us are making New Year resolutions. V1DroneMedia's resolution is to bring the most up-to-date and simple-to-understand drone knowledge to you: information about drone regulations, drone industry, equipment capabilities, flight skills, and other drone information to those interested in learning more about drone technology and getting started in flying drones safely and legally.

A lot of drone pilot schools are focused on education and compliance with the FAA drone laws and regulations and getting the Part 107 Remote Pilot License. And this IS where you should start your drone journey if you are thinking about getting a drone or just purchased one because you want to be aware of where and how to operate your drone safely and legally, avoid any negative law enforcement or 'well-wisher' attention, and can intelligently answer any questions about how and where you can legally fly.  We have covered all these subjects in our blog post A Beginner's Guide To Drones and have regularly scheduled Drone Training Courses that you can attend to learn this information and get ready for the FAA Part 107 Drone Certification Test.

V1DroneMedia’s Chief Pilot teaching Traffic Patterns during an FAA Part 107 Drone License Prep Course

However, learning safe drone operations or procuring your Part 107 Drone Pilot Certificate is only a starting point (one should walk before they run). The essential part of your drone training should be getting hands-on time flying the drone. That means being comfortable with operating the drone apps (such as DJI, Litchi, etc.), performing takeoffs and landings, learning to maintain and calibrate the drone, performing routine flight maneuvers, operate the camera to take pictures and video. These skills cannot be taught in a classroom, and you need them to fly the drone proficiently if you are serious about becoming a drone pilot. You must get out there and learn to fly your drone, just like manned aviation pilots spend hours flying in a simulator or with an instructor before flying on their own (I spent hours and days in simulator sessions during my training as a commercial pilot, and had to do recurrent training every year in a simulator as well).

While flying a drone doesn't come with the liability of flying an aircraft worth millions of dollars with people on board, it is still very important to understand the systems that make a drone work and be proficient with your equipment to ensure safe operation.

A drone is usually needed to shoot an aerial photo or video of a certain subject matter or an object on the ground or even high up in the air, and you need to have skills to fly the drone to focus on a subject, position the camera of the drone to shoot video or photo from different angles while flying around the subject, maybe even track the subject and shoot continuous video or photographs.

V1DroneMedia’s Chief Pilot with students during a drone flight session

Many of these flight maneuvers are built into intelligent flight modes in the apps nowadays, but you would still need to know how the different intelligent flight modes work and become proficient at setting them up and incorporating them into your workflow (if needed). Learning to fly in a manual mode is also very important and can be beneficial in many situations – especially if you would have to manually take control of the aircraft for any reason.

To help fill the gap in hands-on drone flight experience for aspiring drone pilots V1DroneMedia is now offering Drone Operations classes with both classroom and outdoor time for learning the drone apps, flying procedures and hands-on time, and Hands-on Flying Sessions for individuals and groups tailored to individuals' skill levels and goals. If one of your resolutions this year is to explore a drone as a hobby, learn to fly a drone proficiently, or learn advanced drone flying skills to further your drone industry career goals, Contact Us to schedule your session today! And get on an e-mail list to stay informed about our group class schedules.

Drone Photogrammetry And Its Uses

What is Photogrammetry

Photogrammetry is the science of making precise measurements of three-dimensional objects and terrain features from two-dimensional photographs. The input to photogrammetry is multiple photographs of some real-life object or a scene, taken from different angles and locations, and the output is typically a map, a drawing, a measurement, or a 3D model of the subject matter.

How does photogrammetry work?

This process works by using the method of triangulation. It involves taking pictures from a minimum of two different locations. These pictures create lines of sight that lead from each camera to specific points on the object being photographed. The intersection of these lines plays into mathematical calculations that help produce geometric 3D coordinates of the specified points, which sometimes is referred to as “point cloud”.

Photogrammetry triangulation creates 3D object

Photogrammetry history and evolution

Photogrammetry is nearly as old as photography itself. Since its development approximately 150 years ago, photogrammetry has moved from a purely analog, optical-mechanical technique to analytical methods based on computer-aided solutions of mathematical algorithms, and now to digital photogrammetry based on digital imagery and computer vision, without any mechanical hardware. 

Topographic map creation was the first application of photogrammetry, which gave way to the development of simple map-making techniques geared towards the mapping needs of the military during World Wars I and II.

Types of Photogrammetry

Two general types of photogrammetry exist aerial (with the camera in the air) and terrestrial (with the camera handheld or on a tripod).

Terrestrial Photogrammetry

The photos used in photogrammetry can also be taken directly on the ground or from a fixed terrestrial position, such as by a person walking around or a camera mounted to a building.

Aerial (Drone) Photogrammetry

Aerial photogrammetry was introduced with the invention of flight, and drone technology advancements in the last 6 years have made it more accessible and affordable.

Now a drone captures several high-resolution photos over an area at different angles from multiple vantage points. These images are then processed with photogrammetry software (such as Pix4D, AgiSoft, Drone Deploy, etc.) that “stitches” the images together to create point clouds.

Photogrammetry accuracy

Several variables affect the overall accuracy of an aerial map, including camera specifications, the number of photos collected, the photo overlap percentage, the flight altitude, atmospheric conditions (wind speed, air pressure, air density, cloud cover, position of the sun), the GPS signal strength, and the ground sampling distance (GSD). A lower flight altitude yields a smaller GSD, and a smaller GSD yields a more accurate and higher resolution aerial map.

Many of these factors are already accounted for by main drone manufacturers that produce drones for collecting visual data used for photogrammetry processing. These drones are equipped with proper cameras, and the differences between those drones are oftentimes the quality of the camera itself, and the experience of the drone operator in using the drone for photogrammetry data collection (programming the flight path, calibrating, camera settings, etc.)

Relative and absolute photogrammetry accuracy

In aerial photogrammetry, there are such terms as relative (local) accuracy and absolute (global or spatial) accuracy.

Relative accuracy is the measurement of how objects are positioned relative to each other in a reconstructed model (Orthophoto map, Digital Surface Model, or 3D point cloud). Most aerial maps provide a high degree of relative accuracy. So, for simple use cases (measuring distances, volume, and height differences, etc.) relative accuracy should work just fine.

Absolute accuracy refers to the difference between the location of the objects on the reconstructed model and their true position on the Earth (or a geodetic coordinate system). Aerial maps do not provide a high degree of absolute accuracy unless Ground Control Points (GCPs) are used during the drone aerial data collection.

Relative vs. absolute accuracy

What are Ground Control Points (GCPs) in photogrammetry?

Ground control points are points on the ground with known ground coordinates, which can be easily recognizable in aerial photos. The ground coordinates can be measured with traditional surveying methods or an existing map (even Google Earth map), or smart control points that automatically upload position data, such as Aero Points.  To calculate the coordinates for each point on the aerial photography several ground control points’ coordinates should be in place in the survey area and they should be clearly visible in the taken aerial photographs.

Ground Control Point Positioning

Drone Photogrammetry Outputs

The photogrammetry software generates object or area point clouds that enable data visualization, turning these clouds into various outputs for different applications, with many allowing for measurements such as distances, heights, areas, and volumes:

• Orthomosaic maps are stitched from multiple drone photos that have been corrected for lens distortion, with each pixel containing 2D geo-information (X, Y) which enable the generation of measurements such as horizontal distances and surfaces.

Orthomosaic Map

• Topographic maps show details of the relief features using contour lines (connecting points of equal elevation), giving a better understanding of the surface of the area.

Topographic Map

• 3D Point Cloud is generated from drone images with each point containing geospatial (X, Y, Z) and color information. It provides a model for distance, area, and volume measurements.

3D Point Cloud

3D Model is often generated from the 3D Point Cloud, and is a reproduction of the edges, faces, vertices, and texture of the object or area shot by the drone, and is most useful for visual inspection. This type of model can be used in CAD (Computer-Aided Design) or BIM (Building Information Modeling) software.

3D Model Screenshot

• Digital Surface Model represents the elevation associated with the surface of the earth including topography and all human-made features, containing 2D information (X, Y) and the altitude (Z) of the highest point for the area.

Digital Surface Model

• Digital Terrain Model (also Digital Elevation Model) is a topographic model representing the bare ground surface without any objects like plants or buildings and can be uploaded into and manipulated by computer programs. The model contains 2D information of the area.

Digital Terrain Model. Credit: Jason Stoker

These outputs can be used in many applications in various industries, where the workflows for the collection of this type of data were largely manual and time-consuming. With drone photogrammetry productivity and efficiency of such operations can be improved significantly, and allow for more opportunities to innovate with such easy access to digitized data.

If you are interested in learning more about drone photogrammetry and its applications for your business, Contact us for a free consultation!

Best drones to buy in 2022

Why I am qualified to give the best drone advice

I grew up with remote-control aviation in the '90s, spent 20 years with a commercial airline company as a pilot, and have been a commercial drone services provider (DSP) in Cleveland, Ohio now for 6 years shooting everything from real estate, construction, inspection to high-end TV and Film video production (you can read my story here), and so I have developed some strong opinions about what drone is best to use for certain tasks.

While you will find that I am mostly recommending DJI products, that doesn't mean that other manufacturers' (Autel, Skydio, Parrot, etc.) drones are subpar by any means. It's just that I adopted the DJI platform from the start and stuck with it because it works for me and I've learned the 'ins and outs' of their products. Investing in a new platform always takes time, so unless I am forced to quit DJI products with new regulations or there are clear advantages over existing DJI products, I am not keen on investing a lot of time and money to learn them. However, if I do find and try out new drones that provide a similar or better price/value ratio, I will update this blog post.

Disclosure: these drone recommendations include affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. However, I am only recommending the products I use and stand by (you can see the drones I own with their specs here).

What is the Best Drone for Beginners and Best Small Drone?

If you are just starting with drones and are in the market for a compact drone with a camera that can produce great video and photos for you to take on the road, the DJI Air 2S is your best bet as of 2021. It is highly portable with a compact folding design, impressive image and video quality (it can shoot 5.4K video), and has many beginner-friendly features along with some autonomous flight modes. If you are looking for something even smaller (under 250 grams) and cheaper, then you might want to consider the DJI MINI 2 as an option.

What is the Best Drone for Kids and Beginners for under $100?

A few years ago I purchased the DJI Tello Drone so my wife and kids can join in on my passion for drones with this incredibly easy-to-use drone from the DJI platform. It is conveniently operated with the DJI Tello app from your smartphone touchscreen, has a camera for photos and video, and quite a few fun flying features to try out (like Bounce Mode, 8D flips, Up & Away, etc.).

My wife and kids had no problem flying and performing fun tricks with it within minutes, and if something does happen to it while they are flying it, it isn't a huge loss.

Best Drone for Video and Cinematography

While I use the DJI Inspire 2 and DJI Mavic 2 Pro for many of my cinematography jobs, my vote for video production will always go to DJI Inspire 2. The Inspire 2 allows for using different lenses on the camera – something you can't do with the Mavic 2 or any of the other DJI models. Couple that with the ability to shoot in Apple ProRes and CinemaDNG (aka, RAW), if you purchase DJI Inspire 2 with the licenses to do so, and the Inspire 2 can capture video that looks far superior to the Mavic 2.

One of the benefits of being able to shoot in ProRes or CinemaDNG is that it allows for matching the aerial shots to other cameras that are being used for filming by allowing much more flexibility in color correction and grading in drone video post-production (video editing) to get the right 'look' that they want to achieve. However, using the Inspire 2 comes with higher operational costs and therefore higher client pricing. If the client doesn't require it or doesn't want to pay for it, that is where the Mavic 2 Pro comes in.

For its small form factor, the Mavic 2 Pro can still 'pack a punch' when it comes to video. It allows for shooting in 4K, LOG (for color grading in post-production), or Normal color profiles, and has 10-bit color depth. If you know what you're doing, you can get some great imagery out of the Mavic 2 Pro.

DJI Air 2S is a great alternative to Mavic 2 Pro (and as stated above, also great for its compactness and good video quality), but I already owned the Mavic 2 Pro when Air 2 S came out, so there is no need for me to have both.

You can check out my video portfolio here. They were all taken with one of the drones I am recommending here (Phantom 4 Pro, Mavic 2 Pro, Inspire 2).

Best Drone for Inspection, Mapping, Modeling, Surveying, and Construction Jobs

The workhorse of my fleet is the DJI Phantom 4 Pro. I've owned several of its predecessors (Phantom 2 and 3 Pro) and have a couple of 4's currently, so that is my 'go-to' drone for inspection, mapping, and 3D modeling type jobs. The main reason for this is that it is the only DJI drone equipped with the global vs. rolling shutter (you can learn the detailed differences between them here, but in short global shutter helps make more precise photographs while in motion), making DJI Phantom 4 Pro the best drone for accurate and practical drone photogrammetry.

What is the Best Drone for the Money?

There is no straightforward answer here. It all depends on what job you are using the drone for.

If you are looking for a drone that can perform a variety of tasks well (including photography, photogrammetry, and video), I would recommend the DJI Phantom 4 Pro.

If you are interested in getting started with aerial photography and videography, the Mavic 2 PRO, Mavic Air 2, or DJI Air 2S would be my choice.

If you do end up buying a drone, be sure to read my Beginner Guide to Drones and Drone Pilot License blog posts to learn more about operating your drone in a safe and legal manner.

Contact me if you are looking for a drone consultation, quote for your business, or are interested in drone flight and FAA Part 107 Certificate training. Follow me on social media to see our work and drone advice and tutorials - links are at the bottom of the website pages. Good luck and happy flying!

The Anatomy of the Drone Service Providers (DSP) Market

The Good – drones bring value and opportunities

Drone technology can bring a lot of value to businesses: innovative and cost-effective ways to complete tasks that were performed by humans that took a lot longer, potentially dangerous, and more expensive to accomplish (ex. inspections of hard to reach places, surveying, substitute for old/expensive solutions for aerial filming/photography, having ‘eyes in the sky’ for documenting work, etc.).

Several industries realized the value right away and have fully embraced this solution, spurring a flurry of DSP (drone service providers) entrepreneurs and startups to provide these services. And as drones get solid traction and more use cases with many industries, the drone industry is projected to grow to $43 Billion by 2024, according to COMPTIA report, with a compound growth rate (CAGR) of 20.5%, greatly outpacing growth rates of many industries, including IT. So with such an opportunity, the Drone Service Provider (DSP) market is growing rapidly.

In short, drones are bringing a lot of growth opportunities and economic value for enterprises and entrepreneurs. But, because the industry is so new, regulations and standards (FAA, industry, state and federal, etc.) are largely still developing and changing rapidly, as are enterprise use cases, it can be hard to understand the landscape of the drone service providers (DSPs) if you are a business owner or a manager looking to hire them.

The Bad - Hiring a drone company or a pilot is like gambling

Let’s imagine this scenario: you are a business owner or a manager in construction, engineering, video production, marketing, etc. (in short, any industry that could use drones) and decided you want to hire a drone pilot to do a job for you. This job could be anything from flying a drone to document the progress of a construction site or proof of work, inspect an oil rig, showcase commercial real estate, shoot aerials for a video you are making, etc.

Finding someone you can trust your project to can be a challenge unless you have a vetted and proven drone company/pilot you employ or you have contracted with before. Most likely you will do a web search for a drone pilot or a specific drone service you are looking for, and then you will get numerous paid ads and search results offering those services.

And here is what you need to know about the drone services providers (DSP) market in the United States: the market is very new and fragmented, and it can be hard to navigate. There are only a handful of national enterprises that operate in this industry, the rest are either small regional and niche companies specializing in a certain service or industry (ex. oil, gas, AEC industries, aerial cinematography/video, real estate etc.), entrepreneurs (aka drone pilots that can cover several industries), or ‘uber for drone pilots’ drone pilot network platforms (such as Drone Base, Drone Hive, Drone Up, etc.). These companies all need qualified drone pilots operating for them in the specific location required by clients to complete the task, regardless of the industry.

Some of these companies grew out of drone pilots starting their own companies (so they are operated by them), but many grew out of a recognized market opportunity, so they need to find pilots to fly for them. This isn’t easy to do, as finding a good pilot is like looking for a needle in a haystack of people self-proclaiming as qualified drone pilots.

The truth is, it is easy to get into the industry and call yourself a drone pilot or a drone services provider company.  Commercial drones are within reach to purchase for under $2K nowadays. Anyone who wants to invest their time and some grit can study, pass and receive an FAA Part 107 commercial drone operator certificate, and put up a website to advertise their services. And voila, they have a drone services business presence that makes it look like they are legit!

In reality, this may be a company that doesn't have their own pilots, or is operated by a self-proclaimed pilot that has hardly flown before, who may not have a commercial drone pilot license, or insurance, and very possibly has never done the type of job you want to have completed. See our blog post Things to Consider Before Hiring A Drone Pilot for more details on this topic.

So, you are really gambling as you are trying to find someone you can trust in your specific location to do the job you require – the market of drone services providers is still new and is a bit like the Wild West right now.

Some companies out there (especially national companies serving oil/gas, telecom, and energy markets) are starting to employ and train their own drone pilots. These industries require specialized skills and services performed at a regular cadence. It is also easier to ensure that their customers will get quality service consistently when hiring and investing in proper pilot training. These companies train pilots to fly proficiently and execute specific tasks they require (video/photo, aerial inspections, surveying, and photogrammetry).

However, most companies do not employ their own pilots, so when you submit a request for your service through a drone pilot network company that doesn’t employ their own pilots, you will be dealing with a ‘middleman’ company that will connect you with a drone pilot, whether from their existing contacts in the area (someone they’ve hired before for another client) or from another area that will have to travel to your location (and therefore charging more, most likely). And if the job at hand is rather simple, not requiring specialized skills in flying, shooting high-quality video/photo, or gathering data in a specific way, it may be an effective solution for you.

But you should be aware that many of these drone pilot network companies do not vet their subcontractors properly, and in many cases, these pilots get paid low wages (the middleman takes a cut, of course). You will not get the best-qualified pilots to perform your task and will most likely have limited direct communication with them to prevent those pilots from acquiring you as their own client.

And while this business model of drone pilot network serves well as a marketplace to connect clients with pilots, these pilots may not be highly skilled and use the middleman service to gain proficiency (using this as paid training) before branching out on their own or being employed as drone pilots full-time for a company that has its own drone program.

The Ugly - You Take on Risks

So, if you have contracted with a company that doesn’t employ its own pilots or doesn’t vet them properly, what are the risks?

Here are the top 4:

1)      Fines. If you have hired a drone pilot who doesn’t hold an FAA Part 107 license or is operating outside of the FAA Part 107 guidelines (including not registering drones, flying without additional airspace authorizations when required, etc.), you are opening your company to potential FAA fines.

Recently the FAA fined a drone pilot $182K for repeated violations, as detailed in this Forbes article. While this may be an extreme example, you don’t want to get in ‘hot water’ with FAA or local law enforcement, let alone get your business dragged through the bad PR a drone incident could generate. Drones are still a new and sometimes controversial technology, so drone incidents tend to make TV, front page, and social media news.

2)   Damage liability. If you don't ensure that the drone pilot you hire has drone business insurance or puts your company as an 'additional insured' as an additional way to defer potential liability away from the client, there is always a potential that your company may be liable if something goes wrong. Drones do crash, can cause property damage and personal injury, and that cause could be anything from weather-related, technology failure, or pilot error, regardless of their skill and qualifications.

3)   Wasted resources (time and $). If you don’t have a way to communicate your requirements to the pilot directly, or don’t know their experience with the type of job and data output you require, that money you just spent may have been wasted – you may not get the output you need, or the quality of the output may not be up to your standards.

4)  Reputation. If you are the business owner and the drone pilot you hired didn’t work out in some way, you will learn your lesson and move on. But, if you are a manager within a company that oversees outsourcing these jobs, your career and reputation in the company and industry may be at stake.

To sum up, if you want to hire a drone pilot consider coming up with requirements to vet them, and/or ensure that the companies you hire vet the pilots according to your specifications. These requirements should include the basics and go beyond them, especially if you have a complex technical deliverable that will need to integrate into your workflows or you expect video of certain quality and professional photography output.

V1DroneMedia is owned and operated by its Chief Pilot Jason Damman, a professional airline turned drone pilot, with 25+ years’ experience in remote-controlled aviation, 20+ years in commercial airlines, and 5+ years in commercial drone operations. Jason is a drone and aviation practitioner and educator, performing complex drone jobs in various industries (see our Portfolio and YouTube channel for examples of our work), and is also a certified flight instructor, including training drone pilots.

Contact us for a consultation today. V1DroneMedia can help you complete a drone job, train your pilots, or help you to set up a drone operation of your own!

Where can I fly my drone?

I get this question all the time. Mostly when people see me fly my drone downtown Cleveland, Ohio, (and anywhere else). There is still a lot of confusion as to where you are legally allowed to fly.

There are 2 types of drone operators – hobbyists (recreational) and commercial operators (Part 107 license holders, like myself). As a reminder, drones are legally defined as aircraft, so their operations are subject to regulation by the FAA. This regulation applies to both recreational and commercial operations and ALL drone pilots are required to know the type of airspace they plan to fly in.

Commercial drone operators (with Part 107 certification) are required to learn and understand much more about operations within the NAS (National Airspace), and it is a major part of the FAA knowledge test for remote pilot certification. The same goes for the hobbyist drone pilots: as of 2021 they are required to take the TRUST test, preparation for which gives them basic information about the airspace types (see my TRUST test blog post for more information on that)

Types of United States National Airspace (NAS)

When planning a drone flight, you need to determine what type of airspace you are intending to fly in.  If it is controlled airspace (Class B, C, D, or certain areas of E) then you will need to get FAA authorization to fly in these areas.   Controlled airspace is typically found within 5 miles of an airport that has a control tower in operation. 

How can I check what type of airspace I am in?

There are several ways to check what type of airspace you are intending to fly in.  The easiest way is with an app that was developed in conjunction with the FAA, called B4UFLY. It provides drone pilots with a status indicator based on their current or planned location in relation to airspace restrictions. Of course, there may be additional restrictions, such as state and local regulations, that may not be shown on the app.

There are a variety of other apps available for drone pilots, including Airmap, UASidekick, and Aloft to name a few, which help determine the airspace type and the ability to request FAA flight authorizations through the app.

Uncontrolled airspace drone flight operations

As the name implies, you won’t need additional FAA authorization if you are in uncontrolled airspace. You are free to fly there, as long as you comply with basic drone operation rules (flying under 400’, not flying over people or traffic, and not interfering with traffic patterns of takeoff and landing areas, if near an airport).

How to get FAA Authorizations to fly in controlled airspace

If you’ve determined that you are going to be flying in controlled airspace (Class B, C, D, etc.) you must apply for an airspace authorization for altitudes below the posted UAS Facility Map grid altitudes (this applies to both recreational and commercial drone pilots)

You can get these authorizations through a variety of apps (mentioned above) that are LAANC (Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability) service providers, which were developed in collaboration with the FAA and the industry.

If you are unable to get authorization through the LAANC network, you will have to get authorization through the FAA DroneZone.

You can probably figure out where to go from here with the information and the links I provided, but if you want more detail and are more of a visual learner, I uploaded a video tutorial on getting drone flight authorizations through the LAANC and DroneZone on my V1DroneMedia YouTube channel.

Can I get an FAA Authorization through the DJI Fly Safe Website?

No, getting an FAA Authorization is a separate step from unlocking a DJI Fly Safe No Fly Geo Zone. I explain the difference and give the tutorial on how to unlock the DJI Fly Safe No Fly Zones in my What is DJI Fly Safe blog post.

Can I fly my drone downtown Cleveland?

If you are specifically looking to fly downtown Cleveland (since I am local, I will elaborate on this subject), you will most likely be flying in Class D (controlled) airspace. This controlled airspace exists due to Burke Lakefront airport being located in downtown Cleveland and encompasses a 5 miles radius around the airport.  You will need to check the LAANC system to determine if the specific spot you are looking to fly in is within that controlled airspace and if so, you will need to get an FAA authorization to fly there. Simple, right? 

Something else to be aware of when flying downtown Cleveland is the fact that there may be TFRs (Temporary Flight Restrictions) in effect – typically in effect if there is a Cleveland Indians game – TFR prohibits any drone flying during that time.

I have a few spots I tend to fly at often around Cleveland, and you can read my post Where To Fly Drones in Cleveland to learn where that is.

I hope you have a bit more clarity now about flying at your desired location. Comment here or on my YouTube video if you’ve found this helpful, and contact me if you have more questions or have a topic in mind that you’d like to learn more about. Have a safe flight!

Drone Pilot - Airline Pilot's Plan B During The Pandemic

My airline history and job status with the pandemic

My name is Jason Damman, and I am a 20-year captain with ExpressJet Airlines (doing business as United Express and Continental Express before the United and Continental merger). I know that many pilots, much like me, are sitting at home/not flying due to the COVID epidemic. Many of us are on company leave, on reserve out of the base, waiting for furlough once the government aid to the airlines runs out, or potentially already lost our job and looking for a new one. While this type of industry slump isn’t something that we could have predicted when we started pursuing aviation careers, events like 9/11 and the COVID epidemic can cripple our industry and turn everything upside down in a matter of days.

Looks like this time around with COVID the industry took a nosedive for a while (way worse than 9/11), and according to many sources, it is not expected to fully recover to pre-COVID levels until 2022. Of course, we all hope that this will not be the case, but at this point, we must assume this is the state of things for the foreseeable future.

What else can you do with your airline pilot skills?

While I am in this limbo state, it doesn’t stop me from working on my side gig that has the potential to develop into a full-time gig if enough time is put into it (and we have lots of it now). This side gig is a Drone Services Provider (or DSP) business, which is much easier to get airborne with (pun intended) if you have an airline pilot license than for anyone else. Because any certified pilot can get certified to fly drones commercially (FAA Part 107 certificate) much quicker than folks that are not. This is usually one of the biggest obstacles for people who want to fly drones commercially, as getting Part 107 FAA certification requires passing an aeronautical knowledge exam, like what you must pass for a private pilot certification. You can find detailed information about getting this pilot certification on the FAA website at here and here.

The reason I am here telling you about this is that if you are a certified pilot, you can do this too, while you are in this limbo state with lots of time on your hands. This will give you another skill/tool to help you in your job search beyond airlines, if that’s what you are doing now.  I don’t know how many companies are hiring pilots now (maybe private jet management and cargo transportation companies), but even they have a limited capacity to absorb the pilot surplus that is being created with the pandemic disrupting the airline industry.

State of the Drone Industry in 2020

Remember how there was a pilot shortage in the airline industry just a few months ago? Well, there is kind of a similar situation in the drone industry now - lack of qualified, knowledgeable drone pilots to complete flight missions for companies that have nationwide needs. Although many of these drone gigs are contract or per property/asset, meaning you can choose to do them when you have time, there are already many full-time jobs available also, and new jobs/job descriptions are being created every day due to a lot of drone experimentation and new use cases and workflows being created in various industries. 

Do a search for drone pilot jobs in whatever job search engine you use, and you will see the openings, in different industries and with different pay scales. If you have other than aviation degrees and professional experiences (especially photography, cinematography, software development, engineering, construction management, surveying/mapping), you will be even at more advantage in this industry. A 2013 industry report released by the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International projected more than 100,000 new jobs in unmanned aircraft by 2025.

And the actual drone pilot work is mostly contact-less, so it is COVID and quarantine friendly.

What’s more, due to drones disrupting so many industries with faster, cheaper, more efficient solutions to completing tasks traditionally done by humans or other tools, the drone industry is predicted to experience growth rates far outpacing those of many traditional industries (including airlines). Here is a Business Insider Intelligence Drone Market Outlook outlining drone use growth in major industrial and service industries.

Is drone business a viable long-term job/income replacement?

Will becoming a drone pilot replace your income? Probably not, or at least not right away, but again, it all depends on how much you choose to pursue it and market your services. You can always use this as a side gig to supplement your main income, especially if you don’t have a regular 9 to 5 job (which is the airline industry, essentially).

How to get started in the drone industry for airline pilots

Of course, getting a Part 107 certificate will not make you an experienced drone pilot, that is just the first step.

I grew up building and flying radio-controlled airplanes, which is how I got into aviation, so I already had a lot of experience in remote control flying prior to picking up a drone. So, when I started experimenting with drones, I picked it up pretty quickly due to that past experience, but even then, I put in a lot of time practicing my flying, photography, video skills and learning various software processing tools - skills which even now, 5 years later, I am still honing every week as I am working on projects for clients.

So for someone who has never picked up a drone before, the next step after getting your Part 107 certificate would be to get proficient in flying (just like with the airlines, you need to get those flight hours in), and then honing other valuable skills that enable to produce value out of visual data that was captured, not to mention getting your name out there to be considered for drone jobs. However, the possibilities in this developing industry are endless, if you have the interest and the drive.

The easiest way to enter the drone industry is by providing videography and photography services (although most competitive, as well), and that may be the way to get started, but you can take it beyond that and develop skills to use drones in Search and Rescue, Surveying, Mapping, Construction, Delivery, Agriculture, etc. Possibilities are endless if you have an interest and the drive to grow and make this a legitimate side gig or your next career.

If you find this information helpful, please share with your network, airline industry friends, and relatives, and leave comments so I can gauge if this was helpful and whether I should cover the subject of drone business setup in more detail because there is a lot more to it than just FAA Part 107 Certificate to get started!

Also please check out my Website if you are interested in learning what type of work I’ve done and what industries I serve, contact me for job inquiries, and follow me on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn!

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