There is often a lot of confusion about what it means to be a professional drone pilot. In this post, we explore the 4 critical steps it takes to become a professional drone pilot.
POB Column: From Drone to Drawing: the Full Workflow
In the conversations we have had with hundreds of land surveyors, civil engineers, and other mapping professionals about starting a drone program, we often see themes arise. One of the most problematic of these is the tendency of businesses to go about the process of setting up a drone program completely backwards. In our most recent column for Point of Beginning, we discuss how to design a drone program with a focus instead on workflow.
Our Guest Column in Point of Beginning, October
Aerotas was honored when Point of Beginning magazine asked us to follow up our article in the September issue with another in October. In October's guest column, titled "Drone Dos and Don’ts," Aerotas co-founders Logan Campbell and Daniel Katz cover just that: what does a survey drone do well, and what does it not do well? This topic is crucial to understand for surveyors considering starting survey drone operations.
Our Guest Column in Point of Beginning, September
The co-founders of Aerotas were featured as Guest Columnists in this month’s Point of Beginning magazine. The focus of the article is on the critical steps in developing a survey drone program. The article covers the crucial categories of technology (hardware and software), operations, insurance, and regulation. In our experience, operations and workflow management are the most critical but over-looked component in ensuring a successful program.
Surveying by Drone from a Moving Vehicle
Included in the FAA's new drone laws is the ability to operate a drone from within a moving vehicle. This dramatically expands the areas that drones can cover for mapping or inspection. We took to the deserts of Southern California to see how difficult it is to run a safe UAV operation from a moving vehicle.
How to Make Drone Operations Reliable
Last week, I spent a day in the field getting a client trained on their new UAV equipment. Naturally, I thought this would be a great chance to test out a new aircraft that we recently received. Unfortunately, I made a mistake that is all too common in UAV operations: I left all of my batteries sitting in their charger back in the office. Having good operational procedures and good training is the solution to prevent this and worse mistakes. In this post we dig into why following procedures and checklists is crucial on every job.
