The idea and facilitation of remotely operated machinery is not a new concept.  Almost everyone has heard of the rovers on Mars and on the Moon, remote submersibles piloted into the deep oceans, remotely operated robots used by the military and by bomb defusal teams and I challenge anyone to find a modern TV or film product that doesn’t use at least some sort of remotely acquired footage.

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     What is new is how accessible drone services are to the masses.  What once required investments of hundreds of thousands, or even millions of dollars, is now accessible for much, much less. 

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     What hasn’t changed is the skill required to utilize them optimally and safely.  Even though the machinery itself is smarter and cheaper, the potential liability remains the same or even greater, due to the complexities of modern infrastructures and the inflated liability costs associated with repairing them in the event of an accident related to a drone.

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     While quickly evolving technologies can make drones easier for the novice to fly in simple ways, their capabilities and suites of software and sensors are also evolving and much of what a modern drone can do is not fully utilized by novice operators.  Much like a modern professional grade camera is only fully utilized in the hands of a photographer who understands how to use it, today’s pro drones are only fully utilized by a professional pilot.  The results achievable by a skilled pilot truly stand apart.  The quality of drone derived results are better than ever, more accessible than ever and often outperform any manually obtained facsimiles.

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     Let’s talk about the use cases for unmanned aircraft, because they are endless and the synergy drones can have with various industries really can’t be overstated.  Adding a drone to traditional systems and workflows is often easier than most think and can often create an overall time savings to already established best practices, along with added safety and improved insights.

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     Speaking of safety, the greatly reduced risk of physical harm to living souls and the liability savings alone are worth the cost of hiring a drone pilot.  Any situation where a human can be removed from danger by the use of drones is invaluable, and the access a drone has to unreachable areas is unmatched by any other means.  If you marry the vastly increased safety of using a drone instead of a human, with the seemingly endless use cases a drone can provide in terms of reach and creativity, the clear value of a skilled drone pilot to a prospective client becomes very difficult to deny.  There are few sectors that couldn’t benefit from some sort of drone work and usually the achievable end product is unmatched by any sort of manned means.

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     There are also legal liability protections to consider.  Only correctly licensed individuals are allowed, by law, to capture drone footage for use in any business or professional manner.

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     For example, lets say a small business owner wanted to get an aerial photo of their shop for their business’ social media page or website, and their kid already has a small toy drone that could technically take the photo, the fact is, the photo wouldn’t be legal to use unless the person who actually piloted the drone held the proper FAA issued license.

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     Any footage or photograph taken by a drone and used for any business or professional purpose, must be captured by a properly licensed operator, or it is 100% illegal. 

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    This includes any drone footage used for a monetized YouTube channel, a simple inspection flyover used in construction, or any photo or footage used in real estate marketing, etc.

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     In this way, the FAA can ensure that footage or photos taken for any professional or business purposes, anywhere in the country, is done without violating federal air usage and safety protocols and keeps the airways safer for everyone.

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     So, much like how a person who doesn’t have his or her doctorate can’t be a doctor, and how a person with no flight education and training can’t be a commercial airplane pilot, a person without a 14 CFR Part 107 Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems remote pilot license cannot legally use a drone for any sort of business purpose, in any capacity.

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     Commercially licensed drone pilots will always be needed.

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     Still not convinced?

 

     Check out some of our work.  

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