If you ever find yourself needing to hire a commercial drone operator, the following tips will ensure you get the best outcome. The use of drones is becoming increasingly popular and operators with the right qualifications, skills and experience are in high demand. Some specialise in one industry or field of work, such as drone roof inspections, but others offer a range of services.
7 Tips For Hiring a Commercial Drone Operator
Location. Hiring locally means you can keep travel costs to a minimum. A local operator will have experience of working with any local airports or restricted areas and this can make life easier. Drone Safe Register has safe, legal operators across the UK and you can find the nearest to your location here
Experience. Any approved commercial drone operator will have to have passed some form of exam to prove competency, but some have more experience than others. The more complex the job, the greater the value of experience becomes. The drone industry is still relatively new, so you may not find local pilots with years of experience, but it’s certainly worth asking.
Reputation. If you were looking for a new dentist, plumber or professional photographer you’d want to check out their reviews and see what reputation they have. The same applies to a drone operator. A bit of digging on Google and social media is usually all it takes to sift the five star operators from the one star operators.
Previous work. Other than highly technical work, drone operators work in a visual medium. Their website and social media pages should proudly display examples of aerial images they’ve captured and examples of footage in the form of a ‘showreel.’
Qualifications. All commercial drone operators require some form of qualification to operate legally. The so-called A2 Certificate of Competency (A2 C of C) is really the entry level and indicates a pilot understands the basics of aviation law and how to fly a drone safely. The more advanced CAA GVC qualification allows an operator to fly larger drones in built-up areas. For some types of work the latter is essential, so check when you make contact with an operator.
Range of services. Flying drones for commercial purposes involves a lot more than the ability to take off, manoeuvre and land. Some fields of work require advanced data capture and analysis skills. Others, such as drone wedding photography, are more about cinematography and photographic skills.
Budget. When hiring any service, budget is an inevitable factor. The cheapest quote may not be the best one to go for, but conversely, there’s no point in over-paying. You don’t need to hire a BBC news quality cameraman to carry out a drone roof inspection! Remember that a professional drone operator will have costs such as insurance, pre-flight risk assessments and post-production editing. Make sure you are comparing quotes on a like-for-like basis.
Members of Drone Safe Register can be found across the UK and between them offer a vast range of expertise and services. To find your nearest and obtain some quotes click here.
