By Jamil Solomon

So you are looking for a drone professional, you’ve done research and identified that hiring a FAA Part 107 Certified Remote sUAS Pilot is the correct way to go. You search the web for vendors in your area and narrow your choices down to three companies. You proceed to call them and the first question you ask is “What kind of drones do you fly?”

Seems like an easy question to answer doesn’t it. Well, the truth is the answer depends on the job you need done. It’s no secret that perception of professionalism in this industry is largely based on what drone the operator flies. For the layperson who only has rudimentary knowledge of the industry there are several drone manufacturers, Parrot, Yuneec, Autel, and market leader DJI. There are also a myriad of customized drones being produced by smaller companies for specialized purposes.

Since 2010 when the French company Parrot released the first ready-to-fly drone that could be controlled and flown using a smartphone significant advancements have been made in flight distance, speed, camera’s, size, portability, and ease of control. This opened a previously highly specialized market to consumers of all levels of experience. The ease with which to fly a drone and capture amazing photos and video has lead to an explosion of individuals and companies offering aerial photography and videography.

Let’s circle back to the question. As I mentioned there are a number of offerings in the drone market that do anything from the basic high resolution photo to thermal imaging of structures. So how does this affect your needs? Well it goes back to my original answer, it depends on your job. A professional drone pilot might show up to the job with a DJI Mavic Pro 1 or 2 if the job is taking 4k video or some stills and portability is the issue. Or they may show up with an DJI Inspire 2 if you need cinematic footage for a commercial, or the Matrice if you want to see if your building is energy inefficient. Chances are unless you are the subject of the shoot or need creative control of the project the drone professional is going to meet with you in person to see what exactly your needs are and then he/she will be out in the field capturing the images or video and you won’t even see what drone they are flying.

The point is the end product is the key. It does not really matter what drone they fly as long as they produce exactly what you requested. Do not sign off or pay for a product that does not meet your specifications. Whether they accomplished the project with a Parrot Anafi, DJI Phantom 4 Pro, or a Matrice 600 Pro the end product is the biggest concern. The first question should not be “what kind of drone do you fly” it should be “can you produce what I am asking for and can you show me examples of your work.”