What’s it take for public safety agencies to start a drone program?

For that question, we turn to Brendan Stewart, President & Chief Pilot for AeroVista Drone Academy. AeroVista aids public agencies and corporations in empowering the next generation of drone pilots for success. They provide end-to-end solutions beyond just training, ensuring an effective drone program that minimizes risk and maximizes results. Brendan has almost a decade of unmanned aviation experience and over 2,500 flight hours. He is responsible for driving Drone Training, Program Development and FAA Compliance Solutions for AeroVista Drone Academy. He recognizes that Public Safety personnel need to be equipped with a turn key drone program that solves the challenges of FAA compliance, training, scaling operations, producing actionable intelligence and ultimately accelerates program adoption. In this edition of the Drone Radio Show, Brendan talks about AeroVista Drone Academy, its mission and focus on public safety and the current trends in unmanned training programs.

How does the petroleum industry use drones?

For that question, we turn to Suzanne Lemieux, Manager within the Midstream and Industry Operations unit of the American Petroleum Institute. Suzanne works with API staff and association members to advance policies and practices that enhance the security of oil and natural gas operations and personnel.  Her primary areas of responsibility are emergency preparedness and response; security, rail, natural gas and maritime policy: energy infrastructure advocacy and stakeholder engagement. She is also API’s UAS Lead and works with more than 625 members and external stakeholders in formulating UAS policy. In this edition of the Drone Radio Show, Suzanne talks about the American Petroleum Institute, the organization’s top UAS priorities and need for safety first in deploying new technologies, like UAS systems.

Why isn’t the FAA moving faster on regulations that will advance the drone industry?

If you asked today’s guest, he might say that we need to look in an entirely different direction.  Chris Korody is the founder of the Drone Business.center and   provides strategy, research and content for the UAV, IoT and robotics industries. He has more than 45 years of marketing experience and has worked with some of the largest companies in the technology field, including Apple, BMW, Boeing, Cisco, Intel, Rockwell, Xerox and many others. Chris produces the weekly newsletter, Dronin’ On, which focuses on the global regulatory environment and is widely followed by senior managers in law firms, regulatory agencies and businesses around the world. In this edition of the Drone Radio Show, Chris talks about some of the current UAS legislative initiatives that will affect the drone industry, the respective roles of the FAA and Congress in passing bills and regulations and how operators can prepare themselves for what may occur in the next few years.

How can Counter UAS measures be used to enhance security and public safety efforts?

For that question, we turn to someone who is uniquely qualified to give us the answers. Brian Fentiman is Vice-President and CTO of Blueforce UAV Consulting, a Canadian based UAS / Counter UAS consulting and training company. Blueforce assists in building unique UAS and counter UAS programs for enterprises of any size. Brian recently retired from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police after 34 years of service. He has spent the last 3 years building the sUAS and C-sUAS program for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in British Columbia. He is a technical expert on UAS electronic countermeasures and holds a Diploma in Telecommunications. Brian maintains a Part 107 Airman’s Certificate, is a ground school instructor, and has developed several small UAS courses. He has provided support to tactical teams, forensic investigators, as well as Search and Rescue teams. Brian was the first certified Extended Visual Line of Sight    check pilot in Canada and the first in Canada to deploy UAS countermeasures at a VIP venue. In this episode of the Drone Radio Show podcast, Brian talks about Blueforce Consulting and the use of counter measures for security and public safety purposes.

What do we need to fly a drone safely over people?

If you ask today’s guest, he would say having a reliable parachute system. Gene Englegau is the founder of Fruity Chutes, a world leader in the manufacturing of recovery systems for drones and rockets. The company provides parachute recovery systems to many of the top UAS manufacturers including AAI Textron, Quest UAV, Silent Falcon, Aeromao, Zipline, and Matternet and more.  Their top priority is to work with manufacturers and provide them with world class recovery systems.

In this episode of the Drone Radio Show, Gene talks about Fruity Chutes, the FAA drone over people workgroup and what it’s like to produce recovery sysems for the drone industry. Joining Gene is his daughter, Janice Egnlegau who handles operations and assists in social media and other areas of the company

What do we know about the Yuneec drone company and its products?

Today’s guest will fill us in on details.  Frank DeMartin is Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing for the Americas at Yuneec. The company has a long history in the aviation industry, starting out as a manufacturer of remonte-controlled aircraft and evolving in to one of today’s leading drone makers. In this edition of the Drone Radio Show, Frank talks about the origin and history of Yuneec, its latest products and some case uses, and he offers insights into the commercial and consumer drone industry.

Are you looking to find your fortune in the Drone Industry?

Then you’re going to want to hear what today’s guest has to say. Allen Beach has over 20 years’ experience in starting and running successful businesses. He is a military veteran and served in the US Coast Guard, flying hundreds of Search and Rescue missions out of Clearwater, Florida. After leaving the military, Allen earned his MBA and began working for IBM. In 1997, he and his wife, Andrea, decided to leave Corporate America and strike out on their own with Argus Connection, Inc. Argus quickly grew into a multi-million dollar technology services company which they eventually sold in 2009. After taking some time off, the couple started Argus Rising in 2015, a First Responder Drone Training Company. Allen and Andrea have also written two books, the first is “Be a Wolf” (The Entrepreneurs Guide to Becoming a Leader of The Pack) and “Drone Start-Up 101” (Finding Your Fortune in the Drone Industry).

In this episode of the Drone Radio Show, Allen talks about his book, “Drone Start-Up 101” and shares his insights into building a successful drone based business based on his more than 20-years experience as an entrepreneur.

How are drones used in Archaeology? 

For that question, we turn to Stefano Campana, one of Italy's most active and inventive professors, specializing in landscape archaeology, remote sensing and archaeological methodology for research, recording and conservation. His research is focused on the understanding of past landscapes from protohistory to the present day. Stefano's work is centered primarily in Tuscany but he has also participated in and led research in the UK, Spain, Turkey, Palestine, Iraq and Asia.  He has written extensively on UAV use in archaeology with a particular focus on practical considerations, sensors and data processing. His writings stress the benefits of UAV systems, specifically their cost, accuracy and control of data capture. In this edition of the Drone Radio Show, Stefano talks about how drones are used in the field of archaeology, their strengths and limitations and what archaeologists should consider when planning to use drones in their research.

How can we make our skies safe from possible drone incursions?

If you ask today’s guest, he would say it all starts with Congress.  Rob Thompson is the co-founder of the Counter UAS Coalition, an organization that advocates for public affairs and public policy for counter drone technology in Washington, D.C.. The coalition was formed to help industry stakeholders engage government in proactively forming sound public policy and bringing to the forefront the best in class counter UAS solutions. In this edition of the Drone Radio Show, Rob talks about the Counter UAS Coalition, why it was formed and how the organization works with manufacturers and Congress to changes laws to promote the use of effective counter drone measures.

Is there a way to spark interest in drones to girls at an early age?

Today’s guests believe they’ve found a way, and in doing so, they feel it might open future opportunities for women in the drone industry.  Sharon Rossmark is founder and CEO of Women and Drones, the largest online platform for women in the UAS Industry. The platform enables women to connect, collaborate and make global business connections to grow their network. Wendy Erikson is an emmy award winning journalist and host of the popular Women and Drones podcast. Both are FAA certified Remote Pilots.

Recently, Women and Drone’s published two children’s books on drones. In this episode of the Drone Radio Show, Sharon and Wendy talk about Women and Drones, STEM Education and how their two books are encouraging young girls to look as drones for fun and perhaps later in life, pursue a career in the drone industry.