‘Drones’ as a single group
While a large percentage of drone pilots are interested in the private recreational aspects of drones, a growing number operate drones for practical reasons: a farmer might operate a drone to keep an eye on his livestock, a photographer might occasionally fly his drone to get a better shot, and a fire-fighter might operate a drone to get a better view of a situation.
Different drone applications call for different guidelines for safe operation each customised to its specific environment. Building communities for these specific groups helps to accelerate growth and economic development through a shared knowledge-base.
By putting the infrastructure in place to represent the interests of these groups we can practically implement safe, economically viable, practical drone use cases. While this might seem like a statement for commercial drone use, we can differentiate between the commercial aspect and simple practical use cases: Commercial drones operate in the public sphere where the risk factor is high, practical operations are performed in a safer, non-public environment and while they might seem commercial in nature, they are usually only tools used to accomplish a task.
The interest groups we have identified are:
- Recreational use
- Toy Drones
- Sport / Racing drones
- Fishing
- Agriculture
- Anti-poaching / nature conservation
- Safety and/or security
- Photography and videography
- Long-range drones
- Retail and distribution of drones
- Fire and emergency
- Education and Development
- Pre-commercial operation
This list will naturally evolve over time, just as drone technology, implementation, and new applications do.