5 Amazing Drone Pilot Jobs You Can Get Today

Man flying drone in the sunset

So you’ve passed your part 107 test? Or you’re thinking of passing it and planning ahead? Well in this post we’ll be talking about 5 amazing drone pilot jobs you can get today.

The drone industry is rapidly growing and is not expected to slow down any time soon. According to the FAA, there are approximately 371,091 commercial drones registered in the United States.

Here is a list of 5 Amazing jobs you can get flying drones today:

  • Photography/Videography
  • 3D Mapping
  • Drone Instructor
  • Firefighting
  • Rooftop Inspections

Now let’s get into some of the best UAV pilot jobs we could find!

Drone Photography/Videography

Aerial photography and videography are some of the most popular career choices in the drone industry today. There are an immense amount of jobs available in this category.

Using your drone to take professional photos and/or videos is best suited for freelancers or those working within a drone program.

You can use your drone for photography in many different ways. These include capturing live events, property for real estate, architectural structures and many more.

Drone picture of mountains covered in clouds

Similar to drone photography, there are also many opportunities with videography using a drone.

If you manage to get enough exposure, companies and news agencies may hire you to capture news-worthy events and corporate videos.

Selling your services or partnering up with producers by becoming your own drone filmmaker is an amazing way to earn a living with a drone. This is typically more suited to those with previous filmmaking experience.

The potential is incredible with filmmaking, with average earnings ranging from a few hundred to thousands of dollars for just a few minutes of footage captured.

Keep in mind that this category is very competitive as there are so many people passionate about photography and videography. That being said, if you have the skills, you should definitely take this option into consideration!

3D Mapping Using UAVs

Drone technology has had an immense positive impact on 3D mapping.

This has become an incredible tool for professionals enabling them to reliably offer mapping services in a much more cost and time effective way.

Some applications of 3D mapping include construction, land surveying and mining.

There are many advantages to using drones for 3D mapping. One example is it’s overall cost. Besides the drone mapping software, you will only be using your drone.

Aerial view of drone

Previously, you would have to use much more expensive methods such as using a helicopter or any sort of manned aircraft.

This can get very expensive even for one trip as you would have to pay for the rental fee and the fuel.

It also makes it much safer for you as you can stand clear of any potential workplace hazards on the site. Not to mention the many potential dangers that can occur flying in a helicopter.

Finally, this can all be an automated operation. This is because of the drone mapping software available for mapping professionals.

You can use the flight mapping module to define a specific flight plan and the software will do it for you! It collects accurate data and is reusable allowing you to use the data again when monitoring the same area over time.

Click here for a much more detailed breakdown of the use of drones in this industry.

Drone Instructor

If you already know a lot about drones and how to use them, and you love to interact and teach others what you know, then this might be an incredible opportunity for you.

There is currently no certificate required to become a drone instructor but you may find many of the online courses require you to have a certain amount of flight hours or a certain license such as the manned pilot’s license.

The average drone instructor course usually consists of a theoretical introductory online course, following by some practical flight training and then a final examination.

Drone Remote

The average cost of these sorts of courses can be in the hundreds and even over a $1,000. This is a small price to pay for a career that could possibly bring you happiness for the rest of your life.

This can be an extremely rewarding job if you’re passionate about it as not only will you be able to practice what you love everyday and get paid for it, but you’ll also be able to watch your students get better and better throughout the course.

Using Drones For Firefighting

First responder drone expects are in high demand. A job as a first responder is not an easy career.

It is a very fast paced job that requires focus as every seconds counts.

To carry out this job, you will need things like a UAV/drone that is suitable to withstand harsh weather and has good water resistance and a thermal camera.

Much like for search and rescue, these kinds of drone experts use their drone to assess the scene of the incident.

Firefighters

They use the thermal camera to help identify hot-spots and see through the heavy smoke and the dark of night to carry out a more efficient operation.

They use them to keep track of their crew and identify possibly injured individuals trapped in a hard to get to area.

Drone operators also assess the damage after the disaster has settled down among many more applications in this field of work.

They are easy and fast to deploy making them extremely efficient and valuable for firefighters.

Using UAVs For Rooftop Inspections

Drones have had yet another beneficial impact on another industry.

Many people need to inspect roofs before they can do the work the need to do. These range from people who repair roofs, to people who install solar panels and even to those in the real estate industry.

Not to mention all the homeowners that simply want to maintain their roofs without putting their lives at risk.

Roofs are a part of every house, and if not properly maintained, they could cause irreparable damage to someone’s property.

UAVs make it safer and less time consuming for these types of professionals as they no longer need to climb onto a roof and make numerous measurements before they can even start their work.

This career involves 3D modeling, photography and even thermal imaging.

A thermal camera is used to identify heat that’s trapped in wet areas of a roof which retain heat longer than dry areas.

These temperature differences can help identify areas that need to be inspected thoroughly to maintain the roofs structural integrity.

Drones also decrease the likeliness that someone falls off the roof as they will be on it for less time overall.

Drones are an efficient solution to this issue found in many careers that involve roofs which therefore makes it a job in high demand and a great opportunity for you.

Click here for a more detailed explanation that dives into the more technical aspects of this job.

Is There A Demand For Drone Pilots?

As we’ve mentioned before, at the end of the day, drones are becoming more and more popular because of their versatility and efficiency.

They speed up many different tasks at a much lower cost than alternate methods.

The FAA stated that there are 220,076 remote pilots certified today in the US alone. This shows how popular drones are becoming as this number will only grow.

There is most definitely a huge demand for professional drone pilots in so many different sectors.

Check out our post where we go in depth on whether or not drone pilot jobs are really in demand.

Which jobs in the drone industry do you think have the highest demand?

What Is The Average Income For A Drone Pilot?

You can expect to earn on average $82,800 per year. Due to the drone industry being relatively new, these numbers can easily change. This data can also change depending on how much you are charging for your services.

According to AllDroneSchool:

The salary range for drone pilots ranges from $73,000 to $116,000$200,000 a year with a thermal imaging certificate. The average hourly rate for a drone pilot is $24.18.

How Much Money Do Drone Pilots Make? – AllDroneSchool

Is It Worth Buying A Drone To Earn A Living?

Drone Anatomy

With the sheer amount of industries you can use drones in today, and the rapid market growth of drones and jobs for UAV pilots, we think it is absolutely worth buying a drone with the intention of making a living with it.

So many companies are finding new ways for drones to carry out new tasks safely and efficiently. This continuously opens up job opportunities for those wishing to begin working in this industry.

Conclusion

These are only a few of the many jobs that drone pilots can get today.

If you are passionate about drones, then there’s without a doubt a job out there for you that you will love. Of course you will need to work hard, but is it really work if you’re doing what you love?

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