UAV Industries, a Cape Town born and bred business, has been the first drone/UAV business certificated by the South African Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) in the Western Cape to provide training to UAV pilots.
UAV pilots are a critical skill that is required worldwide and all commercial and corporate UAV operators need to be licensed.
The use of UAVs in a variety of industries is important and the UAV industry is set to grow exponentially in South Africa.
Braam Botha, UAV Industries’ chief operating officer, says: “Being able to train UAV pilots against international best practise is critical for South Africa to illustrate our leadership in this field.”
UAVs will undertake various tasks in emergency response, search and rescue, anti-poaching, agriculture, utilities and camera work for various productions such as movies, TV series and advertising.
Botha adds: “The UAV industry is a nascent industry that combines the actual aviation industry and the tech industry all in one. Bringing together the manned aviation space and the unmanned is a complex task, but not impossible. Leveraging and applying the detailed legislation and standards that CAA has brought about allows UAV industries to provide a training platform that will assist in making sure UAV pilots have the necessary skills to be able to undertake this complex task.”
UAV Industries has a backlog of students wanting to be trained and is confident that this industry will provide many jobs in South Africa, Africa and globally. More than 1-million UAVs were sold in the US prior to Christmas, illustrating the challenge and opportunity facing the industry.
