According to Census.gov, there are 3,510 Veteran-owned businesses in Connecticut. Aquiline Drones (AD), an American drone manufacturer and technology company in downtown Hartford, is increasing that number for Commander Lee Wilson of VFW Post 1926 in Simsbury, CT. The decorated Army Sergeant who served in the first Gulf War during Desert Shield and Desert Storm, recently won a scholarship to AD’s Flight to the Future (F2F) online drone pilot training program after his name was selected from the raffle box at the recent Simsbury Fly-In event hosted by the Simsbury Airport. Commander Wilson, a resident of Avon, CT is a computer technician and is employed by the Department of Connecticut for the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) in Rocky Hill, CT. After completing the online course, he will earn an FAA Drone Pilot Certification, industry-specific drone instruction and support in becoming an independent drone business.
“Winning a scholarship to Aquiline Drones’ prestigious drone pilot program truly blends my professional technology background and personal passion of the UAV industry,” said Commander Wilson. “I couldn’t stop admiring the company’s Spartacus Max drone on display at the Simsbury Fly-In and will put this generous training to good use.”
Grand View Research, a U.S.-based market research and consulting firm, projects that the commercial unmanned aerial systems (UAS) market will grow at a compounded annual rate of 57.5% through 2028 to over half a trillion dollars as drone use cases are realized across countless industries. Activities easily performed by drones include inspections of construction sites, tunnels, bridges, power lines, energy plants, railroad tracks, coastline erosion, real estate, agriculture, livestock monitoring and wildlife management. They are also unrivaled in assessing and mitigating potential natural disasters and other forms of mayhem that could ultimately lead to loss of livelihood, property or even life. Further, drones are crucial to local, statewide, national, and international border security.
“AD has an ambitious goal to help the over 9,000 unemployed military veterans in Connecticut be trained and employed in a high-paying career that enhances their unique set of skills and dedication to public safety,” said Barry Alexander, founder and CEO of Aquiline Drones. “As the demand for commercial drone operations continues to increase, Commander Wilson will be armed with the proper knowledge, mastery, certification and specialization to successfully fulfill the needs of others with jobs and opportunities.”
Specifically, AD’s F2F-Version 2.0 training course prepares a participant to become a fully licensed drone pilot and business operator in four steps:
- FAA-Certified Commercial Drone Pilot – Comprehensive online training, real-time, one-on-one instruction, and mastering topics will help students become certified commercial drone pilots by the FAA. Additional concepts provide more robust and in-depth exposure to these topics.
- Immersion in Advanced Technology: Program participants discover how cloud and edge computing, the Internet of Things (IoT), and artificial intelligence (A.I.) are reshaping the drone industry, while learning about AD's industry-leading Command and Control or C2 platform, a cloud connected drone operations management service. Powered by the AD Cloud, a hybrid cloud for drones with unique aviation operations management capabilities, C2 provides the crucial operations management aspect to drone businesses, opening doors to much larger possibilities with aviation-grade safety and compliance.
- Industry Application Mastery Using a Drone Flight Simulator: Students gain specialized expertise using an advanced drone flight simulator to explore in-depth drone applications such as
videography, asset inspection, surveying, and security to become an industry expert.
- Establishment of Small Drone Business: In this step, students are led through all aspects of drone business ownership and provided critical services based on their industry preferences. A turn-key solution tailored to their specific interests and needs, this step reviews business formation, drone and equipment leasing, insurance, maintenance plans, accounting, financial, and marketing services.
Visit www.flighttothefuture.com for more information and to register.
