We plan every Small Unmanned Aircraft (SUA) mission in detail. Factors that need to be considered include the following;

• Safety – Safety is paramount in our operations. Prior to any mission we review all equipment, location, external factors and determine in the first instance if it is safe to complete the mission.  In some circumstances the risks are too great and it may not be possible to carry out the required mission using drone activity.  Alternative methods may be possible.

• Weather – we use UAV Forecast to determine if weather conditions are suitable.  Other applications for reviewing weather include (a) Windy.com and (b) Met Eireann

• Risk Assessments – we carry out a detailed risk assessment for every project, which includes a pre-inspection survey and a detailed survey once on site.

• Regulations – We are certified to operate by the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) and we comply fully with the requirements of this licence.  In some instances Air Traffic Approval is required prior to operating a SUA detail, and we have extensive experience dealing with Air Traffic Control and the IAA in this regard.  There are certain ‘no fly’ areas and these are defined in this IAA U.04 document (which includes a map and specific details).  Flying within some of these areas may be possible but that would require additional approval accompanied with a Safety Risk Assessment and possibly Aeronautical Study.  We also use the Altitude Angel Web Portal for submission of mission plans.

• Other Key Regulation Documents
  • • Temporary restrictions are shown on this NOTAMs website.
    • For up to date aeronautical information in Ireland, including details of prohibited and restricted airspace, refer to The Integrated Aeronautical Information Package (IAIP) available here. 
    • The latest UAS Advisory Memoranda (UAM) can also be found here.
    • EASA easy access rules for UAS (September 2021) can also be found here

    • S.I. No. 806/2007 – Irish Aviation Authority (Designated Areas) Order, 2007

    • FlyRyte Drone Academy also have an interactive map showing restricted airspace areas here

• Outputs – what is required from the SUA mission. This could be;
  • • 3D computer model of an area or building,
    • a 2D Orthomosaic (geometrically corrected photograph),
    • Full AutoCAD Drawings
    • still photographs (aerial or other),
    • videos,
    • reports etc.

AFDS is fully insured through Coverdrone with public liability insurance to the value of €1.3m in line with EU Regulation 785/2004.

AFDS works closely with specialist surveying companies to provide a full range of surveying services.

Pilot Competency Certificate