Illinois Drone Photography and Mapping

Drone Usage Standard Operating Procedures (SOP)

In addition to learning to be a confident and skilled drone pilot, it’s also important to develop a set of standard operating procedures (SOP) for every flight mission.

PERSONNEL:

The person responsible for all drone missions shall be the remote pilot in command (RPIC). The RPIC shall possess an FAA remote pilot certificate in order to command a commercial drone operation. In addition to the RPIC, a visual observer may be used to keep visual contact with the aircraft during the mapping mission. The visual observer’s role is to communicate to the RPIC any instructions required to stay clear of obstacles (see and avoid). The person operating the controller for the mission does not have to be the RPIC, however the RPIC must be present and in charge.

FLIGHT OPERATIONS:

As a certified commercial drone pilot, it is necessary to incorporate Pre-Flight, In-Flight, and Post-Flight protocols to insure the highest level of safety and effectiveness. Even though drones are relatively small, they sometimes occupy the same space as traditional aircraft, hence the Federal Aviation Administration has rules for safe drone operations.

PRE – FLIGHT GUIDELINES:

The Remote Pilot in Command must be in possession of FAA pilot’s certificate.

Inspect and keep batteries always charged.

Batteries that have not been recently used can lose some of their initial charge. Given the relatively small flight window per battery, it makes sense that batteries are inspected and charged the night before a mapping mission.

Inspect the Aircraft Body for Cracks

Check the propellers for being loose or damaged. Propellers should be replaced similar to changing the oil in a car as routine maintenance. Propellers are relatively cheap and should be replaced periodically.

Use the B4UFLY app on your phone to ensure that you will not be operating the UAV in restricted airspace.

RPIC should identify an emergency landing site. The chosen location should include the ability to recover the drone in case of emergency landing.

Since our drone supports on-board RTK with a ground base station, a limited number of ground control points will need to be set and occupied prior to the flight mission. Provide two or three control points using our standard VRS GPs rover, occupied for at least 3 minutes each. Place the control points near the perimeter of the site which will be easily visible from the air. Be sure to identify each point with a number and marker. Commercial targets will be provided. If there are no targets, a chevron can be painted at the control point with a large point number visible from above.

As with other surveying procedures, field notes should be kept recording the mission characteristics. A pre-flight log, recorded in the surveyor’s standard orange notebook, will consist of:

• Date and time of mission.
• Name of Pilot in Command (PIC).
• Name of Visual Observer (VO).
• Note whether this is a pre-planned mission or manual mission.
• List weather conditions – temperature, wind, cloud conditions.

Also determine if weather conditions are favorable to conduct a drone mission. Note that visibility of 3 statute miles is required.

• Describe take-off location.
• Note any potential obstacles.

IN – FLIGHT GUIDELINES:

Verify that the controller, aircraft, and base station are communicating (get GPS fix) before takeoff.

Verify that on-board memory card is in place and re-format if necessary.

Verify that batteries are showing near-full charge.

The aircraft should be launched from a preset location so it will fly according to the mission plan.

Visual observer should keep the drone in sight. Binoculars may be temporarily used for this.

In case of failure or loss of sight of aircraft, utilize the built-in return to home feature on the controller.

POST – FLIGHT GUIDELINE

Carefully land the aircraft away from any obstructions or people. Power down the aircraft upon landing.

Confirm that the mission objectives were met. If not, make notes describing potential issues which may affect the surveyed output such as trees, shadows, wind, rain, temperature. Note there are times when drone usage is not the best tool. The pilot in command needs to make recommendations to office personnel if conditions are not conducive to effective drone mapping.

Lastly, remove and download captured data from the on-board micro-SD card. Files of this type are generally very large and need to be uploaded to company approved cloud storage location.

CONTACTING THE OFFICE

There are occasions when assistance is needed from office personnel. In the event of damage to property, it is our responsibility to file a report with the FAA if the property damage (other than the UAS) exceeds $500. In other instances, a waiver may be required to fly in a restricted air space. Call the office if either of these conditions comes about.