Conducting drone surveys in the dark
From stunning photographic opportunities for commercial business marketing to conducting thermal imaging inspections of a building structure, we can conduct night time drone inspection services for businesses across the country.
For various drone inspection and survey services, flying at night is actually preferred. Building inspections that focus on heat loss (for example) are best conducted in the low light levels of evening/night time to ensure best results using thermal imaging. The same can be said for aerial roof inspections.
There are different rules and regulations when it comes to flying drones at night. This is something governed by the CAA in the UK. While the rules differ from country to country. Night time flying drone inspection work has to comply with the CAA guidelines and rules.
As long as drone flights are conducted in the open, a drone must have at least on green flashing light as part of an ‘anti collision lighting’ set up. If the drone flight in darkness is not within the Open category of CAA regulations then we must submit a risk assessment and submit a special application for CAA approval.
What is the Open Category?
The Open Category is the CAA’s classification for the type of drone operations that can be conducted and is broken into three sub categories:
- A1 – Flying over people
- A2 – Flying close to people (within 50 metres of people/population)
- A3 – Flying far away from people
These sub categories then relates to the mass and size of the drone that is being flown. So a drone under the weight of under 250 grams can fly in an A1 open category space but a drone of above 2 kilograms can only fly in sub category A3. The exception to this is when you have submitted a risk assessment called a SORA (Specific Operations Risk Assessment) that is then approved.
Balmore Drone Inspection Services
We are fully accredited by ARPAS-UK, and our drone inspection pilots all have their commercial PFAW pilots licence, fully approved by the CAA. This allows us to conduct our drone surveys both in the air and underwater to the highest of standards while following strict rules and regulations governing drone flights in public spaces. The benefits of using drones for inspection work are well known and as technology advances, our drones are able to fly further, for longer with even more detailed imagery, video and thermal imaging. We are happy to arrange visual demonstrations of our drones in action and can supply case studies relevant to your business sector when requested.
Please contact our Glasgow head office today by call 0141 370 4037 or email info@balmore-ltd.co.uk
