Our Mission
The Florida Drone Company is a commercial aerial data provider serving contractors, property managers, golf course superintendents, and real estate professionals across the state of Florida. Every engagement is built on three principles: full regulatory compliance, precise and actionable deliverables, and a clear return on investment for the client.
We operate under FAA Part 107 certification with full liability insurance on every flight. Our clients receive professional-grade aerial data — not hobbyist photography with a business card attached. The difference is in the equipment, the processing pipeline, the deliverable quality, and the regulatory framework that protects both the operator and the client.
Whether you need a single roof inspection or a recurring monthly mapping program, we approach every project with the same standard: plan the flight, obtain all required authorizations, execute with precision, process through a professional pipeline, and deliver on time.
Equipment: DJI Mavic 3 Enterprise
Our primary platform is the DJI Mavic 3 Enterprise — a commercial-grade drone purpose-built for professional aerial data collection. This is not a consumer drone repurposed for commercial work. The M3E was designed from the ground up for the demands of mapping, inspection, and precision data acquisition.
- 4/3 CMOS sensor with mechanical shutter — eliminates rolling shutter distortion that degrades photogrammetry accuracy in consumer drones. Every frame is sharp, even at flight speed.
- 20 MP resolution — captures the detail level needed for orthomosaic mapping, roof inspection, and deliverable-quality aerial photography.
- RTK module capability — enables centimeter-level positional accuracy when connected to the Florida PRISM Permanent Reference Network (see RTK section below).
- Multispectral sensor option (M3M) — captures near-infrared data for NDVI vegetation health analysis on golf courses and agricultural properties.
- 45-minute flight time — covers more ground per battery than most commercial platforms, reducing flight sessions and on-site time for clients.
We maintain our equipment under a strict maintenance schedule and carry backup hardware to every engagement. Equipment failure does not delay your project.
Software & Processing: WebODM Photogrammetry
Raw drone imagery is only as valuable as the processing pipeline that turns it into deliverables. We process all photogrammetry data through WebODM — an open-source, self-hosted photogrammetry engine that gives us full control over processing parameters, output quality, and data privacy.
Unlike cloud-based processing services where your site data is uploaded to a third-party server, our WebODM pipeline processes everything locally. This means your construction site imagery, property inspection photos, and mapping data never leave our control. For clients in industries where data confidentiality matters — government contracts, pre-development land acquisition, insurance litigation — this is a meaningful advantage.
WebODM produces orthomosaic maps, digital elevation models, 3D point clouds, and volumetric calculations from the same set of captured images. The processing parameters are tuned per project type: high-overlap settings for mapping accuracy, optimized color balance for photography deliverables, and calibrated multispectral processing for NDVI vegetation analysis.
FAA Certification & Compliance
Every commercial drone operation in the United States must be conducted under FAA Part 107 regulations by a certified Remote Pilot in Command. This is not optional — it is federal law. The Florida Drone Company holds current FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificates and maintains full compliance with all applicable regulations.
For clients, FAA certification means several things. It means the pilot has passed the FAA Aeronautical Knowledge Test covering airspace classification, weather theory, emergency procedures, and federal regulations. It means the pilot understands how to obtain airspace authorization through LAANC when operating near airports. And it means that in the event of any incident, the operation was conducted legally and is covered by insurance — protecting the client from liability exposure.
We maintain detailed flight records for every operation, including pre-flight checklists, airspace authorization documentation, weather assessments, and flight telemetry logs. These records are available to clients upon request and serve as documentation in the event of any regulatory inquiry. For a deeper look at our compliance framework, see our FAA Compliance page.
Insurance: SkyWatch Liability Coverage
Every flight we conduct is covered by SkyWatch aviation liability insurance in addition to our general liability policy. This dual coverage protects our clients, their properties, and any third parties in the vicinity of the operation.
For commercial clients — particularly construction companies, property management firms, and government agencies — proof of insurance is typically a contractual requirement before any drone operation can take place on their property. We provide certificates of insurance on request, and we can add your organization as an additional insured on the policy for the duration of the engagement at no additional cost.
Insurance is not an afterthought in our operation. It is a core component of the service. Hiring an uninsured or underinsured drone operator exposes your organization to liability that no amount of low pricing justifies.
RTK Accuracy & the Florida PRISM Network
For projects that require the highest level of positional accuracy, we offer RTK-assisted drone mapping using Florida's PRISM (Permanent Reference Integrated System for Mapping) network. RTK — Real-Time Kinematic — correction uses a network of fixed GPS base stations across the state to provide real-time position corrections to the drone's onboard GPS receiver, achieving absolute positional accuracy within 1 to 3 centimeters.
This level of accuracy is a differentiator that few commercial drone operators in Florida are marketing or delivering. Standard drone GPS achieves accuracy within 1 to 3 meters — sufficient for photography and general visual documentation but inadequate for engineering-grade mapping and volume calculations where centimeter precision matters.
RTK-assisted mapping is particularly valuable for construction sites where grading verification, cut/fill calculations, and as-built documentation need to align with the civil engineer's design surface. It is also valuable for golf course elevation modeling where subtle grade changes of a few inches influence drainage and irrigation performance.
Not every project requires RTK accuracy, and we will tell you honestly when standard GPS is sufficient for your use case. When RTK is warranted, we have the equipment and the PRISM network connectivity to deliver it.