Meet Will Wright and Brian Kay of Skyline Aeronautics

Today we’d like to introduce you to Will Wright and Brian Kay.

Will and Brian, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Will: Over the last 11 years I’ve dedicated myself to product and technology development. Helping businesses create new and interesting products and technology is a rewarding experience for me.

In 2014, the drone industry started to take off. I had been working in a design studio at the time when I was asked to help launch their drone program to assist builders and construction firms in an industrial capacity.

In 2015, my business partner and I founded Skyline Aeronautics LLC in Boca Raton. Initially, we started off as a small team but have grown in capacity to offer our services all over Florida.

Brian: Our business started with mix of everything, a passion for engineering, image capture and processing footage. Eventually, these passions turned into an investment, including countless hours of research and equipment purchase. After months of training, flying and a small marketing budget, we were able to put together a small client base and get some experience in the field.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Will: The sUAS industry has been evolving rapidly the last few years and we needed to adapt quickly to changing government regulations. From day one our goal was safety. If a project carried too much risk we would try to find an alternate solution. I feel the biggest challenge of all was helping our customers understand the process and the capabilities of drones.

Brian: With many restrictions on small remote aircraft issued not only at a government level (FAA) but also by county. During our beginning years, we ran into hurdles with some requested shoots being close to commercial airports and some unauthorized areas. It’s always tough to turn down business, and it’s even harder in this industry because there are many other who don’t follow these regulations and carelessly take on these jobs.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Skyline Aeronautics – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
Will: Skyline specializes in aerial data capture via remote aircraft. We’re known for many of our luxury photo/video projects as well as our industrial inspection work. We’ve worked with dozens of companies all over South Florida. Real Estate firms, construction and green energy companies to name a few.

Brian: Our pilots are FAA certified and can execute complex flights in an extremely professional yet creative manner. Promoting ourselves as a legitimate aerial business instead of just a hobbyist activity is something we strive to do on a constant basis. Many of our competitors can execute the flight portion and grab photos/video, but our team has skills on both sides of the coin – including years worth of photography, cinematography and engineering experience that takes the footage beyond the memory stick that you take out of the camera.

So, what’s next? Any big plans?
Will: We have been moving more into the industrial space. The need for aerial data collection using a multitude of sensor types is in high demand. As we saw with Hurricane Irma, thermal sensors were important for search and rescue efforts. We plan to use our drones more as sensor platforms and less as simple cameras in the sky.

Brian: We are constantly looking for new industries to apply our knowledge and skills in aerial imaging. Over the years we’ve learned that drones can take the place of costly equipment such as large cranes, high-rise scaffoldings, ladders, and fuel-powered helicopters in some cases. In the near future, we plan to upgrade our equipment to handle even larger scale inspection projects, construction progress and interactive 3D mapping.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.skylineaeronautics.com
• Phone: 561 922 1918
• Email: info@skylineaeronautics.com

Image Credit:
Will Wright
Brian Kay
Skyline Aeronautics

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