Enhancing performance, safety and sustainability by enabling adoption of novel technologies
Dear Future of Flight Industry Group, I've written this #openletter to consolidate collective thinking, enabling open discussion that informs industry-wide action. It builds from your Action Plan and focuses on #industrialisation of the UK drone industry. Drones hold immense potential to transform the way people live for the better, but in my view there is strong risk of market and systemic failures without intervention. My proposal centers on three strategic principles: 1. Bring end users to the forefront. 2. Extend funding and transition to an end-user led model. 3. Focus on key applications with high social value. I propose we need a #drone #industrialisation #programme and include 14 underpinning recommendations for action. Let’s work together to accelerate delivery of safe, sustainable, routine drone capabilities that transform how we live our lives, for the better. → Download the paper here: https://lnkd.in/dpAS4HfR I welcome the opportunity to engage with you, delivering these principles and accompanying actions. ... #drone industry, what do you think? Build from, challenge and share ideas that resonate with you.
Kat James
8mo
Will Barnes this letter is excellent. I especially agree with point #1 -- bring end-users to the forefront. While the industry has successfully completed dozens (hundreds?) of pilot programs demonstrating what is possible, widespread adoption of drone technology is slow. I often feel like companies and organizations working within the industry are so busy in-fighting for a small piece of the pie, that they miss the bigger picture --> We need to make the pie BIGGER. And how do we do that? --> We bring end-users to the forefront, and we increase the overall demand for our products and services. Thanks for putting this letter together and being an advocate for our industry!
Matt Banham
8mo
Will Barnes this is great. We need to find a way of accelerating all of this backend work or there won’t be a drone market
Mark Nishapati
8mo
Great letter Will Point 3 is obviously core to our hearts at Thunderbird Project , but all three points are core to driving forward progress effectively to develop those high social value applications such as use of drones in life critical situations as quickly and effectively as possible.
Nick Ruggles
8mo
Will Barnes This is a great read, the chasm between early adoption and the beginning of mainstream market is a big concern. There is great talent and great ideas in the UK drone industry which could easily burn out if left unsupported.
Gareth Whatmore
8mo
Great passion Will. I agree with your headline and for a good example of this ethos already in action look no further that Open Skies Cornwall . Since 2021 the end user focus on our FF3 Open Skies Cornwall project with Royal Mail, NHS, Cornwall Council and Falmouth Harbour as embedded and funded partners (as well as many unfunded ones) has scored highest for exploitation at Future Flight QRMs, achieved a CAA TRA sandbox position and onboarded world leading drones and technologies that meet the end user briefs. The best bit is there is a year left on the project to exploit and room for all to learn and join in with this opportunity to help the ecoystem develop.
Huw Ross
8mo
Go Will Barnes 👏.. this is the type of response to the Action Plan we like to see. You have laid out a really sensible path to go forward. Aviators often get stuck in this mode of talking about the future without due consideration of the end user. How powerful would the next version of the Action Plan be if end users were part of the FFIG?
Gary Cutts
8mo
A well argued case Will. I completely agree that we need ambition, clarity and certainty on an intervention beyond FFC that supports industry through to full commercialisation.
Richard Nichols
8mo
Enhancing performance, safety and sustainability by enabling adoption of novel technologies
8moAnthony Browne, Duncan Walker, Andrew Sage, Chris Bradshaw, Gary Elliott, Gary Cutts, Graham Brown, Iain Gray, JoeBen Bevirt, Kamal Panchal, Kate Jennings, Kevin Craven, Marc Bailey, Anthony Chadwick, Richard Parker, Stephen Fitzpatrick, Basil O'Fee, Rob Bishton, Sofia Stayte