AirFrame LLC A story of perseverance By: Lionel Prevost
"It was amazing and I was hooked" “Investment in parts and technology seamed endless” “It was time to comply or die.” As we exit our third year, as AirFrame LLC, I wanted to take a moment and share with your readers where we were as a company and how we have evolved.
In the latter part of 2013, drone use was limited to aerial photography and was well hidden from public eye. I spotted my first drone during an Australia based sailing race and marveled at the speed and clarity of coverage. It was amazing and I was hooked. After discussions with the misses, I put together a plan to create a business and purchased our first two aircraft with my first partner. We made the decision to go with a large pro copter, the S800 EVO™ by DJI™ and a small nimble craft by Steadydrone™. It was a rough start, crashes as we learned how to fly, building, repairing and modifying the aircraft to boost functionality. Investment in parts and technology seamed endless, and with no revenue in site.
2014 was a time of change. We saw the departure of our first investor early in the year. Cash outlays were never ending as we salvaged parts from wreckage and built new airframes from components. Over the course of the first quarter we hand built more than half a dozen prototype aircraft, purchased kits and components and searched endlessly for the perfect platform. AirFrame became a corporation and needed cash. In Q2 we found the perfect match. An airline pilot with extensive model aircraft background wanted to not only invest, but also take an active role in operations. The industry was operating under the assumption that model aircraft rules applied and there was a “Wild West” gold rush feeling promulgated by court cases that were setting the tone for sUAS, small unmanned aircraft systems, commercial operators. Our first client was a construction company that hired us to make aerial time laps video of a huge site monthly and cash flow was finally flowing. We established checklists and a “fly safe” attitude was working. Drones were in the news and being touted as the greatest technology to solve all of man kinds problems. Enter the FAA. The Federal Aviation Administration made clear that all commercial operations required a 333 exemption and violators would be fined. The FAA issued an NPRM, Notice of Proposed Rule Making, and our operations ground to a halt. It was time to comply or die.