2014: Year of The DJI Phantom 2

Heliguy continues to lead the revolution within the Aerial Remote Control (RC) industry. We were the very first RC Helicopter innovators, now we are one of Europe's largest multi-rotor build specialists. The industry has been driven by the improvements in stability and electronic control systems that have come to the market in the past year. We are now directly influencing the future drone industry, by taking our clients ideas and formulating working vehicles to undertake bespoke tasks. Over the last year the name - drone has become the love or hate name attached to our vehicle of choice. The name Drone has previously held negative connotations, associated with warfare, and this just adds a negative influence to what we feel should be a positive device. As a reaction to this negativity associated with the term “drone” we were kindly invited to the Barbican to work with legendary musician John Cale, of Velvet Underground fame, and Liam Young, a British maverick Architect to incorporate speakers and lighting to four drones to live music. To show the positive aspect of drones, a word that had origins with drone music, John being the key influencer of the genre. What an experience we had, our very own Matty flying with a team of five pilots, and an audience of 1000 safely below nets under the drones. This will tour world wide next year and we are chuffed to be part of an amazing arts project.

What The DJI Phantom 2 Did To The Industry

We have invested heavily into the quadcopter and multirotor sector, advancing our expertise in both how to fix them and how to fly them. We have recruited extra members of staff to manage an expanding industry. The DJI Phantom 2 was a game changer, following on from the original DJI Phantom, flight time improved from 10 to 25 minutes (typically 7 and 15 respectively with Gopro gimbals attached). The Phantom 2 also offered improved blade design, allowing it to fly more efficiently and with more stability. The unit has the ability for anyone to attach a GoPro Hero 4 and take aerial footage at an attractive price. The demand for them increases week on week and we have supplied them to everyone from Arctic explorers to Camel Herders in Dubai. Previous multirotors were expensive, many thousands of pounds, no introductory level for the average consumer. The market was only for established businesses and wealthy individuals. The Phantom 2 changed this. It built momentum in the UK becoming a popular choice amongst the experienced remote control enthusiasts and the newbie’s of the market. A typical price shy of £1500 could get you a UAV that would take stills or photos, allow you to use for recreation or small business by beaming back real-time footage from the GoPro to a monitor attached to the quadcopter. img_8827-1-1024x682.jpg DJI Phantom 2 FPV Pro Now anyone could get their hands on an aerial camera. People with no previous experience in the industry could learn in a short space of time how to fly and take pictures and videos. This opened up new avenues and business developments. The market literally took off; the DJI Phantom 2 became the photographer’s prized tool. The market is still in its infancy. Laws and regulations are evolving to cope with the growing numbers of Phantom 2’s in the skies today. At Heliguy we believe it is important to inform on what you can and cannot do. With more and more people flying, policing and education is a must. In order for the industry to expand, we need to use these UAV’s with respect and common sense. We currently offer a training solution for our clients purchasing multirotors. Informing how to use the batteries, charging solution, how to maintain the UAV, where to use it and how to formulate appropriate risk assessment. For the industry to expand, people need to be more aware that they are not toys, but a solid foundation for a business. We are looking into expanding training for Phantom 2’s and Phantom 2 Vision + alike. New Pilot Training events for the Phantom 2 series are underway, the first recently taking place at Newcastle Falcons Rugby Ground in December 2014, the next scheduled for London January 30th. 14605_10153141670791509_1824630806855183131_n.jpg 2015 watch this space.