FAQ

Yes X-COPTERS are fully insured against injury and damage for £5million public liability. We can provide evidencial documents on request.

Yes X-COPTERS pilots are very experienced and have passed the CAA-approved exams and flight assessments. All our pilots have completed a course and qualification from Cambridge UAV Academy, a National Qualified Entity (NQE), which means our pliots have completed a syllabus and course that is approved by the CAA. The Cambridge UAV Academy CAP-C certificate is the UAV pilot qualification standard required by the CAA to apply for a PfCO.

We cannot fly in the rain or in strong winds - over 25mph. If a shoot is postponed due to poor weather conditions you will not be charged and we will reschedule. We closely monitor weather forecasts before each mission and will contact you as early as possible if we think we need to postpone. We can fly in cold weather, but flight times may be affected.

It depends on weather conditions, but each flight can be up to 20 minutes. Normally, we carry sufficient batteries to allow for 2 hours total flying.

YES We can fly indoors but we need space. We have flown in warehouses, studios and shopping malls. Our drones are battery powered with electric motors so there is no worry about polluting the environment. The dynamics of flying indoors are different. The construction and materials in the building can affect how the drone UAV flies. 95% of the time there are no issues with flying indoors but safety is our number one priority. Only a short flight test can give us the final answer.

We operate under the strict guidelines as dictated by the Civil Aviation Authority. We can fly close to buildings and people when we have consent of the owner and the people in close proximity have been briefed and are under the control of the pilot. This allows us to do close survey work of building, roofs, building sites, hotels and golf courses. Safety is our number one priority.

We conform and adhere to the Civil Aviation Authority rules and regulations. This means not flying any closer than 50 meters from people (unless they’re in “our control”). If the crowd is over 1,000 people, we can’t be any closer than 150 meters. If we were to fly directly above people, they’d have to be in our control which means they’d have to be made aware that we were going to be operating above them. However this is very high risk but creative use of zoom lenses and flying a safe distance away usually can usually result in the shot that is needed. Safety is our number one priority.

X-COPTERS have been granted drone night flying permissions by the CAA and are able to operate our UAV 24 hours a day, right through the night.
Licensed drone operators have to pass stringent checks in order to operate commercially, as not only are drones a relatively new technology, but they can also be hazardous if not controlled responsibly, and if clear safety procedures are not adhered to. Operating drones at night simply increases the risk factor, as visibility is significantly reduced and people and objects are harder to spot and avoid.
For this reason, authorised drone operators are not granted night flying permissions as standard and have to apply for a CAA night rating separately if they hope to fly at night.