Dronedesk
Military-grade safety standards meet efficient flight planning for training and commercial operations
The Challenge: Manual Planning Creates Both Inefficiency and Risk
Founded in 2014, Eagle Eye Innovations brings military-grade rigour to drone operations. With 90% of the team coming from military backgrounds, the business trains everyone from private companies to emergency services and defence organisations, while also delivering commercial flight services including safety inspections, surveys, and aerial photography.
With this depth of aviation and unmanned flight experience, clients expect operations conducted to the most rigorous safety standards. But the Training & Risk Manager had identified a vulnerability in the planning process:
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Browser Tab Chaos: Pilots bounced between Google Maps, Met Office, UK Grid Finder, and Altitude Angel to gather flight data manually
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Time-Consuming: Every flight took approximately three hours to plan, regardless of whether the actual flight was four hours or four minutes
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Error Risk: Jumping between sources made it easy to miss a step or forget to check something properly
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Fatigue at the Critical Point: After hours of data gathering, pilots were tired by the time they reached hazard identification, the most important part of planning
The irony was clear: the manual process designed to ensure safety was actually creating risk. Missed hazards could lead to incidents. Incomplete documentation could mean audit failures, reputational damage, or liability exposure.
The Operational Impact: What Dronedesk Delivers for Training Operations
All Data in One Place, Instantly
Enter the time and location of a flight, and Dronedesk delivers everything needed: weather forecasts, airspace restrictions, ground hazards, NOTAMs, and more. No more hunting through multiple websites. No more browser tab chaos. The information that previously took hours to gather is available in seconds.
Mental Energy Where It Matters
Hazard identification is the most critical part of flight planning. With Dronedesk handling data collection automatically, pilots arrive at hazard assessment fresh rather than fatigued. They have more time and attention to carefully evaluate risks, add them to flight plans, and develop proper mitigations. The process-driven layout makes hazards easier to manage systematically.
Nothing Gets Missed
Manual processes are vulnerable to human error. Perhaps you check UK Grid Finder, then Altitude Angel, then realize you forgot something, and inadvertently skip Google Maps properly. Dronedesk eliminates this risk:
- Automated data aggregation ensures consistent coverage
- Structured workflows guide pilots through every required step
- Supplementary information can be added without disrupting the process
Audit-Ready Documentation
If an incident occurred, operators need to demonstrate they did everything possible to mitigate risk and plan safely. Dronedesk keeps rock-solid flight plans and hazard mitigations in one place, easy to access for audits or incident reviews. The documentation provides evidence of due diligence that manual processes simply can't match.
Measurable Outcomes
Planning Time Reduction
From 3 hours to 30 minutes per flight
Job Acceptance
Can now accept work that arrives today
Missed Hazards
Automated data collection eliminates gaps
Audit Ready
Complete documentation for incident review
The Business Impact: Saying Yes to More Customers
The 83% reduction in planning time doesn't just mean less admin. It fundamentally changes what jobs the team can accept.
Previously, every job required factoring in hours of planning time. A request for tomorrow meant declining or working late into the evening. Now, if a job comes in today that's 45 minutes away, the answer can be "Yes, I can do that."
The team can even plan flights remotely for colleagues. A pilot can leave immediately while someone else completes the planning. They arrive on site with documentation ready, performing only the on-site safety checks before flying.
More capacity. More flexibility. More revenue.
Training & Commercial Use Cases
Training Services
- Private business drone certification
- Emergency services training
- Military and defence programmes
- Flight planning curriculum demonstration
Commercial Operations
- Safety inspections
- Aerial photography and videography
- Survey and mapping
- Asset documentation
Used in Professional Training Curriculum
Eagle Eye Innovations now incorporates Dronedesk into their training programmes. Students learn general flight planning principles using various tools, then see Dronedesk-planned flights as the industry-leading example of what professional operations look like. The platform demonstrates best practices that students can carry into their own commercial work.
Why Drone Training Companies Choose Dronedesk
Faster AND Safer
Most efficiency gains come at the cost of thoroughness. Dronedesk delivers both: automated data collection saves hours while ensuring nothing gets missed. Mental energy goes to hazard assessment instead of data gathering.
Military-Grade Documentation
For organisations with military backgrounds and clients who demand the highest standards, Dronedesk provides audit-ready documentation that demonstrates due diligence. Complete flight plans and hazard mitigations are stored and accessible whenever needed.
Training Curriculum Ready
Show students what professional flight planning looks like. Dronedesk provides a tangible demonstration of industry best practices that trainees can adopt in their own commercial operations.
Same-Day Responsiveness
When planning takes 30 minutes instead of 3 hours, the business can say yes to jobs that arrive today. More flexibility means more revenue and better customer service.
The Bottom Line
Eagle Eye Innovations found what seemed impossible: a way to save time on flight planning while making operations safer. By automating data collection, Dronedesk frees pilots to focus their energy on hazard identification, the most critical part of planning.
For training companies that need to demonstrate best practices to students, and for commercial operators who need audit-ready documentation and same-day responsiveness, Dronedesk delivers efficiency without compromise. Faster planning. Safer flights. More business.
