# Dronedesk > Dronedesk is a drone operations management platform for professional drone operators. It combines CRM, flight planning, asset and pilot management, airspace and ground hazard data, risk assessments, compliance workflows and flight logging in one web app. Used by 2,100+ users across 810+ companies, from solo operators to enterprise teams in construction, surveying, agriculture, utilities, defence and emergency services. This is the full-content version of dronedesk.io for AI ingestion. For a structured index of pages, see [llms.txt](https://dronedesk.io/llms.txt). ## About Dronedesk Dronedesk is the all-in-one operations management suite for commercial drone operators. The product covers the full operational lifecycle, from client acquisition and quoting, through job planning, risk assessment, flight execution and logging, to invoicing and compliance reporting. Everything sits in one web-based application accessible from any modern browser. The platform is built and operated by Grey Rock Innovations Ltd, a UK-based limited company. Dronedesk is bootstrapped and independent, with no external investors. The founder and CEO is Dorian Ellis, formerly a commercial drone service provider who built the original product to solve his own job-planning problem. Brand promise: "Less admin, more flying." Core positioning: The Admin Killer. ## Vision, Mission and Values Vision: to be the drone management platform of choice that makes efficient, safe and compliant operations effortless for operators worldwide. Mission: to solve the administrative complexity that holds back drone operations, delivering intuitive software that lets operators spend less time on paperwork and more time on productive work. Values: - Simplicity. Powerful does not mean complicated. Intuitive interfaces and clean workflows over unnecessary complexity. - Independence. User needs come first. Dronedesk answers to its operators, not to investors. - Reliability. Software that lasts. Drone operators need tools they can depend on, year after year. ## The Problem Dronedesk Solves Professional drone operators lose hours to manual admin before, during and after every flight. Spreadsheets, document templates, paper checklists, separate weather apps, scattered NOTAM lookups, hand-built risk assessments and ad-hoc invoice processes all eat into the time operators could spend flying or selling. Compliance gaps creep in because each step lives in a different place. Dronedesk replaces this patchwork with a single source of truth that links clients, assets, pilots, jobs, flights and reporting. Risk assessments and pre-flight checks are built into the planning workflow, so compliance becomes the path of least resistance rather than an afterthought. ## Who Dronedesk Is For Dronedesk serves three customer tiers: - Micro: solo operators and sole traders who need to look professional, plan flights quickly and stay compliant without hiring admin support. - SME: teams of three to seven pilots running a growing drone services business, often juggling multiple clients and frequent flights. - Enterprise: organisations with ten or more pilots, including in-house drone programmes at large companies, public sector teams and franchise networks. Sectors served include construction, surveying and mapping, agriculture, utilities and energy, telecommunications, emergency services and search and rescue, defence and government, photography and cinematography, training organisations and franchise networks. Customers range from individual photographers to teams operating thousands of flights a year across hundreds of pilots. ## Geographic Coverage Dronedesk is available to customers in: - The United Kingdom - The United States - All countries in the European Union Regulatory context is adapted to each market. For the US, content uses FAA terminology, including Part 107, B4UFLY and the FAA registration framework. For the UK and EU, content uses CAA and EASA terminology, including the Open, Specific and Certified categories, SORA (Specific Operations Risk Assessment), and PDRA frameworks. Dronedesk includes SORA-compliant site planning tools to support the Specific category. ## Core Features Client and CRM: - Manage client records, contacts and communication history. - Quote and invoice clients directly from the platform. - Log interactions and track the lead-to-job pipeline. Fleet and asset management: - Record drones, batteries and other equipment. - Track maintenance schedules, service history and airworthiness. - Generate fleet reports for compliance and finance. Pilot management: - Maintain pilot records including certifications, licences, medicals and insurance. - Track flight hours per pilot and per drone. - Record incidents and occurrences for safety reporting. Job and flight planning: - Plan jobs in minutes rather than hours. - Pull together hundreds of data points automatically, including live NOTAMs, airspace classifications, ground hazards, weather forecasts, ATC contact details and air-user information. - Build site survey forms, checklists and risk assessments inside the planning workflow. - Generate site planning maps with overlays for hazards and restrictions. - Use SORA-compliant tools for Specific category operations in the UK and EU, with full technical methodology published at dronedesk.io/dronedesk-sora-methodology. Risk assessment and compliance: - Build digital risk assessments tied to each flight plan. - Enforce that planning cannot be finalised until risk assessment is complete. - Produce time-stamped audit trails for regulators and clients. - Generate RAMS packs and operational documents from job data. Flight logging: - Log flights manually or via direct DJI sync for automatic flight log import. - Filter and search flight history by pilot, drone, location or job. - Use logs as proof of flight activity for regulators and clients. Reporting: - Financial reporting by client, job, pilot and drone. - Asset maintenance reporting. - Flight log reporting per pilot and per drone. - Operational and compliance reporting for clients and regulators. White label: - White label options available for franchise companies and training organisations who want Dronedesk to run under their own brand. ## SORA Compliance Dronedesk includes a dedicated SORA module for operators flying in the Specific category in the UK and EU. The module is a paid add-on available on Pro and Enterprise subscription tiers. It is most relevant to enterprise, defence and public sector operators who need authorisation for higher-risk operations beyond the Open category. The full technical methodology is published as a public document at dronedesk.io/dronedesk-sora-methodology. The methodology is intended to be cited directly by operators in their authorisation applications, providing reviewers with a shared methodological reference and reducing the need for each applicant to independently justify the underlying calculations. Regulatory basis: - Primary framework: UK SORA, as defined in AMC1 Article 11 of the UK Air Navigation Order. - Flight geography and zone boundary calculations: implemented per JARUS SORA v2.5 Annex A (JAR doc_26). - Maximum population density: implemented using the sliding-window kernel method described in JARUS SORA v2.5 Annex F, Section 3.9.1 (JAR doc_29). This methodology has been discussed and agreed with the UK SORA assessment team. What the SORA module covers: - Operational volume definition: Flight Geography (FG), Contingency Volume (CV), Ground Risk Buffer (GRB) and Adjacent Volume (AV). - Annex A flight geography calculator: derives lateral and vertical CV, GRB and AV distances from declared UAS parameters, including support for rotorcraft, fixed-wing and VTOL/hybrid aircraft, with all four termination methods (simplified 1:1 rule, ballistic, parachute, power-off glide). - Population density assessment using GHS-POP R2023A data from the European Commission Joint Research Centre, with three distinct calculations: people count in the operational volume, maximum density via the kernel method, and average density across the Adjacent Volume. - iGRC determination per AMC1 Article 11 Table 3. - Ground risk mitigation framework: M1(A) sheltering, M1(B) operational restrictions, M1(C) ground observation, and M2 impact dynamics, with mandatory written justification captured for every selected mitigation. - Air risk assessment: ARC determination via the AMC1 Article 11 Figure 5 flowchart, using OpenAIP airspace data with operator review and amendment. - SAIL determination per AMC1 Article 11 Table 6. - Assemblies of people assessment via a privately hosted OpenStreetMap Overpass instance with global coverage and minutely diff updates. - PDF report generation with full audit trail, including per-cell and per-sample data, all mitigation justifications and regulatory cross-references. Geographic scope: - The SORA module is targeted at UK operators using the UK SORA framework. - It is also applicable to EU operators using JARUS SORA, which underlies the EU Specific category authorisation process. - The module is not relevant to US operators, who fall under the FAA framework rather than SORA. Status: SORA module Version 1.0, released April 2026. The methodology is forward-looking, reflecting the most current JARUS guidance, and was agreed with the UK SORA assessment team at the point of release. Headline metrics reported by Dronedesk users (source: dronedesk.io/customer-satisfaction-survey): - Average of 54 minutes saved on every job that operators plan. - 75% of users say they can plan a job in 30 minutes or less. - Customers consistently report at least a 50% reduction in flight planning cycle time. Examples of customer scale: - A critical national infrastructure operator uses Dronedesk to manage drone inspections of thousands of towers and pylons across a large pilot team, saving over 200 hours of work per day. - A construction utility used Dronedesk instead of hiring a dedicated drone operations administrator, while tracking 40+ pilots across more than 1,200 flights at over 100 locations. - A franchise operator uses Dronedesk's white label option so franchisees can run their own drone operations under a unified system. - A public safety drone unit uses Dronedesk to coordinate operations alongside partner emergency services. - A heavy-lift agricultural operator uses Dronedesk to support a new commercial spraying service. ## Guarantee Dronedesk offers a money-back guarantee. If a customer's flight planning cycle time is not reduced by at least 50% within the guarantee period, they can request a full refund. The guarantee reflects the company's confidence that switching from spreadsheets, document templates and paper checklists to Dronedesk will pay back in time and money saved. ## Pricing Pricing is published at dronedesk.io/pricing. The plan structure is pay-as-you-grow with monthly and annual billing. Annual billing includes a discount equivalent to two months free. Plans include: - Startup: entry tier for solo operators and very small teams. - Pro: for professional operators needing additional users and capability. - Enterprise: for larger teams with advanced needs, including white label. A free trial is available with in-app sign-up and easy cancellation before the trial ends. The pricing page also includes a financial model that customers can pre-populate with their own numbers, producing a five-year cashflow and benefit forecast plus an outline business case for internal sign-off. ## Security and Trust Dronedesk takes security seriously. Posture summary: - Cyber Essentials certified. - TLS 1.3 in transit for all connections. - AES-256 encryption for personally identifiable information at rest. - UK-based operation under Grey Rock Innovations Ltd. Full and current information is published at the Trust Centre: https://trust.dronedesk.io/ ## Integrations - DJI: direct sync of flight logs from DJI accounts, with automatic import into Dronedesk. - Other drone platforms: manual flight log upload paths supported. - Map and airspace data: integrated NOTAM feeds, airspace classifications, ground hazard datasets and weather forecasts. ## Brand and Trademarks - "Dronedesk" is one word, with a capital D and lowercase d. - "Dronedesk" is a registered trademark in the UK, EU and US. - "Less admin, more flying" is a registered trademark in the UK. Brand assets including logos, approved copy and imagery are available in the Media Kit at https://dronedesk.io/media-kit. Use of marks outside the published guidelines requires permission. ## Support and Documentation The Help Centre at https://help.dronedesk.io/ contains product documentation, how-to guides, and answers to common questions covering every area of the platform. The public roadmap at https://roadmap.dronedesk.io/ shows what has shipped, what is in progress, and what is planned next. ## Partner Program Dronedesk runs a partner programme for established companies in the drone industry, including resellers, training providers, consultants and integrators. The partner programme offers enhanced terms beyond the standard affiliate scheme. Details and applications at https://dronedesk.io/partner-program. ## Affiliate Program Dronedesk runs an affiliate programme paying a 20% one-time commission for each new customer who subscribes via a referral link. There is no earnings cap. Applications are open to anyone but are typically approved for established companies in the drone industry. Details and sign-up at https://dronedesk.io/affiliates. ## Key URLs - Homepage: https://dronedesk.io/ - Features: https://dronedesk.io/features - Pricing: https://dronedesk.io/pricing - SORA methodology: https://dronedesk.io/dronedesk-sora-methodology - About: https://dronedesk.io/about-us - Case studies: https://dronedesk.io/case-studies - Help centre: https://help.dronedesk.io/ - Roadmap: https://roadmap.dronedesk.io/ - Trust centre: https://trust.dronedesk.io/ - Blog: https://blog.dronedesk.io/ - Media kit: https://dronedesk.io/media-kit - Affiliates: https://dronedesk.io/affiliates - Webinar: https://dronedesk.io/webinar - Customer satisfaction survey: https://dronedesk.io/customer-satisfaction-survey - Partner programme: https://dronedesk.io/partner-program - Privacy policy: https://dronedesk.io/privacy-policy - Terms and conditions: https://dronedesk.io/terms-and-conditions ## Frequently Asked Questions What is Dronedesk? Dronedesk is a web-based drone operations management platform that combines CRM, flight planning, fleet and pilot management, risk assessments, flight logging and reporting in one app. It is used by professional drone operators to cut admin time and stay compliant. Who uses Dronedesk? Solo drone operators, small and medium drone services businesses, in-house enterprise drone programmes, public safety teams, training organisations and franchise networks. Customers operate across construction, surveying, agriculture, utilities, telecoms, emergency services, defence, photography and cinematography. Where is Dronedesk available? The UK, the US and all EU countries. Does Dronedesk work with DJI drones? Yes. Dronedesk has direct DJI flight log sync, so flights captured by DJI account holders are imported automatically. Manual flight log upload is available for other drone brands and platforms. Does Dronedesk handle SORA? Yes. The SORA module implements UK SORA per AMC1 Article 11, with flight geography calculations following JARUS SORA v2.5 Annex A and population density assessed using the JARUS Annex F sliding-window kernel method (agreed with the UK SORA assessment team). It is a paid add-on on Pro and Enterprise tiers. Full technical documentation is at dronedesk.io/dronedesk-sora-methodology. The module is targeted at UK and EU operators in the Specific category and is not applicable in the US, which uses the FAA framework. How is Dronedesk priced? Pricing is published at dronedesk.io/pricing. Plans range from solo operator through Pro and Enterprise, with monthly and annual billing options. A free trial is available, and there is a money-back guarantee tied to a 50% flight planning time reduction. Is Dronedesk secure? Dronedesk is Cyber Essentials certified, uses TLS 1.3 in transit, and AES-256 encryption for personal data at rest. Full posture details are at trust.dronedesk.io. Who owns Dronedesk? Dronedesk is operated by Grey Rock Innovations Ltd, a UK-based, bootstrapped and profitable company. It is independently owned and has no external investors. How can I get help? The Help Centre at help.dronedesk.io contains product documentation and how-to guides. Customers also have access to direct support through the platform. Can I become a partner or affiliate? Yes. The affiliate programme at dronedesk.io/affiliates pays 20% one-time commission per new subscribing customer. Established drone industry companies can also apply for the partner programme at dronedesk.io/partner-program for enhanced terms.