Retirement

[Terrence F. Colegate]

I just read a post that indicated retires were in it only for fun and would work for almost nothing.
Let me straighten out the working world there is no retirement!!!!!! It has become necessary in todays "RETIREMENT" to work the rest of your life and unfortunately once you pass seventy you are considered doting. I am a degreed mechanical engineer that has to work, and saw droning as a viable income option. I am an automation analytics engineering specialist. I have owned a number of businesses. I understand pricing and standards. I am also a part 61 pilot and CFI. However I need to have an income. I have tied up about $10,000.00 its not a hobby. Yes I am an older citizen I am however capable of map reading, GPS operations, AirMap use , sectional reading, video production. I can and have trained pilots RP and part 61. I WILL NOT WORK FOR STUPID FEES.
If the industry as a whole would set pricing standards we might all make a living

 

[Florida Drone Supply]

I just read a post that indicated retires were in it only for fun and would work for almost nothing.
Let me straighten out the working world there is no retirement!!!!!! It has become necessary in todays "RETIREMENT" to work the rest of your life and unfortunately once you pass seventy you are considered doting. I am a degreed mechanical engineer that has to work, and saw droning as a viable income option. I am an automation analytics engineering specialist. I have owned a number of businesses. I understand pricing and standards. I am also a part 61 pilot and CFI. However I need to have an income. I have tied up about $10,000.00 its not a hobby. Yes I am an older citizen I am however capable of map reading, GPS operations, AirMap use , sectional reading, video production. I can and have trained pilots RP and part 61. I WILL NOT WORK FOR STUPID FEES.
If the industry as a whole would set pricing standards we might all make a living

Welcome Terrence! You sounds like an excellent addition to the industry.

 

[Newton Ware]

Yes sir, I feel you. I will turn 60 shortly. I have specialized in agronomic sales to golf courses for the last 16 years or so and had hoped it would be my last career. But golf is in decline. The upside is that the courses that survive will be the larger courses with the better budgets. The private clubs.

With fewer customers, the competition is more fierce than ever. So here I am, looking for a way to adapt my agronomic experience and love of flying into a way to provide an income until I too enter my doddering years. It may be a race between senility and doddering in my case though!

Best of luck to you sir. Remember, us old guys have to stick together. And old age and treachery always wins over youth and skill.

 

[embayweather]

Add me to you list too. I am 66 very soon and I fly because it proves to me that I can still do something of value. I fly so I can take images and I fly for charity. Of course I am not as quick as I was, that’s why learning to fly a racing drone is a little, errr, challenging.

 

[BigAl07]

First off welcome to the forum.

I'm going to assume (yes that's dangerous but I'm taking that chance) you're talking about my comment on the price per picture thread when you mentioned
"indicated retires were in it only for fun and would work for almost nothing "

Also (please don't take offense) we have a large population of retirees and soon to be retirees who don't need to make much $$ and are willing to work for pennies on the dollar. I saw this first hand about 3 weeks ago when someone approached me (on a job) asking for advice and guidance about his new "Retirement Adventure". He said he wasn't doing it to make $$ he just wanted a hobby that paid for itself and kept him occupied.

I stand by what I said but that is not an all inclusive statement. It is an accurate or at least it has been in my experience. I am very active in the sUAS community and I have met many (not just one or two) retired people who started a sUAS Service Provider Business in order to have something to do and make some petty cash. There's nothing wrong with wanting to supplement your income what so ever. The problem is when you've already got other income stream(s) and you roll into the market with less than average prices you kill a market in a hurry. Why leave $$ on the table and dilute the whole industry in the area? It's poor business practice and just not cool at all. There's nothing we can do about it other than point it out.

Fortunately those "Quasi" professionals usually get bored or realize it takes more than hitting Take Off, Capture Picture, Return to Home in order to make a good finished product. Most customers will appreciate QUALITY when they see the difference. The last one I talked to thought "editing a picture" was moving it from the SD card to the PC and it showed in his examples.

I have also meet some very high end retired sUAS operations that charge Fair Market Value which helps to offset the low ballers.

 

[MapMaker53]

I think life is to be enjoyed. If a retired person enjoys flying a drone and finds he can make some extra cash doing so by helping someone or some business out, or even flying for charity, I see nothing wrong with that -- no more than someone growing vegetables in their backyard garden and selling them to a local market for less than the local farmers. Or someone who enjoys baking pies and selling them at the local street fair for less than the town bakery prices. Granted, I don't rely on sUAV jobs to support my family, and I do appreciate the pressures of a budding industry and those that do rely on it. But I see the competition as being nothing different than any other business out there. It's just the way it is.

What people are suggesting here is call "Price Fixing". This from the Federal Trade Commission: "When competitors agree to restrict competition, the result is often higher prices. Accordingly, price fixing is a major concern of government antitrust enforcement. A plain agreement among competitors to fix prices is almost always illegal, whether prices are fixed at a minimum, maximum, or within some range."

To expect a retiree (keep in mind we're talking Part 107 certified here) to charge the same rates as what other more established drone service companies charge that may have larger fleets, greater video production capability, higher overall quality product, etc. just doesn't make sense to me. If the little guy did that then of course the buyer would choose the more experienced company given the same pricing. Such a price structure would certainly and unfairly squeeze the little guy out of the market. A business plan should continually evolve and take into account the local competition as it develops, both large entities and small entities. In the end, the better and smarter companies will survive.

 

[R.Perry]

I'm seventy and in good health, don't really need to work, but love getting out of the house and making some extra money. As with many of you I will not work for peanuts. However if I had to depend on drone work for a livable income I would starve. The only thing I have found that supplies consistent good income is construction documentation, and the money is very good in that industry. I have done some real estate work and gave that up because realtors are just too cheap. We had an home inspection business and used the drone for roof inspections and documentation, but here again, was hit and miss.
If you don't mind working for someone else that pays well Multivista is a great company to work for or contract to. They require all their employees or contractors to go through an extensive training program at Avion in Huntsville, AL.

 

[John Decker]

Just made me laugh - 'Grumpy' giving the thumbs up on post #3. God bless us grumpy old bastards!

 

[Roadking]

Retirees are the least of the problem. There are plenty more "in the business" who don't have the Part 107 Cert. If you want to complain about unfair practices, that's who you need to be focused on.

 

[R.Perry]

To me, my heroes are the WWII fighter and bomber pilots, Yeager, Anderson, Johnson and so many more were a breed we will never see again, true pilots, true heroes. One of my favorite movies is Memphis Bell, it gave an true sense of what kind of men it took to fly and crew those missions, the other is Red Tails. Over 200,000 men died flying combat mission in WWII, what a terrible loss.

 

[gpro13]

I too was a little "put out" by the comment on "retirees". As a UK PPL, QFI and some 1000 hours experience I took up my CAA PfCO because I was interested in the new drones and wanted to keep working and earn extra funds over my pension. I am 70 this year. I only take on jobs that I want to take on. I charge what I believe is the going rate for my experience and equipment that I use. Should the client feel that is too expensive then so be it - there is always another job and I am not going to drop my standards.
Recently I became a UK PfCO (107) assessor which means I assess the flying abilities of those wishing to gain their PfCO certification. Some have been taking on jobs illegally and charging very little for their time.
This is where the industry needs to look to maintain its credibility and ensure genuine working pilots make a decent living.
ttfn

 

[BigAl07]

For those of you who are "taking exception" to my comment, I stand by it because it's a real world situation but you should also go and read the full post and not take it out of context.... it was but one portion of a post I made about the industry.

Client wants aerial pics for 80 cents each

 

[LUIS MARTINEZ]

Just made me laugh - 'Grumpy' giving the thumbs up on post #3. God bless us grumpy old bastards!