Meet our team: Josh Smithurst, Team Lead and Drone Pilot

Josh started with Skyports at the start of 2024 as a Drone Pilot, making it to Team Lead not too long after. Here he talks about what it’s really like, from the nitty gritty of project planning to hanging out at monster truck rallies in Michigan.

So you started out as a Drone Pilot, and have made it to Team Lead. Talk me through it

Whilst being a Drone Pilot sounds like you’d be operating on your own, you’re part of a much wider operations team that’s looking to make a project happen.

The end objective is flying the drone, but you’ll be working with the team to get the logistics in place to make it happen.

Once the brief is through from the projects teams, the Flight Operations Manager will then create a work package, and as a Team Lead I’ll then delegate the work out to the pilots.

Typically, I will then need to figure how to get the aircraft to the project location, conduct the aircraft return to service plan after travel, make the project flight plan, and sort the regulations and communications plans with the stakeholders for when the project is live.

Once that’s all sorted, it’s then time for the fun part – to head out and fly.

What’s been your favourite project you’ve worked on, and why?

For me it would be a project we did last year flying fixed wing drones to offshore oil rigs in Norway for Equinor. For the project we were flying parts on-demand to multiple oil rigs out in the north sea. Where it might take 2 days to arrange a helicopter to fly the part out, our drones could be ready to fly in 30 minutes. We were also covering off some pretty major distances with the drones, flying up to 100km in a single flight, which was Skyport’s longest single flight at the time.

It was also the first time that a drone delivery had been made from one oil rig to another, so it was cool to be involved in a world first! It was also the biggest project Skyports had been involved in at the time, so it was great to make an impact.

What does your typical week look like? Both whilst on a project and off

So on a Monday I’ll align on our upcoming projects, and plot out with the team what we need to do to make it happen. I might then muck in with some maintenance on the aircraft, maintaining their operational readiness. Come Tuesday, I’ll schedule in some training flights with the team, and make sure everyone’s hitting their flight numbers for the week.

Come Wednesday, it might be time to jump on a plane and head off to check in on a current project that’s running, making sure the pilots are happy everything’s running smoothly, and troubleshooting problems, if there are any. Come Friday, it’s back home, and working through any prep or admin ahead of the next project in the pipeline.

What do you like most about being a Drone Pilot?

You get some pretty amazing opportunities to travel, so if you’re someone who’s up for an adventure, this role’s for you.

I was just out in Michigan in the Great Lakes region, helping with a project that was conducting shore-to-ship drone deliveries. We were staying in a place called DeTour village. The locals said it was the first time they’d seen a British person in 5 years!  We were also able to swing by a monster truck rally over the weekend, which you’re definitely not getting in the UK.

After that I popped into New York City to conduct some site recces, and liaise with other airspace users along the East River in order to prep for another upcoming project. So the role really takes you to some unusual spots and gives you the opportunity to see cool stuff.

I think I’ve got more stamps in my passport in the last 18 months than in the last 10 years.

What have been the best unexpected benefits to come with being a Drone Pilot?

Something I didn’t expect was to end up being the most interesting person in the room, both with your mates and new people.

What starts as a fairly mundane question about what I do for a living, or how my job is going, ends up with everyone crowding round to hear about the different projects we’re involved in, looking at pictures I’ve taken of the drones we’re using, or the different places that I’ve travelled to. It’s a good reminder that what we do is different and interesting.

It’s definitely given me the opportunity to meet lots of new people and to make lots of new friends, both whilst on projects and out of work.

Thinking longer term, how have you found being a Drone Pilot, and Skyports, for helping build a career?

So before joining Skyports I was in the military, and I had a very set role with quite a limited scope, primarily just operating and flying the aircraft.

By the nature of our projects at Skyports there’s a much broader scope to our roles, and we have a great variety to the work that we do. As we’re a smaller team we’ll quite often need to muck in and come up with new ideas, and people really appreciate you approaching something from a different angle or perspective.

The company is also constantly growing and the capabilities are broadening, so it feels like there are opportunities to broaden the scope of my role. It definitely doesn’t feel like I’m being pigeonholed.

How would you describe the life and culture at Skyports?

Skyports strikes a really good balance of being professional and putting the hours in when it matters, but then being able to have a laugh and recognise and reward the hard work once a project has been successful. We’ll usually grab a beer as a team after work on Thursdays, and we get a free lunch on Fridays.

Skyports is also creative but allows you to make mistakes where it counts most – to learn! Every project is different, and this means that we all need to muck in and get creative to figure out how it works. This means it’s a super collaborative culture, and everyone is willing and happy to hear your input. They’re also aware that mistakes happen, and you can’t get it right all the time, and will work with you on how to make things better and improve it for next time.

What are your own personal career ambitions here at Skyports?

Having started as a Drone Pilot, and now making it to Team Lead, in time I’d like to progress to a Flight Operations Manager, maybe taking the role international. My current role feels like it’s giving me the experience to get there, and Skyports also offers loads of training opportunities to help build out your experience. Skyports is a gold mine of knowledge, and I feel like I’m constantly learning new things and competencies that are always adding to my CV.

It’s a good team with lots of opportunity, and if you’re willing to put the work in you’ll get rewarded with a decent career with some great perks thrown in.