So you want to start using drones and think you need a "licence"?
Congratulations! You’re taking your first steps to becoming a certified drone pilot. You’re about to join one of the most exciting and fastest growing industries in the UK.
Despite your excitement, we know that at the start of your journey it can be daunting trying to understand the rules and regulations, or even which certificate you need to fly your drone.
That’s why we’ve worked hard to simplify the often-confusing regulations and deliver a choice of three drone training courses which will help you fly your drone for any purpose in the UK, whether that be for pleasure or professional purposes.
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HALO Drone Training Courses
We offer four courses to cater for all competencies and desired outcomes:
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BeginnerCourse
Practical Flight TrainingStarting from £360 inc VAT- Practical flight training to accelerate your competency
- 1 to 1 with a HALO instructor
- On Demand
- Includes HALO training drones
- Includes unlimited batteries
- Focuses on setting solid foundations
- Provides techniques to speed coordination
- Includes assessment manoeuvres
- Includes mock flight assessment
- Half-day or full-day
IntermediateCourse
A2 CofC - Certificate of Competency£180 inc VAT- Grants the successful candidate with an A2 Certificate of Competence
- Enables operations in the new EU A2 Category of Operations
- Includes Digital Handbook
- Requires 5 hours of reading
- Online theory test only
- 40 Questions, 1 hour
- On Demand
- No Flight Assessment
- Certificate grants instant access to operate
- Fly for commercial & recreational purposes
AdvancedCourse
GVC - General Visual Line Of Sight CertificateStarting from £540 inc VAT- Grants the successful candidate with a General Visual Line of Sight Certificate
- Enables operations in the new EU Specific Category of Operations
- Face 2 Face, Remote and Self-Directed learning options
- Online theory test option
- Practical flight assessment
- Operations Manual Template & support
- 2.5 days of learning
- Comprehensive set of training materials
- Only certificate to include Instructor Directed Learning Options
ConversionCourse
PfCO to GVC Conversion Course£225 inc VAT- Grants the successful candidate with a General Visual Line of Sight Certificate
- Enables operations in the new EU Specific Category of Operations
- Self Directed Online Learning
- On Demand
- Theory Test Only
- Requires current experience
- Enables application for an Operational Authorisation
New Drone Regulations 2020
As of the 31st December 2020, new regulations come into effect in the UK, known as the EU UAS Regulation Package, that governs the operation of drones across participating states in Europe (including the UK for now). It’s an excellent move for the industry that brings with it a development pathway for building competency, which hasn’t previously existed. This means that as the complexity (risk) of your drone operation increases, the required competencies must also increase.
As a new drone pilot to the sector, it is a case of evaluating how you’ll be using your drone before choosing one of two certifications; The A2 Certificate of Competence or the GVC General Visual Line of Sight Certificate.
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HALO Beginner Course – Practical Drone Flight Training
Become a competent drone pilot with HALO Drones
As the first step in your drone training journey, we recommend enrolling on to our Practical Drone Flight Training Course. The starting point for most pilots, this 1:1 training gives you the basic hand to eye coordination skills, good habits and manoeuvres to give structure to your own drone flying practice.
Throughout the training course you can expect to learn a series of flying techniques that will help you rapidly develop as a drone pilot, rather than plateau with limited skills and bad habits. We will also take you through a mock test to help you prepare for a fight assessment if you’re attending the Advanced GVC Course.
HALO Intermediate Course – A2 Certificate of Competence
Gain your A2 Certificate of Competence with HALO Drones
The HALO A2 Certificate of Competence course (A2 CofC) has been designed to give drone pilots the ability to operate their drone in the Open Category (A2 subcategory), as governed by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
The A2 CofC is our intermediate course, perfect if you are a hobbyist or starting your professional drone operations with a drone which has a maximum take-off mass less than 4kg.
HALO Advanced Course – GVC Drone Training
Gain your General Visual Line of Sight Certificate (GVC) with HALO Drones
The HALO Advanced GVC Drone Training Course is our flagship course, confirming that successful candidates have the required competency to operate within Visual Line of Sight (VLOS) in the Specific category, as governed by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). Culminating in a theoretical examination and a practical flight test, it is a comprehensive “all inclusive” package that will give you the necessary knowledge and tools to safely fly drones in a professional setting.
The GVC qualification can be built upon in the future by “add on modules”, increasing your competency and allowing more freedom (reduced proximities to uninvolved persons, flying beyond visual line of sight) for your drone business.
HALO Conversion Course – PFCO to GVC
Convert your PFCO Recommendation to a GVC with HALO Drones
The HALO GVC Conversion Course has been specifically designed for drone pilots who have an existing Certificate of Recommendation for a PfCO, and want to convert it to a General Visual Line of Sight Certificate (GVC) under the new EU regulations.
Pilots who successfully convert their PfCO Recommendation to a GVC via this course will be able to apply for an Operational Authorisation (OA). The OA replaces the Permission for Commercial Operations (PfCO) as part of the new EU regulations that come into effect on December 31st, 2020.
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What about PfCO drone training?
The PfCO drone training course is no longer required if you are wanting to operate a drone for commercial purposes. This was the previous authorisation required by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) for commercial drone operations, before new European UAS regulations came into effect on December 31st 2020.
The PfCO has now been replaced by the “Operational Authorisation” which can be obtained by completing the HALO Advanced GVC Drone Training Course.
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Why choose HALO for your drone training?
No more death by PowerPoint
HALO Drones is the ONLY CAA approved drone training school to use Practical and Scenario based training methods as the foundations of our face to face and remote courses. These keep you engaged and put content into context, making it relevant, understandable and memorable.
100% Extra Value
Rather than giving you content to remember, our training methods help you develop skills that will allow you to apply your knowledge on the job so that you can present yourself with confidence and competence in front of your clients, helping you win work and separate yourself from your competitors.
Drone-specific expert instructors
Our instructors are all current commercial drone pilots. Combined, they have thousands of logged hours of operational experience for your learning benefit. They have also successfully taught over 1,000 commercial drone operators within the UK.
Maximum class sizes
We do not operate as a meat factory and minimise the number of attendees to no more than 10. This ensures substantial contact time between you and your and instructor, to ensure you have the attention you need and a chance to ask important questions.
Testimonials
One of the best courses I have ever been part of. Very well designed course, on which I learned as much as possible in two days. Great material, very inspiring and engaging instructor, who not only answered all of our questions with great proficiency and support, but really helped us learn in an effective team. This course will really give you a solid foundation in all aspects of commercial drone operations, that will help you get a huge leap in the market. Worth every penny. Great job!
Oliver Wagner, Skyports
You get what you pay for. Halo Drones isn’t the cheapest but there’s a reason for that. The course is well put together and the materials feel and look excellent. A LOT of time and thought has clearly gone into how it is delivered and how it looks and it certainly isn’t death by powerpoint which from my research other providers focused too much on. Post course, you will spend a lot of time working on developing your Operations Manual which can be a pain. Halo Drones helps you here a lot as well which in my opinion pays itself over many times if you value your time! Highly recommended!
Luke Dorey,
I was always put off by the idea of having to complete the operations manual as it looked like an awful lot of work. To my surprise the way that HALO had assembled the documents and the instructions, not only made it straight forward but it was an enjoyable process. It enabled me to reassess my understanding of the regulations and think about how I’d like to conduct my drone services so that to fit within my businesses pre-existing policies. Great work HALO!
Chris McGaughey, Like an Egg Productions Ltd
I attended the HALO Drones FCCDO Course in April 2019. It is clear that a lot of effort has gone into designing the course as the provided material and teaching standards are of exceptional quality. Thoroughly recommended, Phil is an excellent instructor and the course as a whole stands out as a brilliant PfCO training course.
Matt Hudson, Liverpool University
The course with HALO Drones was great. Really well structured course involving tasks and working through examples as a team to help understand the application of what we were learning. Questions were answered very well and there was a lot of support through both days. Inspiring and I feel like I have learned everything needed to operate drones commercially. Highly recommended. Thank you!
Alice Baker, Wiltshire Wildlife Trust
Had a great experience flying under the supervision of Philip Tarry. Went there with someone else from our company in preparation for our pilot certification and even with other people there was no down time. We covered both theory and practice, necessary and good-to-know manoeuvres as well as extra time to focus on what we felt we were lacking in. All together, I felt like I left the session with more than enough expertise to pass the test successfully.
Jeremie Leonard, Bio Carbon Engineering
The course provided by HALO Drones was excellent. A very informative and enjoyable few days. The course was well structured, providing important information needed to become a qualified and proficient drone pilot. HALO’s experience flying drones meant they were able to clearly add context to everything we were learning. Would highly recommend.
Robert Godwin, Like and Egg Productions
Leading companies trust HALO for their drone training
