So you want to become a more competent drone operator?
The HALO Beginner Course has been specifically designed for drone operators who want to accelerate their competency as the first step in their drone training journey. 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.
Delivered by HALO’s experienced commercial drone training instructors, the course begins with understanding your existing skill level, before delivering a bespoke 1:1 practical flight training session. As your instruction progresses, you’ll gain the tools to practice in your own time so you can continue your development without being dependent on us.
Your instructor will also make time to answer all your questions or clarify any misunderstandings you may have about the practicalities of flying for commercial purposes.
Why have practical flight training?
While self-instruction is an option, it comes with a big downside. You don’t know what you don’t know – and you’ll only find out when something goes wrong. Because drones are incredibly sophisticated – and therefore simple to fly – it’s easy to overestimate your flying ability and, as a consequence, plateau at a low skill level at best, or crash at worst. It’ll take several years to develop the experience necessary to compete with established competitors.
Beginner Course Enquiry
Half Day Flight Training (Beginner)
£300 + VAT- Everything you'll need to become a more competent drone operator
- 3 hours of 1:1 tuition with an expert trainer
- Training location
- Training drones (multirotor & fixed wing)
- Certificate (if requested)
- Support from HALO instructors
Full Day Flight Training (Beginner)
£450 + VAT- Everything you'll need to become a more competent drone operator
- 6 hours of 1:1 tuition with an expert trainer
- Training location
- Training drones (multirotor & fixed wing)
- Certificate (if requested)
- Support from HALO instructors
We're here to help
Not sure which drone training course is right for you? Speak to our experts and we’ll help to guide you through the process
Contact Us
The benefits of training with HALO
Designed by expert drone instructors
The HALO Beginner Course in Practical Flight Training has been designed by some of the most skilled commercial drone pilots in the UK, so you can rest assured you’re learning from the best. Our Co-Founder, Philip Tarry, also co-founded ARPAS-UK, the UK Drone Association and professional body that supports and acts on behalf of the drone community.
CAA approved
We’re one of only a handful of CAA approved Recognised Assessment Entities (RAE) in the UK, capable of delivering drone training courses under the new EU regulations. HALO will be here for you at every step of the way, from obtaining initial Practical Flight Training, to obtaining your A2 CofC and developing your competence towards a GVC certificate.
Dedicated aftercare support
The HALO team are here to offer you support via email or telephone throughout your training. You can count on HALO to help you at every step of the way in your journey to becoming a professional drone pilot.
Maximum class sizes
We do not operate as a meat factory and minimise the number of attendees to a maximum of 4 per instructor present. This ensures substantial contact time between you and your instructor, to ensure you have the attention you need and a chance to ask important questions.
We're here to help
Not sure which drone training course is right for you? Speak to our experts and we’ll help to guide you through the process
Contact Us
What can I expect from the Beginner Course?
Considered our beginner course, this 1:1 training will enable candidates to improve their practical flight practice under the guidance of an expert instructor. Typically undertaken by new drone pilots or those looking to upskill prior to enrolling on to the Intermediate or Advanced Courses, this course will give you the skills needed to operate safely.
We at HALO often refer to this course as the equivalent of undertaking lessons in readiness for a motorbike practical test, where the student will learn required skills from an experienced instructor in order to ‘drive’ safely. This is unlike the Intermediate or Advanced courses which include assessments to grant recognised certificates of competency for the candidates upon completion.
What’s included in the Beginner Course?
- Our Beginner Course is tailored to your requirements, therefore no two courses are alike. As standard you will get:
- A professional instructor who has years of training experience and is a current commercial drone pilot. This ensures your training is up to date and relevant.
- A training location. We have a number of venues around the country, and we are also willing and able to travel to your training location, subject to our approval and cost of expenses.
- Training drones. We have a fleet of purposefully developed training drones. These are designed to take a knock or two, and most importantly, have dual controls. This means the instructor can regain control from the candidate to avoid an accident. We find that this is a really useful learning tool, it helps give candidates confidence knowing they are in a safe and controlled environment and enables the instructor to provide quick demonstrations. The benefit is they tend to then relax and focus on learning rather than worry about crashing.
Course Options
Half Day
This will last for 3 hours. Though this doesn’t sound like much time, when you are concentrating on learning new skills, the focus required can be exhausting. We recommend this for pilots looking to improve their existing skills. In some cases it’s better to do several short sessions and practice in between, as a break gives your brain the time to consolidate what has been learnt. You’ll be amazed how much we can teach in a short amount of time. A half day is also a preferred option for those looking to practice on their own drone and only have a few batteries.
Full Day
A full day consists of 6 hours training with a lunch break. This is usually preferred by people with 0 experience and wish to accelerate their skill level rapidly and or conduct application specific training. We usually fly a mix of our training drones and the candidates drone to give a broader range of experience so that the pilot doesn’t become conditioned to one type of aircraft. A full day is also popular for small groups who are happy to share an instructors time in order to save costs.
Fixed Wing
We have a range of fixed wing drones on which we can provide both manual and automated flight experience and instruction. Flying fixed wing aircraft is very different to multi rotors as they cannot stop. This has inherent risk and requires careful consideration and that can only come with experience. We can tailor our training to your requirements as manual experience isn’t always necessary for what can be highly automated aircraft with little option for manual intervention.
Large Multirotors
We have a 14kg Octocopter which is set up with dual controls which can be used to help ease pilots into operating larger drones. It is surprisingly intimidating to fly larger multi-rotors and we can significantly ease the burden and increase confidence, while minimising any risk to what can be very expensive drones.
Course Details
-
Who should attend this course?
The Beginner Course is suitable if:
You’ve never piloted a drone before
You’ve been flying drones for a short time or are an accomplished hobbyist pilot
You don’t feel 100% confident to undertake the Intermediate or Advanced training courses without some practical experience and training
-
Course Objectives
To improve your hand to eye coordination skills and operational knowledge
Provide structure for your practice so that you can continue to develop your skills in your own time.
Establish good habits and iron out bad ones
Provide a solid foundation on which to build your theoretical knowledge
-
Course Outcomes
In addition to achieving the course objectives, you can be provided with a course completion certificate if requested. Please note; this is not a recognised level of certification.
-
Course Requirements
Suitable clothing for all weather types
Suntan lotion (if you are lucky)
Food and drink in order to sustain you for the day
Your own drone (if preferred or in addition)
As many fully charged flight batteries as required for the length of time you wish to fly for (if bringing your own drone)
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