UMILES Group: the end-to-end drone company in Spain

A town council wants to end its festival without gunpowder. A construction firm needs a cut-and-fill survey measured before Monday. A technician has spent three years climbing onto industrial roofs in a harness and is starting to wonder whether there is another way. And someone else simply wants to stop flying as a hobbyist and get licensed so they can charge for it. Four very different problems that end in the same search: a drone company in Spain that actually knows its trade.

The trouble is how fragmented the sector is. There is the production house that shoots aerial video, the school that trains pilots, the engineering firm that does photogrammetry, and the company that stages drone light shows. Each one in its own lane, with the client acting as the go-between.

UMILES Group was built the other way round: flying first, then training its own pilots in what is today UMILES University, then taking those flight hours into large-format shows and, finally, manufacturing its own technology. The group is based in Spain and works across Europe — Italy and Portugal among them — as well as Latin America. Here is what that means in practice, and when it pays to work with an operator that covers the whole cycle.

What an end-to-end drone company really means

“End-to-end” sounds like marketing language until you hit a project that crosses two disciplines. That is where it shows.

A day-to-day example: a brand books a show for the opening of a plant and, while they are at it, wants aerial video of the event and a point cloud of the site for the report. With separate suppliers that means three quotes, three insurance policies, three airspace coordinations, and someone — usually you — acting as glue between all three.

Integration is not about listing lots of services on a website. It comes down to three concrete things:

• One operational owner. If something slips or the wind forces a flight window to move, nobody passes the buck.
• The same pilots. Whoever flies a show with dozens of coordinated aircraft is the profile who can read a NOTAM and handle a restricted zone.
• Technical judgement across disciplines. Knowing which type of drone suits each job — multirotor, fixed wing, hybrid — and which operational category it falls under is not obvious if you have only ever done one thing.

Drone light shows: the visible side

Drone light shows are the group’s most visible line and the one that has grown fastest in recent years, largely because many municipalities are replacing fireworks with alternatives that produce no smoke, no noise and no fire risk in summer.

Behind a three-minute show there is far more work than it looks: 3D choreography design, simulation, flight planning, airspace clearance with the competent authorities, risk analysis, a contingency plan and a ground crew on the day. UMILES has delivered shows across several countries in Europe and Latin America, from corporate events to large municipal celebrations.

One practical note if you are considering one: timing rules everything. Airspace coordination and permits are not resolved in a week. The earlier you lock in the date and location, the more room you have for the design you want rather than the one that fits the calendar.

AESA pilot training: the foundation for everything else

This is the piece that holds up the rest. Without licensed pilots there are no shows, no inspections, no topographic surveys. That is why the school is not a side business: it is the group’s own talent pipeline.

UMILES University is a training centre approved by AESA (the Spanish Aviation Safety Agency), with in-person classes in Madrid. It runs everything from the professional drone pilot course — the starting point for flying legally and charging for it — to the ratings required by the specific category.

What do you need to start?

Less than you would think. Pass the training for the category you intend to fly in — the minimum age to fly as a remote pilot is 16, with exceptions that lower it in the open category depending on the class of drone — and register as an operator through AESA’s online portal. For low-risk flying in the open category, the A1/A3 and A2 training will take you a long way. As soon as you move into professional work near infrastructure or people, you are in the specific category and you need the standard scenarios (STS).

The rules have shifted a good deal in recent years, so do not rely on something you read in a forum in 2021. If you are unsure where you stand, start with our update on Spanish drone regulations, which sets out what you can do and under what conditions.

Specialising is where the margin is

The basic licence lets you fly. What makes you billable is being able to deliver a product: a georeferenced orthomosaic, an inspection report backed by evidence, or a crop vigour map. That is why the courses in drone photogrammetry and surveying, technical inspections and precision agriculture are the ones with the strongest job prospects.

On pay, a note of caution: the figures that circulate vary enormously by sector, region and employment status. As a rough market guide, a pilot specialised in surveying or industrial inspection earns considerably more than one who only shoots promotional video. The licence qualifies you; the specialism is what invoices.

Professional services: photogrammetry, surveying, inspections and agriculture

This is the least glamorous line and the one that generates the most work. Here the drone is not the star; it is the tool that collects the data.

• Surveying. Land surveys, volume calculations in quarries and stockpiles, construction progress monitoring. Drone surveying has the detail on accuracies and deliverables.
• Photogrammetry. 3D models, orthophotos and point clouds built from hundreds of overlapping images. The process is explained in drone photogrammetry.
• Inspections. Industrial roofs, power lines, solar farms, telecom towers. No scaffolding, and far less work at height.
• Agriculture. Vegetation indices, water stress detection and plant counting to fine-tune treatments zone by zone.

What separates a good job from a mediocre one is almost never the drone. It is flight planning, data quality control and the processing afterwards. Poor image overlap or badly measured ground control points will ruin the deliverable no matter how expensive the aircraft.

In-house manufacturing: the Saturno drone

Most operators in Spain resell and fly third-party hardware. UMILES develops its own: the Saturno drone, aimed at surveillance and security applications, engineered in Spain.

The practical consequence is barely visible from outside and very visible from inside: when the aircraft is yours, a failure or a supply problem does not leave you waiting on a manufacturer ten time zones away. And you can adapt the platform to a specific requirement instead of settling for the catalogue.

Who each line is for

• Councils, agencies and brands: shows for local festivals, openings and product launches.
• Anyone who wants to make a living from this: AESA certification and a specialism.
• Construction, mining and energy: surveying, photogrammetry and inspection.
• Agriculture: vigour maps and zone-by-zone treatments.
• Surveillance and security: in-house technology and bespoke development.

Frequently asked questions

Is UMILES a manufacturer or an operator?

Both. It operates drones for shows, technical services and filming, and it also develops its own technology. That is what sets it apart from operators who only resell someone else’s hardware.

Is the training officially recognised?

Yes. UMILES University is a training centre approved by AESA, Spain’s aviation safety agency, with in-person classes in Madrid.

Can I book training and services at the same time?

It happens often. A company that wants to bring inspections in-house trains its own staff and, meanwhile, subcontracts the one-off jobs. Same point of contact, no duplicated suppliers.

Are the services only for large accounts?

No. The scope adapts: from a single roof inspection to recurring construction monitoring contracts.

How far in advance should a drone show be booked?

The earlier the better. Permits and airspace coordination take time, and in peak season — summer and Christmas — the good dates go fast.

Let us talk about your project

If your project sits within a single discipline, any specialist supplier will do. If it crosses two or more — a show plus its video coverage, an inspection plus training for your team — a single point of contact saves you time and a lot of email.

Tell us what you need and we will say plainly whether it fits us or whether something else suits you better. Get in touch through our contact page and we will take it from there.

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