Mid-Air Collisions: What Drone Operators Need to Know: Juan Plaza, CEO Plaza Aerospace

Juan Plaza is CEO of Plaza Aerospace, a Boca Raton based consulting company specializing in crewed and uncrewed aviation, Latin American Business Development and GIS consulting.  The company helps organizations reach their goals faster by selecting the right platforms and implementing the best deployment practices. Prior to forming Plaza Aerospace in 2015, Juan spent more than 26 years as a Sales Director for companies such as Autodesk and Trimble Navigation, in Latin America where he developed a network of software and hardware distributors willing and eager to represent new products in their respective countries. Juan has more than 750 hours of experience in photogrammetry navigation and camera operation in various and holds a Commercial, Multi-engine Pilot certificate.

December 30, 2023 a helicopter and a drone collided in midair in the vicinity of the Daytona Beach International Airport.  The FAA initially classified the accident as a collision with an object/terrain, but it was only after Juan contacted the FAA, on behalf of the pilot, that the real facts of the collision become known. 

In this episode of the Drone Radio Show, Juan talks about the mid-air collision and its relevancy for the drone industry and drone operators.