Phoning around Northern Cape for stock, a workshop slot or a course date takes time. Send one request instead, with the drone you fly and what you need, and we pass it to approved drone flight schools who work in towns and cities across Northern Cape.
Drone Licence (RPL) in Northern Cape
Flight schools that train pilots from Northern Cape can quote the RPL course, help with the medical and the SACAA paperwork, and explain the ROC route for a new drone business. Say how many pilots need a licence, for which class of drone, and when you want to start.
New to this? Read the drone licence guide for the choices and the questions worth asking before you pay.
What to know locally in Northern Cape
With repairers far away, pilots in Springbok, Kuruman and De Aar should carry spare propellers, a spare controller cable and extra batteries, because one broken part can mean days of waiting. Fine Kalahari dust gets into motors and gimbals, so clean them after every field day. RPL courses are usually taken in Bloemfontein, Gauteng or Cape Town, though mines in Kathu can ask a school to train a group on site.
Drones in Northern Cape
The Northern Cape is vast, dry and thinly populated, and many drone jobs here start with a long drive. Iron ore and manganese mines around Kathu, Postmasburg and Hotazel want stockpile volumes and pit surveys. Solar farms near Upington, De Aar and Prieska need panel inspections, often with thermal cameras. Vineyards and table grapes along the Orange River are mapped and scouted. Tourism content comes from the Namaqualand flower season and the Kalahari, but Augrabies Falls, Kgalagadi, Namaqua and Mokala national parks are off limits. Around Carnarvon, the radio astronomy area restricts transmitters, so check before flying there. Hot, dusty wind and fierce midday heat keep flying windows short.
Typical drone licence requests in the area come from:
- Mines, plants and utilities: RPLs for an in-house team that inspects plant, stockpiles and pylons
- Farmers and growers: a licence for farm staff flying mapping or spraying drones on the farm
- Builders, engineers and installers: licensed pilots for survey and progress flights on building sites
Local tips for Northern Cape
Most asked for in Northern Cape: mine stockpile surveys, solar farm inspections and vineyard mapping. Where suppliers and pilots work from: kimberley, Upington and Kathu, with operators from Gauteng and Cape Town. A useful tip: ask what travel, accommodation and weather delays add to the quote.
Around Northern Cape the largest group asking is mines, plants and utilities, which usually means RPLs for an in-house team that inspects plant, stockpiles and pylons. Before anything flies: sACAA Part 101: RPL, ROC, registration. Keep in mind: kimberley and Upington airports; Kgalagadi, Augrabies and radio astronomy limits.
Service area: Northern Cape and surrounds
We pass Northern Cape requests to suppliers and pilots based in or regularly working in Kimberley, Upington, Kathu, Kuruman, Springbok, De Aar, Postmasburg. Rural sites should give the nearest town and the farm name, so travel is quoted honestly.