Key takeaways
- Ask which Transport Canada certification the pilot holds and whether the specific flight needs more than a standard operation covers.
- Ask for proof of aviation liability insurance, and confirm the limit meets your site's contractor requirement — not just that a certificate exists.
- On industrial sites, safety prequalification (Avetta, ISNetworld, ComplyWorks) is usually the real gate, and it takes time to obtain — check it before award, not at the gate.
Hiring a drone contractor for an industrial site is not like hiring a photographer. The aircraft is operating in regulated airspace, over an active workplace, and the data it produces may end up in an engineering decision or a regulatory file. The vetting should look more like prequalifying a contractor than booking a service.
Most of the friction we see comes from a mismatch discovered late: the operator turns up at the gate without the site's safety prequalification, or the insurance certificate does not meet the limit in the contract, or the deliverable is not in a format anyone can use. All of it is avoidable at the RFQ stage.
Here are the questions worth asking, and what a straight answer looks like.
1. Pilot certification — and whether it covers this flight
Commercial drone operations in Canada are regulated by Transport Canada, and pilots hold a certificate appropriate to the operation being flown. The certificate is the baseline, not the whole answer — what matters is whether it covers the specific flight you are asking for.
Operations that go beyond what a standard certificate permits — for example flying beyond visual line of sight, or with larger aircraft — require additional authorisation from Transport Canada, and the approval process is not instant. If your job involves a long linear asset, a restricted area, or anything unusual, ask specifically whether it fits within the operator's existing authorisations or needs a new one, and how long that takes.
Good answer: the operator names the certification held, states plainly whether your job fits inside it, and if not, explains what additional authorisation is required and the realistic timeline. Requirements change, so confirm current rules with Transport Canada rather than relying on any contractor's summary — including ours.
2. Insurance — the limit, not just the certificate
Ask for a certificate of aviation liability insurance, and then check the actual limit against what your contract or site requires. "We are insured" is not an answer; a certificate naming the coverage and limit is.
Two follow-ups that are worth asking: whether your organisation needs to be named as an additional insured, and whether the policy covers the specific operation being flown. Both are routine requests and a competent operator will not be surprised by either.
Good answer: a current certificate produced without friction, with a limit that meets your requirement. UAV Imaging carries $5 million in aviation liability coverage.
3. Safety prequalification — usually the real gate
On most Alberta industrial sites, the contractor management system is what actually decides whether someone gets through the gate. If your organisation uses Avetta, ISNetworld or ComplyWorks, your drone contractor needs to be registered and in good standing in that system before mobilisation — not on the morning of the flight.
This is the item that most often derails a schedule, because registration and review take time and cannot be compressed. It is worth confirming at the quoting stage.
Good answer: the operator names the systems they are already registered in. UAV Imaging is registered with Avetta, ISNetworld and ComplyWorks.
4. Site safety practice
Ask how the operator plans the flight around your operation, not just around the airspace. On a live site that means a hazard assessment for the flight, participation in your orientation and permit process, a plan for the area beneath the flight path, and a clear procedure if operations or weather change mid-flight.
Ask who else is on site during the flight. Some operations reasonably require a visual observer in addition to the pilot; an operator should be able to explain when they use one and why.
Good answer: the operator talks about your site's procedures without being prompted, and treats the flight as one activity inside your permit system rather than as an independent visit.
5. Deliverables and data handling
Agree what you are receiving before the flight, in writing — formats, coordinate system, and who the files are actually for. A deliverable your engineering software cannot open is worth nothing regardless of how good the flight was. We have written a separate walkthrough of what each survey deliverable actually is.
Then ask the data questions that procurement will eventually ask anyway: who owns the raw data, where it is stored, how long it is retained, and whether anything can be published or used as a reference without your written consent. Sites with security or confidentiality obligations should settle this before the flight, not after imagery exists.
Good answer: clear ownership terms, a retention answer, and no assumption that your site imagery can be used for marketing.
6. Relevant experience — and honest limits
Ask for work on sites like yours rather than a general portfolio. Aggregate, construction, utilities, solar and oil and gas each have their own access constraints and reporting expectations, and experience does not transfer as cleanly between them as a gallery suggests.
The most useful signal in the whole conversation is whether the operator will tell you what they cannot do. An operator who says a deliverable is not achievable on your site, or that a different method would serve you better, is giving you information you can plan around. One who answers yes to everything is not.
The short version
- Which Transport Canada certification is held, and does this specific flight fit inside it?
- Certificate of aviation liability insurance — does the limit meet our requirement?
- Registered in Avetta / ISNetworld / ComplyWorks, and in good standing today?
- How will the flight fit into our permit, orientation and hazard-assessment process?
- Exactly which deliverables, in which formats and coordinate system?
- Who owns the data, how long is it kept, and what may be published?
- Comparable work on sites like ours — and what would they decline to do?
If you are putting a drone scope out for quote and want a straight answer on any of the above, get in touch — including the parts where the honest answer is that a different approach fits better.