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Training Tomorrow’s Drone Pilots: Unmanned Safety Institute on the Drone Radio Show!

May 27, 2025 by Miriam McNabb 2 Comments

Michael Hill, Program Manager at the Unmanned Safety Institute, speaks with Drone Radio Show host Randy Goers about how it helps prepare students for viable careers in the drone industry.

Listen here:

Drone Radio Show · Training Tomorrow’s Drone Pilots: Michael Hill, Unmanned Safety Institute
 
Michael Hill is Program Manager of College Workforce Programs at the Unmanned Safety Institute.  The Unmanned Safety Institute or USI is an approved training partner of ASTM International and the International Business Aviation Council. The Institute is dedicated to improving safety in unmanned aviation by applying time-honored aviation safety practices to unmanned aircraft systems. USI accomplishes this mission by developing workforce readiness programs, providing training to UAS crews, and helping flight service providers meet their safety goals.

Michael is a certified UAV pilot in three countries with over 6,000 flight hours and more than 7,800 successful, incident-free missions as a Remote Pilot-in-Command. He holds industry and safety certifications from FEMA, OSHA, NIST, and USI. He is a highly sought-after public speaker and industry influencer, passionate about sharing his expertise on UAV technology applications for land, air, and sea operations. He brings a wealth of experience to USI, including aerial mapping, telecom and wind turbine inspections, oil and gas and critical infrastructure assessments, search and rescue operations, as well as involvement with state and federal regulations.

An active advocate for the drone industry, he has served as the Policy and Legislative Chairman for the North Central Texas Council of Governments UAS Taskforce and as the Training Officer for the North Texas Public Safety Unmanned Response Team.  Additionally, he holds the role of 2nd Lieutenant and the former Director of Unmanned Operations for the Texas Wing of the Civil Air Patrol.

Learn more: Unmanned Safety Institute (https://www.flyusi.org/home)
Missed a recent episode? Catch up here:
  • Countering the Rise of Drone Enabled Crime on this episode of the Drone Radio Show!
  • Racing Into the Future: How Abu Dhabi Is Accelerating Autonomous Innovation on the Drone Radio Show!
  • Funding the Future: How the 2025 CR Impacts Drones, Autonomy, and AI on the Drone Radio Show
Miriam McNabb

Miriam McNabb is the Editor-in-Chief of DRONELIFE and CEO of JobForDrones, a professional drone services marketplace, and a fascinated observer of the emerging drone industry and the regulatory environment for drones. Miriam has penned over 3,000 articles focused on the commercial drone space and is an international speaker and recognized figure in the industry.  Miriam has a degree from the University of Chicago and over 20 years of experience in high tech sales and marketing for new technologies.
For drone industry consulting or writing, Email Miriam.

TWITTER:@spaldingbarker

Subscribe to DroneLife here.

Filed Under: DL Exclusive, Drone News, Drone News Feeds, News, Podcast Tagged With: drone careers, drone pilot education, drone safety standards, Drone Training, Michael Hill, UAV certification, Unmanned Safety Institute, workforce development

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. James says

    June 30, 2025 at 7:33 am

    Thank you for the excellent article.

    As drone tech evolves, so does the demand for skilled drone pilot By 2030, the drone industry is projected to create over 100,000 new jobs in the U.S. alone. With applications in mapping, inspections, emergency response, and more, today’s students aren’t just learning to fly—they’re preparing to lead the future of aviation from the ground up.

    Reply
  2. Pierre Verardi Ramos says

    May 28, 2025 at 6:43 am

    Dear Mrs. Miriam McNabb,

    Congratulations on your excellent article published on DroneLife:
    “Training Tomorrow’s Drone Pilots: Unmanned Safety Institute on the Drone Radio Show”!

    As an offshore pilot and also the CEO of xd4solutions and xd4log, I am currently structuring a comprehensive UAV operator training program in Brazil.
    My goal is to elevate the level of drone professionals by aligning training with international standards and preparing them for the new VTOL era in critical logistics, especially in the healthcare segment where is the segment xd4log is focusing on.

    I would very much appreciate the opportunity to learn more about this initiative and, if possible, to establish a collaborative relationship. In particular, I would be grateful if you could help initiate a direct connection with Mr. Michael Hill, Program Manager at the Unmanned Safety Institute, so we may explore how to replicate and adapt this remarkable standardization effort for Brazil, as I could see that was developed by him on his way till this days.

    Looking forward to the possibility of working together to advance UAV education and safety worldwide.

    Warm regards and, again, congratulations!

    Pierre Verardi Ramos

    Reply

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