DroneSAR was established by four individuals who each have expertise in the area of drone technology, network and satellite communication and search and rescue (SAR).
Who is in your team?
There are four of us on the team: myself (Oisin McGrath), Matthew Kelly, Leo Murray and Gearoid O’Briain. I am a military helicopter instructor, unmanned aircraft examiner and hold a degree in aeronautical engineering. Leo is deputy team leader in Donegal Mountain Rescue and has a background in product research and design. Matthew is an award-winning app developer and mountain rescue volunteer. He also has degrees in electronics and satellite communications and lastly, Gearoid is currently on a scholarship in Smurfit Business School completing his MBA. He is also a military manned and unmanned aircraft instructor.
What’s your business idea?
The DroneSAR product is the first worldwide to include rescue specific functions including live drone tracker and live first-person view (FPV) video streaming made viewable from any location via the DroneSAR web-browser interface. Drone advancements in recent years have witnessed an increased capacity to take on a range of dangerous tasks in emergency response which are traditionally performed by humans. Return on investment to the emergency response and SAR industry is reflected in potential savings made possible resulting from a lesser dependency on conventional solutions, involving manned aerial assets such as helicopters and fixed wing aircraft, where hourly rental rates of up to €3,000 per hour exist. This allows rescue agencies to conduct the most effective early stage aerial search so that lives can be saved.
As emergency response agencies see the huge value in these machines, DroneSAR will soon become the go-to application of choice for rescue agencies across the world. This service can be extended into humanitarian, disaster management, security, pollution control and much more.
“Drone advancements in recent years have witnessed an increased
