FIREHOUSE ROAD
Firehouse Road UAS Flight School
We scale and customize our flight school curriculum to meet your needs and experience.
If you are a beginner, choose one day of training, which completely breaks the ice and gives you the hands-on training and confidence needed to fly your drone. You will learn on our DJI Inspire 1, a professional quadcopter that commands respect for its size and capabilities.
Learning hands-on with an experienced instructor in a small group is the most effective way to learn how to fly a drone. Firehouse Road UAS Flight School focuses on what FAA 107 test preparation does not: Drone operation and pilot proficiency.
Spend ten or more intensive hours focused on flying. Learn best practices that foster a culture of safety and protect your investment.
Chris Ramirez has trained over 100 remote pilots in public safety, including the FDNY, NYS Police FBI, and the NYPD.
Topics covered are:
• UAS Safety Awareness and Best Practices
• Control Sticks and Muscle Memory
• Use of Visual Observers
• Software/Hardware Controls and Telemetry
• Hazard Recognition and Avoidance
• Aircraft Orientation
• Takeoff and Landings
• Confident Piloting
• In-Flight Emergency Procedures
Class sizes are generally 1 - 3 students per instructor.
If you are a business, we can operate at your location, providing indoor and outdoor facilities meet specific criteria. If you want to come to us, we use several locations in the Hudson Valley, including wineries and breweries.
UAS Photography
1 Day
Class size: 4-6 persons
Prerequisite: none
16 and older
Breakfast and lunch included
This class is designed for the drone pilot who wants to understand manual photography settings for both still and video capture. Chris Ramirez is a photographer and cinematographer with 28 years of professional experience, including 15 years for The New York Times. As owner and operator of Firehouse Road, LLC, he produces professional cinematic aerial video and still photography for clients, including Mercedes-Benz, Discovery Channel, Parade Magazine, and The Wall Street Journal.
Topics covered:
• Recreation vs. Licenced Pilot
• Manual vs. Automatic Settings
• Camera Platforms DJI Inspire 1 & 2, Mavic Air and Mavic 2 Pro
• Capture Formats: RAW JPEG, FPS, and 4K
• Navigating Menus
• Light and Composition
• Planning for Weather
• Cinematic Composition
• Editing Software and Post-Processing Workflow
Chris Ramirez gives an overview of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) (drones) in our national airspace. From recreational users, commercial users, and public entities, all must adhere to best practices for safer flying. Topics to be covered are UAS capabilities and limitations, safety procedures, hazard recognition, the DJI family of aircraft systems, and cameras, the use of visual observers, and public safety applications.
Please contact us if you would like to attend or have Chris come to your organization.
No fee.
UAS Awareness
Chris Ramirez is a photographer and cinematographer with 28 years of professional experience, including 15 years for The New York Times, for which he shot more than 2,000 assignments. As owner and operator of Firehouse Road, LLC, he produces professional cinematic aerial video and still photography for clients including Mercedes-Benz, AMG Driving Academy, Discovery Channel, Parade Magazine, and The Wall Street Journal.
Chris is also a New York State UAS (drone) Instructor for the New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services. Chris has trained the FDNY, FBI, NYPD, and many emergency management agencies on the use of UAS in the public safety arena. He is also an interior firefighter with the Rock Hill Fire Department in Sullivan County, NY, where he leads a team of firefighters using drone technology to enhance situational awareness during emergencies.
Chris is available for consultation and instruction by appointment.