This is part of a series giving you an insider’s view of the products coming out of Pittsburgh to change the world.
By now, you’re probably used to seeing fantastic images taken by drones, whether it’s highlighting the skyline of Pittsburgh, helping preserve the memories of a wedding or those gracing the stories in NEXTpittsburgh.
Those drones taking the photos don’t fly by themselves. Aside from the pilot navigating the craft remotely, there often is somebody in the background helping that drone pilot get off the ground.
For Pittsburghers, Lori Paluti is often that person. As CEO of Pittsburgh Drone Services, she is the go-to person for training, drone maintenance and consulting.
In 2014, during the emergence of the maker movement, Paluti was looking for a career change from her longtime teaching job at the Community College of Allegheny County in West Mifflin, but she didn’t quite know what to do.
That changed during a road trip through Butler County. Paluti got lost and stopped at a toy store to get directions. The shopkeeper was flying a drone, and she decided to buy it – after which she promptly crashed it.
It dawned on her that supporting people so they can fly unmanned vehicles safely was going to become important. So she went to her supervisor at CCAC and asked to be the interim aviation coordinator, a position that had previously been filled by a trained pilot. She got permission – with the caveat that she become certified.
She earned her private pilot certification, and in a single semester, added a drone curriculum at campus, which already offered other aviation courses.
Since the campus is so close to Allegheny County Airport, Paluti needed to convince the Federal Aviation Administration to allow drones in the airspace, which put her on a steep learning curve beyond her pilot certification requirements.
“I became well versed in how the FAA works, how to get waivers, how to operate drones, safety issues and other topics that might not be noticeable to somebody off the street,” says Paluti.
“So it was time for me to start the business.”
She had already done part-time work at Carnegie Science Center, which became Pittsburgh Drone Services’ first client.
Although she still flies drones on behalf of her clients, she usually refers the flying jobs to her crew of independent drone pilots. Paluti does the training, drone maintenance and consulting.
Pittsburgh Drone Services has a fleet of 14 drones, which are equipped to do specific tasks: thermal imaging, aerial photography, even racing.
Her highest flight to date took place around the tower of a historic church in McKeesport. There, she hit the usual challenges, including high winds and the need to fly into places that couldn’t be seen with the naked eye. Paluti also encountered an unexpected challenge when a flock of pigeons flew out of the tower.
She also works with corporations. One of Pittsburgh Drone Services’ clients is a large construction company whose workers depend on her for visuals. More recently, they’ve come to her for videos for marketing.
Paluti says she’s meticulous about safety and planning, usually going on-site in advance to forecast the idiosyncrasies of the project.
In urban environments, it’s particularly tricky due to the combination of wind gusts and small distances between buildings, such as a job taking aerial videos of a rooftop party near PPG Place.
“That required permission to fly over the party,” she says. “And we needed to make sure that there would be no chance of us hitting the glass building of PPG.
“You don’t take unnecessary risks; you have to be prepared.”
Know of a product or service being developed in Pittsburgh or by a Pittsburgh-based company that is cool, is creating growth, or will change the world? Let David know via email.
