Avtrain targets €1.5m funding round to build new drone verification platform

Avtrain, a Dublin-based drone training and certification company, is aiming to raise €1.5 million as part of an ongoing fundraise that will be used to finance a new software platform for the business.

The new platform, which Avtrain hopes to launch at the end of 2024, will help simplify the current regulatory system for certification and validation of drone licensing, which is incredibly complex and cumbersome.

The Irish start-up said the new software platform will create a one-stop shop for drone operators and pilots to approve all of their regulatory compliance forms and risk assessment documents.

Julie Garland, founder and chief executive of Avtrain, believes her company can grow into a multimillion euro business if the platform takes off.

“We have a lot of experience manually working on these documents and we will use this to develop the new software platform.”

“We want to build the platform from scratch, and integrate it onto our website which was already designed as a foundation,” Garland said.

The new software platform will include two versions; one for EU rules and another for British regulations.

A qualified barrister and a former director of compliance for Norwegian Air, Garland founded Avtrain in 2019 with the help of Enterprise Ireland’s €1 million Competitive Start Fund. She has extensive experience in the aviation sector having also worked as an aircraft engineer with Aer Lingus and has also lectured in technical aircraft management.

Garland first started training drone pilots and operators in 2015 as a part-time interest before setting up her new business four years ago.

“Avtrain is a culmination of my career where I’ve worked as an aircraft engineer, a commercial pilot and a barrister. When I started in 2015, people thought I was mad,” she said.

Since 2022, Avtrain is part of a consortium co-ordinated by the Future Mobility Campus Ireland (FMCI) in Shannon, Co Clare, which has been approved by the EU to develop a ‘Digital Sky Demonstrator’ for aerial Unmanned Traffic Management (UTM) systems.

The three-year project valued at circa €7 million involves Irish and European partners including Shannon Airport, the Irish Aviation Authority, Collins Aerospace, Avtrains, Manna Aerospace and Italian company Deepblue.

As the use of drones in the economy and everyday life continues to expand, Garland said the best use of the technology can be condensed down to what she describes as the ‘Three Ds’.

“If its dull, dirty or dangerous, let a drone do it,” she said.

The former aircraft engineer added that a good example would be the inspection of a dangerous building, where a drone could be used to enter a potentially unstable area instead of risking a human life.

If its dull, dirty or dangerous, let a drone do it

Despite these advantages to the technology, Garland said the drone sector is held back by excessive and burdensome regulations, where operators must meet continuous compliance conditions.

“The operating certificate is only valid for two years, while the piloting certificate is valid for just five years,” she said.

Realistically, Garland said operators only have to know a portion of the regulations to safely fly a drone. In practice, however, they have to know every single guideline to get a certificate.

“With the amount of regulation changes that can happen in two to five years, operating and piloting drones becomes unnecessarily complex,” she said.

In its piloting classes, Avtrain teaches 300 to 500 drone operators annually, while 50 new drone operators receive their first certifications each year.

The company is headquartered in the Guinness Enterprise Centre in Dublin but it holds flight training in the aerodromes in Celbridge, Co Kildare, Shannon in Clare or Newcastle in Wicklow. It also holds classes at the Future Mobility Campus close to Shannon Airport.

A total of eight people work in Avtrain, with four full-time employees supported by four part-time staff.

Turnover in the business amounted to €400,000 this year but Garland has ambitious growth targets for the firm.

“According to a PWC feasibility study that we did this year, our turnover can reach €70 million in the next five years,” Garland said, adding that the firm is eager to talk to any potential investors as it seeks to develop its new software platform.

“We are open to all investment types such as VC or further engagement by Enterprise Ireland,” she said.

This Making it Work article is produced in partnership with Enterprise Ireland.