The commercial drone industry has spent years proving what it can do. The use cases are no longer theoretical; the technology has matured considerably; and the regulatory framework, however imperfect, is taking a more defined shape. Even with all of that progress, though, there are real and pressing questions about where things stand right now, particularly for the people doing the day-to-day work of flying missions, managing fleets, and keeping operations compliant.

That is exactly what we are trying to find out.

Commercial UAV Expo and Pilot Institute have partnered to put out our State of the Commercial Drone Industry Survey, and we are asking people at every level of the industry to participate. If you work in the commercial drone sector at any capacity, your voice will help shape our look at where the industry stands today, and where it figures to head in the next few years.

What the Survey Covers

The questions are designed to capture a true, ground-level read on where the industry actually stands. Topics include:

  • Regulatory sentiment, including perspectives on the upcoming final Part 108 rule and the path toward expanded BVLOS operations
  • Hardware and fleet decisions, including how operators are navigating procurement in a market shaped by NDAA compliance and supply chain concerns
  • Workforce and training, including how teams are being built and where the gaps remain
  • Business and economic conditions, including how service providers and enterprise operators are faring in the current market
  • Industry outlook, including where operators see growth, and where they see friction

The survey takes about 10 minutes to complete.

Why This Matters

A lot of industry conversation happens at the conference level, the policy level, or the vendor level. Those perspectives are valuable, to be clear, but they do not always reflect what is happening on the ground. The pilot managing a public safety DFR program has a different read on the regulatory environment than a lobbyist working the same issue in Washington. The fleet manager overseeing infrastructure inspection contracts has a different view of hardware procurement than a manufacturer's marketing team.

We want all of these perspectives. The goal is to build a picture of the industry that reflects the full range of people working in it.

Where the Results Are Going

There will be multiple ways in which the results of our survey will be made public.

To start, the findings will drive the opening keynote at Commercial UAV Expo 2026, taking place September 1 in Las Vegas. That session will dig into what the data actually shows, with a focus on what operators are thinking, what is working, and what still needs to change. It is designed to set the tone for the rest of the conference by grounding the conversation in real feedback from real practitioners.

Second, Commercial UAV News will compile the results into a published industry report that will be free to access for everyone. That report will be available to the broader community and will serve as a resource for operators, enterprise teams, policymakers, and others tracking where the industry is headed.

Take the Survey

If you are a pilot, fleet manager, operations lead, or compliance professional working in the commercial drone space, your perspective belongs in this data set. The more responses we get, the more useful and accurate the final picture becomes.

The survey takes about 10 minutes and is available now. We are grateful for your time and your perspective.

Take the survey today