Ukraine Launches Certification for Private Drone Operator Schools

1 October, 2024 Illustrative photo with an FPV drone of the Ukrainian marines. March 2024. Ukraine.

Photo: Marine Corps of Ukraine The Ukrainian government has launched certified private schools to train drone operators. The Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine Mykhailo Fedorov announced this.

According to the minister, "the need for professional drone operators is constantly growing. There is a demand for this profession in military units, so we need educational institutions that will provide quality knowledge." Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, dozens of private training centers for UAV pilots have sprung up in Ukraine.

However there still is no unified system for regulating their activities. The government has adopted a resolution that will launch the certification of private UAV schools.

More than 900 drones transferred to the Ukrainian military within the Army of Drones project, November 8, 2023. Photo credits: Mykhailo Fedorov

Educational institutions will be able to obtain a certificate and officially train operators who, after successfully passing the exams, will be able to take up positions as UAV operators in military units of the Ukrainian Defense Forces.

To obtain a license, a school must provide training in flying or manufacturing drones and have 3 or more drones for training and certification of pilots. In addition, the private educational institution must have training programs to train pilots on existing UAVs and hire 3 or more certified instructors to conduct the training. "The resolution will allow only those institutions that provide real practical knowledge that will help at the front to operate.

I am grateful to the Ministry of Defense and the Prime Minister for their participation in the development of the resolution, and we continue to work together to implement the project," Fedorov concluded. In early September, Militarnyi reported that a joint initiative of the Come Back Alive Foundation and PrivatBank had ensured activities of the Yatagan UAV military school.

Illustration on the topic of training at the Yatagan UAV school. September 2024.

Photo credits: Come Back Alive Foundation

The Come Back Alive Foundation representatives stated that more than a hundred defenders of Ukraine are trained there every month.

Involvement of private companies in training of the Ukrainian military

As previously reported, France will engage a private company to train Ukrainian soldiers, in part due to the lack of instructors and interpreters in the army. On August 28, the French Ministry of Armed Forces signed a framework agreement with Defense Conseil International (DCI) based on the tender results. The initial contract is for 12 months and is currently valued at EUR24 million.

However, according to the framework agreement, it can be extended twice for a similar period.