How to quench the thirst for drone pilots with a talent gap of millions in the industry?
2024-11-01
The application of drones in various fields such as postal and express delivery, power inspection, engineering surveying, and forest fire prevention is becoming increasingly widespread, which has also given rise to new job opportunities - "pilots" (drone operators). However, due to the high level of comprehensive literacy required for drone pilots, coupled with factors such as long training cycles and high investment, professional pilots are scarce. According to data from the Civil Aviation Administration of China, as of now, there are 1.88 million unmanned aerial vehicles registered with real names nationwide, with over 610000 newly registered drones, an increase of nearly 50% compared to last year, and only 230000 people holding drone operator licenses. According to relevant departments' calculations, there is a shortage of up to 1 million employment talents in the industry. What is the solution to the thirst of drone pilots? The reporter recently conducted an interview and investigation. The sky becomes busier. On the morning of October 30th, at the Chongqing Fast Navigation Apron located in the Liangjiang Collaborative Innovation Zone, Chongqing young man Peng Bing from Wushan County carefully placed the medicine needed by the customer into the drone. After confirming over the phone that it was correct, he pressed the operation button and delivered the medicine to the customer in just 10 minutes. Over the past 10 years of working in the city, Peng Bing has witnessed the transformation of Chongqing's express delivery industry, from walking and riding motorcycles to now using drones for delivery. He has also caught up with the boom period of drones. With only a junior high school education, he obtained the "Flying Hand" certificate through continuous self-study and training, and officially became a fast flying drone courier at the end of last year. Through low altitude express logistics routes, citizens can enjoy "cross city express delivery" services. On the morning of October 29th, in the drone nest of Xuxi Substation of State Grid Chongqing Yongchuan Power Supply Company, a drone equipped with an infrared camera quietly took off and began to perform routine power grid inspection tasks. The drone pilot Li Jinsong, who is tens of kilometers away, is sitting in front of the computer screen, fully focused on monitoring every subtle movement of the drone and the high-definition images it sends back. According to He Tao, Chief Engineer of the Intelligent Inspection Team of the Transmission and Transformation Operation and Inspection Center of State Grid Yongchuan Power Supply Company, "Compared with traditional manual inspection and obstacle clearance, the efficiency of drone operations has been improved by 5 to 8 times, and the safety and precision have also been significantly improved. The sky above the power grid is also busier." In addition, drones have been widely used in engineering construction and other fields. The reporter saw at the construction site of Chongqing East Station Section 2 project of China Railway Construction Engineering Group that the "Flying Hand" can "examine" every construction detail from a unique perspective by manipulating drones to ensure the safety and quality of the project. The long training cycle and high cost of talent "are hidden problems that cannot be ignored behind the increasingly busy sky - the shortage of" pilots "and" skilled workers ". Chen Mingchuan, the general manager of Chongqing Smart Agricultural Service Dianjiang Company, said that this is because drone" pilots "require a high level of comprehensive literacy, and the training cycle is long, the cost is high, and the output is not proportional. Chen Mingchuan told reporters that it takes at least six months for a "pilot" to become proficient, and each person needs to invest nearly 35000 yuan in the training process. After obtaining the license, the enterprise also needs to provide resources such as venues, equipment, materials, and instructors to provide secondary training for the "pilots", which undoubtedly increases the labor cost of the enterprise. In the field of power grid inspection, it often takes 2 to 3 years of experience to grow from a 'pilot' to a 'skilled' He Tao said that in complex environments such as power grid inspections and foreign object cleaning, "pilots" need to accurately identify problems and efficiently complete tasks, which requires them not only to have a deep understanding of the flight performance of drones, but also to have sufficient knowledge of power grid structures. "Pilots" who only master the basic operating skills of drones will be unable to meet market demand. Based on the current business volume of the enterprise, at least hundreds of professional 'pilots' are needed. Relying solely on talent market recruitment is far from enough to meet the demand. Currently, we are collaborating with the civil aviation department to accelerate the cultivation of professional and skilled talents Chen Linhai, General Manager of Chongqing Yizhen Cloud Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd., stated that the company's independently developed and produced unmanned aerial vehicle inspection management system can be widely applied to many industries such as energy, water conservancy, oil and gas. With the development of artificial intelligence and big data technology, more intelligent elements may be integrated into the future unmanned aerial vehicle certification process. The reporter noticed that in order to alleviate the shortage of drone pilots, some places are cultivating drone pilots with practical abilities through school enterprise cooperation, industry education integration, and other means. The integration of industry and education is considered an effective way to solve the current talent supply-demand contradiction in the field of drones He Tao told reporters that currently, several vocational colleges in Chongqing have opened majors in drone application technology, and through building school enterprise cooperation education chains, industry chains, talent chains, and innovation chains, they are cultivating "pilots" with high comprehensive quality and certain practical experience. In 2021, Chongqing Electric Power Vocational College signed an agreement with State Grid Yongchuan Power Supply Company to carry out docking in talent training program development, curriculum system development, teaching resource construction, internship and training project development, textbook writing, skills competition coaching, and other aspects. Nowadays, through school enterprise cooperation and the integration of industry and education, He Tao has helped many young workers grow into technical backbone in the field of drones, guiding more than 50 people to obtain drone "pilot" licenses. The reporter learned during the interview that Chongqing has made a good start in cultivating low altitude economic talents. Since 2018, Chongqing University of Electronic Science and Technology has successively offered majors such as drone application technology and aircraft maintenance technology. As of now, more than 300 skilled professionals in emerging industries such as aircraft maintenance and drone applications have been trained. The school provides students with more comprehensive skills training through practical courses and corporate internships The relevant person in charge of Chongqing Electronic Science and Technology Vocational University stated that the school has established cooperation with various parties such as drone manufacturing enterprises and service enterprises to ensure the cutting-edge and practical nature of the course content. The training content also closely revolves around the industry's demand for skills such as drone operation, programming, and data analysis, enabling "pilots" to more accurately connect with market demand. Not only that, the support of relevant departments is also indispensable. On October 11th of this year, the first agricultural drone pilot skills competition in Chongqing was held in Dianjiang County, providing a communication platform for "pilots". The county has also introduced support policies such as free training for "pilots" and recommended employment opportunities. In addition, multiple districts and counties in Chongqing have also supported and encouraged the cultivation of "pilots" through policies and competitions, driving the establishment and improvement of local unmanned aerial vehicle training systems, certification standards, examination systems, and other related institutional mechanisms. To meet the specific needs of enterprises for drone operators, targeted training and customized certification services can also be provided Chen Linhai said. (New Society)
Edit：Yao jue Responsible editor：Xie Tunan
Source：Workers' Daily
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