Thomas Brinkman

Thomas Brinkman

Thomas Brinkman

CEO & Co-Founder

Thomas Brinkman is a Dutch technology entrepreneur and the co-founder and CEO of AirHub.

While studying in Groningen, Thomas founded his first company, MyOrder, an innovative mobile ordering and payment platform. Over the next nine years, he built and scaled the company before selling it to Rabobank.

In 2017, Thomas met Stephan van Vuren, an Airbus pilot with extensive knowledge of aviation, airspace and flight regulations. Together, they recognised something many others had overlooked: drones would have a major impact on society, but professional drone operations would need to be managed according to the same high standards as traditional aviation.

The combination of Stephan’s aviation expertise and Thomas’s experience in software, entrepreneurship and scaling technology companies became the foundation of AirHub.

Today, Thomas leads AirHub as it provides drone operations software to organisations such as Dubai Police, Portuguese fire brigades, and police and emergency services across multiple countries. The AirHub platform enables teams to plan, execute, manage and automatically log their drone missions, helping organisations operate safely, efficiently and in compliance with aviation regulations.

As drones become an increasingly important tool for police forces, fire brigades and other emergency services, AirHub helps teams gain a faster and clearer view of incidents from the air. Live drone footage can be shared instantly with colleagues, control rooms and partner organisations, enabling faster coordination and better-informed decisions when every second counts.

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Thomas Brinkman

Wildfires in Portugal, with AirHub the Bombeiros (Portuguese firefighters) are able to have a better overview of the situation and take necessary action

Content

Wildfires are making the air crisis worse. Here's what we're doing about it.

Last week, a new report landed that I keep thinking about. IQAir analysed air quality data from 9,446 cities across 143 countries. Their conclusion: only 13 countries in the world currently breathe air that meets World Health Organisation (WHO) safety guidelines. In Europe, that's just three: Andorra, Estonia, and Iceland.

91 per cent of countries fell short. And the situation is getting worse, not better.

The report points to one of the fastest-growing contributors to poor air quality: wildfire smoke. 2025 was the worst wildfire year on EU record. Blazes swept across Europe through the summer, destroying farms, woodlands, and homes. The world's 25 most polluted cities were all located in India, Pakistan, and China. And across the globe, extreme weather caused at least €43 billion in short-term economic losses.

I've seen this up close.

We've been working with Bombeiros Portugal, Portugal's national fire brigade, for several years now. Portugal consistently faces some of the most destructive wildfire seasons in Europe. The Bombeiros operate under enormous pressure: vast terrain, fast-moving fires, limited situational awareness, and crews on the ground who need accurate information immediately.

That's exactly where drone technology changes the equation.

With drones deployed as part of a coordinated aerial response, fire commanders gain real-time visibility of fire fronts, wind behaviour, and areas at risk. Crews can be positioned more accurately. Evacuations can be triggered faster. Decisions that used to be made on incomplete information are now made with a live operational picture overhead.

The Bombeiros are already doing this.

The Portuguese Bombeiros are using Drones to manage wildfires. The AirHub software supports them in their mission.

The link between wildfires and air quality is direct. Fine particulate matter from smoke, known as PM2.5, is one of the most harmful pollutants we know of. Particles smaller than 2.5 micrometres travel deep into the lungs and enter the bloodstream. They're linked to respiratory disease, cardiovascular conditions, and long-term illness. When a major wildfire burns for days, the effects on air quality extend hundreds of kilometres beyond the fire itself.

Containing fires faster isn't just an operational win. It's a public health intervention.

At AirHub, we build the software that makes drone operations structured, compliant, and scalable. Whether that's a single drone team supporting a local fire brigade or a national Drone as a First Responder (DFR) programme, the underlying need is the same: reliable coordination, clear data, and the ability to act quickly when conditions change.

The IQAir report is a reminder that air quality is a safety issue. One that gets worse every time a major wildfire goes uncontrolled for too long.

The technology to respond more effectively already exists. What it needs is the infrastructure to deploy it at scale.

That's the work we're doing, together with teams like the Bombeiros, every year.

Thomas Brinkman is co-founder and co-CEO of AirHub, drone operations software for public safety, critical infrastructure, and security organisations worldwide.

Want to learn how AirHub supports aerial first response operations? Book a demo.

Wildfires in Portugal, with AirHub the Bombeiros (Portuguese firefighters) are able to have a better overview of the situation and take necessary action

Content

Wildfires are making the air crisis worse. Here's what we're doing about it.

Last week, a new report landed that I keep thinking about. IQAir analysed air quality data from 9,446 cities across 143 countries. Their conclusion: only 13 countries in the world currently breathe air that meets World Health Organisation (WHO) safety guidelines. In Europe, that's just three: Andorra, Estonia, and Iceland.

91 per cent of countries fell short. And the situation is getting worse, not better.

The report points to one of the fastest-growing contributors to poor air quality: wildfire smoke. 2025 was the worst wildfire year on EU record. Blazes swept across Europe through the summer, destroying farms, woodlands, and homes. The world's 25 most polluted cities were all located in India, Pakistan, and China. And across the globe, extreme weather caused at least €43 billion in short-term economic losses.

I've seen this up close.

We've been working with Bombeiros Portugal, Portugal's national fire brigade, for several years now. Portugal consistently faces some of the most destructive wildfire seasons in Europe. The Bombeiros operate under enormous pressure: vast terrain, fast-moving fires, limited situational awareness, and crews on the ground who need accurate information immediately.

That's exactly where drone technology changes the equation.

With drones deployed as part of a coordinated aerial response, fire commanders gain real-time visibility of fire fronts, wind behaviour, and areas at risk. Crews can be positioned more accurately. Evacuations can be triggered faster. Decisions that used to be made on incomplete information are now made with a live operational picture overhead.

The Bombeiros are already doing this.

The Portuguese Bombeiros are using Drones to manage wildfires. The AirHub software supports them in their mission.

The link between wildfires and air quality is direct. Fine particulate matter from smoke, known as PM2.5, is one of the most harmful pollutants we know of. Particles smaller than 2.5 micrometres travel deep into the lungs and enter the bloodstream. They're linked to respiratory disease, cardiovascular conditions, and long-term illness. When a major wildfire burns for days, the effects on air quality extend hundreds of kilometres beyond the fire itself.

Containing fires faster isn't just an operational win. It's a public health intervention.

At AirHub, we build the software that makes drone operations structured, compliant, and scalable. Whether that's a single drone team supporting a local fire brigade or a national Drone as a First Responder (DFR) programme, the underlying need is the same: reliable coordination, clear data, and the ability to act quickly when conditions change.

The IQAir report is a reminder that air quality is a safety issue. One that gets worse every time a major wildfire goes uncontrolled for too long.

The technology to respond more effectively already exists. What it needs is the infrastructure to deploy it at scale.

That's the work we're doing, together with teams like the Bombeiros, every year.

Thomas Brinkman is co-founder and co-CEO of AirHub, drone operations software for public safety, critical infrastructure, and security organisations worldwide.

Want to learn how AirHub supports aerial first response operations? Book a demo.