Written By: Scott de Jong
Last Updated on October 17, 2025
Creating a Pilot Mission
1.1 Ground Control – Mission Types Overview
Before you start:
In AirHub, assets are automatically added to your flight details when flying with a supported drone. You do need to add it manually when using a non-supported drone. To see which drones are supported, see Supported Drones.
1.2 Creating a New Pilot Mission
From the Live Airspace tab, go to your preferred location.
Then, click the Fly Here button.
A circular flyzone is automatically generated around your specified location. To edit this, use the Flyzone tool at the right hand side of the screen. You have the option to make another circular one, or use the polygon tool and specify your flyzone with points.
In the dialog that appears, enter the mission details.
When you have filled the mission details, press Start Flight.
Select the Workflow you want to use.
From this point, you have started your flight.
1.3 Understanding the Flight Plan
Flight Information Section
Provide the core mission details:
• Name: A clear and descriptive title for the operation.
• Date: The planned date and time for the mission.
• Maximum Altitude: The highest intended altitude of the flight.
• Line of Sight: Specify whether the operation will be Visual Line of Sight (VLOS) or Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS).
• Tags: Add mission tags for easier searching and organisation.
Team Section
Note: This section is view only, you are automatically added as crew. To plan a mission with a crew besides yourself, go to the Drone Operations Center.
Each team member’s responsibilities are clearly defined:
• Pilot: The person in control of the drone.
• Payload Operator (optional): The person responsible for managing the payload.
• Observer (optional): A visual observer assisting the pilot during the mission.
Equipment Section
Note: Supported Drones, Batteries and Equipment are automatically added to your mission.
Assigning equipment helps with accurate resource tracking and compliance documentation:
• Drone: Select the aircraft that will be used.
• Batteries: Choose the specific batteries assigned to this flight.
• Equipment: Assign additional items such as payloads, safety equipment, or accessories.
Checklists Section
Attach operational checklists to ensure consistent procedures are followed throughout the mission lifecycle.
You can assign up to three checklists:
• Pre-flight Checklist – To be completed before take-off.
• In-flight Checklist – For mid-mission procedures and monitoring.
• Post-flight Checklist – To finalise and log flight details after landing.
Pilots will complete these checklists directly in the Ground Control app.
Documents Section
Upload any documents relevant to the mission. These files will be accessible to the pilot and crew in the field.
Examples include:
• Landowner permission forms.
• Operational or regulatory authorisations.
Risk Section
To stay compliant, and mitigate risks, use the built-in Risk tool.
• Risk assessments and/or safety documentation.
Incident Section
Add Incidents, Accidents and hazards. This can be done beforehand, for the Hazards, or retrospectively after an Incident or Accident has occured.
Tags Section
Use your tags here, or directly create new ones by typing them in. New tags will be stored generically after saving the mission.
Notes Section
Add any instructions, operational notes, or important reminders for the flight crew.
This section is ideal for including mission-specific considerations such as communication channels, local conditions, or procedural reminders.
1.4 Next Steps
After entering all basic mission details, the next step is to define the operational area for your flight.
You can do this by drawing and configuring Flyzones, which represent the geographical boundaries of your mission.
Learn more in the next article: Defining Flight Geography with Flyzones.