The story of Drona Aviation begins with unfinished drones, improvised test setups, and frustrated students. During their engineering studies, the future founders of the company focused on developing innovative UAS applications. However, most of their time was spent trying to get a stable test platform off the ground. Thus, a technical problem gradually evolved into a didactic concept.

Unmanned systems are not only an important future technology but also captivate young people worldwide. They inspire both imagination and the spirit of inquiry. However, for real progress to emerge from a good idea, students and developers need a suitable platform.

A reliable, modular, and programmable drone that is readily available and affordable, allowing for experimentation without having to start from scratch or reinvent the wheel each time. An educational drone that fosters technical understanding rather than blocking it. But, as is often the case, it takes time for a finding to lead to concrete action.

Phase of orientation

It took a few years of orientation before Drona Aviation became a provider of unmanned aerial systems for students and STEM projects. The early years of the company, founded in 2014 in western India, were characterized by a search for a viable business model. While the technical training of Apurva Godbole, Dinesh Sain, Prasanna Shevare, and Gaurav Vinayak Tendolkar was solid, the founding team lacked significant knowledge in management and business administration. In search of clear direction, the founding team experimented…