Tawanda Chihambakwe is no stranger to avid readers here, he is probably Zimbabwe’s foremost Drone Technology expert and he has done it again, this time in the form of a book called DRONE PROFESSIONAL 1.
Tawanda co-authored the book which was written by leading drone professionals from around the world, including his own chapter that is putting Zimbabwe on the map in the drone technology space.
What’s in the book?
Drone Professional 1 explores different applications of drones across a variety of industries including how drones are being used in Agriculture, Anti-poaching, Conservation, Infrastructure, Insurance, Healthcare, Education, Mining, Media and Security amongst others.
The book defines what it is to be a Drone Professional and contains case studies, guidance, and insights from 16 experts from the global professional drone community on the value of the drone industry for a broad range of professional applications.
DRONE PROFESSIONAL 1 was released online on Amazon a few months ago and is now available in Hard Copy. It has become an AMAZON #1 Bestseller in the categories of Commercial Aviation, Piloting and Instruction which shows the strength of the content in the book.
What did Tawanda contribute?
In Tawanda Chihambakwe’s chapter he explains the difference between a drone owner, a drone pilot and drone professional and describes what is needed to build the local drone industry in Zimbabwe with a focus on taking Drone Technology into Primary, High School and Tertiary Education through drones in STEM programs.
Besides the book, what has he done on the ground?
For those of you who may not know, Tawanda is the founder of Precision Aerial, a commercial drone company that provides turnkey solutions and is the first drone company to offer drone integration services, helping organisations build internal drone programs rather than only offer drone services.
When we spoke to him about the book, we asked him how he ended up becoming a co-author of the book and he told us that he was approached by other drone professionals after he gave his presentation at a drone conference he was invited to in South Africa in 2019.
To add to his credentials as an expert in this field and his global footprint in the drone industry, Tawanda Chihambakwe was invited to be a presenter and speaker at the Meducation Alliance Symposium in the United States of America in 2019 where he shared his white paper on the topic of Drones in STEM Education and the Future of Work.
He is also currently one of the only licensed RPAS (Drone) Pilots in Zimbabwe having been certified by the South Africa Civil Aviation Authority. In September 2020, he was invited to join the newly formed South Africa Drone Council and is contributing his expertise towards updating South Africa’s drone standards and regulations to align with International standards, a project initiated by the South African Government to advance their drone industry.
He has also worked with the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) on Drone and Data Ethics in the lead up to them publishing their drone regulations earlier this year and he was selected as a Global Finalist for the Unusual Solutions Drone Competition that was held in Kenya in February 2020.
We also featured his work recently where we celebrated that he and his team had successfully secured a partnership with a global drone development organisation – WEROBOTICS and THE FLYING LABS NETWORK to set up Zimbabwe’s first Drone Technology Innovation Hub called ZIMBABWE FLYING LABS to build a technology ecosystem meant to catalyse the growth of the local drone industry through training, knowledge sharing and using drones for social and humanitarian work.
We have watched Tawanda’s passion for drones grow steadily over the years from the time we first covered the Zimbabwe Drone Racing Community he started, to his work with advocating for Zimbabwe’s Drone Regulations in 2018 and just a few months ago with his proposal to use Crop Spaying Drones to Spray hotspots during COVID-19. In the drone world, he is known as the African Drone Professional through his Youtube Channel where he freely shares information about the drone industry.
It makes sense that he has been recognised as an expert by other global experts and we are proud to have a Zimbabwean flying our flag in drone technology. The book is available on Amazon and in hard copy by contacting Tawanda on +263773489139.
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