It’s a bird, it’s a plane. No, it’s a drone. And it’s time to get used to them.

Drones are an avenue of technology which less than a decade ago seemed to have an unrealistic place in our daily lives, but so much has changed since.

Despite many fears of their potential to inhibit and limit our privacy, they have been embraced and it’s not uncommon to find one wrapped, sitting at the bottom of the Christmas tree.

The never ending list of practical uses for drones continues to get longer, backed by recent state government funding which will see TAFE students in Bendigo studying courses related to agriculture, construction and mining trained in how to use the technology.

A key reason for the funding was to ensure that young people are immersed within the use of drone technology, which the Minister for Training and Skills Gayle Tierney says “if we don’t get into this field in a very serious way we will be left behind”.

The use of drones will soon become the norm for many students studying within these areas and it has been predicted they will need to apply this new knowledge almost immediately after graduation.

Drones have proven their value within the agricultural industry by diminishing the need for farmers to drive around for hours to inspect their boundaries, check-up on their crops, look for pests and track livestock, all the while minimising petrol consumption costs.

They can be used by emergency services to immediately assess the severity of natural disasters or emergencies, a process that will ensure they will always be able to have the most accurate available information to make split-second decisions.

The technology has also made it’s mark on both movies and television shows, giving camera operators the ability to capture sky-high angles which in the past would only have been possible with the aid of a helicopter.

However, many fear a drone’s ability to invade our privacy and when found in the wrong hands, what they’re truly capable of doing.

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