About Us
Empowering the industry
mission
Our mission is to create a positive environment for drone service providers by advocating for reasonable regulation through positive advocacy and increasing the professionalism throughout our industry by providing educational resources and promoting a culture of safety. We achieve these goals by:
- Working with the FAA;
- Actively participating in industry standards groups;
- Developing resources for Drone Service Providers;
- Communicating and being transparent with stakeholders; and,
- Educating community members, policymakers, and members of the public.
Leadership
Vic Moss, CEO & Co-founder
Vic is the CEO & Co-Founder of DSPA. As a commercial photographer, he has owned Moss Photography since 1988, and has been offering drone services since 2014. Vic is a nationally recognized voice for drone safety and an advocate for reasonable drone regulation. On social media, he serves as the administrator for the largest UAS specific legal forum, the UAV Law News & Discussion Group, and one of the largest commercial UAS pilot forums. Vic also serves as the Director of Legislative Affairs for UAS Colorado where he worked with numerous municipalities to help create reasonable drone regulations. Vic works with the FAA as one of five FAA Safety Team Drone Pros for the Denver FSDO, encompassing all of Colorado and Wyoming. Vic was also appointed to the Drone Advisory Committee in January, 2021 as a Citizen UAS Operator.
Board of Advisors
Kenji Sugahara, Co-Founder & Advisor
A graduate of Dartmouth College and the University of Oregon School of Law, Kenji is an attorney and the Co-Founder and Advisor to DSPA. He is chief pilot and one of the co-founders of A-Cam Aerials. He has been in the industry for over seven years and has experience flying both single and dual operations for major brand names such as Ford, ABC, and Disney. Kenji is one of the most knowledgeable drone policy experts in the world, having played a critical role in the 2017 FAA Remote ID and Tracking Aviation Rulemaking Committee. He is an active member of ASTM working on industry standards for remote ID, operations over people, and beyond visual line of sight operations, continues to serve on various task groups for the Federal Drone Advisory Committee, and sits on the UAS stakeholder group to help advise Oregon legislature on UAS issues. Kenji has worked closely with the state aviation agency as a UAS policy advisor, and advises numerous state agencies and local municipalities on drone issues and policies. Kenji was appointed to the Drone Advisory Committee in January, 2021 as a Citizen UAS Operator.
DAVE MESSINA, CEO & PRESIDENT FPV Freedom coalition
Dave graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering from Union College in upstate New York before starting a four decade career with IBM. Dave retired from IBM in February 2018 after working in Development, Marketing, Sales, Strategy and Mergers & Acquisitions in global hardware, software and services. Dave led historic revenue growth of products in storage and services as well as leading the acquisition of three storage companies. Since 1999, Dave has been on the Board of Sawyer Savings Bank, a community bank in his home town. Dave has designed, built and flown RC models since he was 14 and has flown FPV drones recreationally since 2016. Dave was among the founders of the FPV Freedom Coalition, a 501(c)(3), dedicated to advocating the FAA for the rights of recreational UAS pilots as well as providing them safety and regulation education. The FPV Freedom Coalition is endorsed by leading recreational UAS retailers and manufacturers in the USA. Dave is currently volunteering time on his 6th DAC Tasking Group since June of 2019.
SHARON ROSSMARK, CEO WOMEN AND DRONES
Sharon is the Chief Executive Officer of Women And Drones, the premier global platform featuring women who are disrupting, innovating, and shaping the future of the drone industry. She is also a FAA Certified Drone Pilot. She is an international speaker, panelist, and moderator, and has taken the stage to share her passion for drones from the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC to the World of Drones Congress in Brisbane, Australia. The organization’s educational theme centers on “learning through the wonders of flying robots.”™ The focus is on collaborating with community and educational programs to incorporate drones into STEM programming for youth. She is the co-author of several books introducing young children to drones. The books are available in English and Spanish. Most of the characters in the books are girls which is a purposeful, important part of her commitment to engaging more girls in STEM and aviation. Ms. Rossmark also serves on the advisory boards for the Canadian Drone Institute and the CompTIA Drone Advisory Council.
Amy Wiegand, MARKETING DIRECTOR DroneUpAmy is the Marketing and Communications Director for DroneUp, a complete drone services provider. She directs marketing and business development programs, overseeing the start-up’s growing pilot and client initiatives from digital and social media to internal and public relations communications. Before joining the DroneUp team, Amy led operations for a Part 141 flight school in Chesapeake, Virginia. There, she managed daily flight school activities, including the contracting and training of special elite military teams. While running operations and program development at Horizon, Amy became the first woman in Virginia to develop an FAA sUAS Part 107 training program which assisted in efforts for the military and local and state emergency management teams. Amy was honored with the Women In Business Achievement award through the Inside Business Journal for this accomplishment. Recognized as a manned and unmanned pilot advocate, she is passionate about national airspace safety for both fellow aviators and remote pilot operators. Amy frequents STEM volunteer opportunities, is a UAS industry panelist and published writer. The love of flight runs in her family, as Amelia Earhart is her notable maternal cousin.