About the Pilot
A New Jersey drone pilot trained by the U.S. Air Force.
NJ Drone Studio is flown by Anthony Caccamo: U.S. Air Force veteran, C-5A Galaxy pilot, flight instructor, and Fordham MBA, who has flown camera drones commercially since 2012.
The Air Force years
Anthony's aviation career began on the flight line. As a crew chief with the Arizona and New York Air National Guard (1996–1999), he maintained KC-135 tankers and C-5A Galaxy transports, working as production supervisor, flight chief, and expediter on a flight line of turbine engines, ordnance, jet fuel, and liquid oxygen, where every task is done by technical order and checklist.
He then moved to the cockpit. As a C-5A Galaxy pilot with the New York Air National Guard (1999–2004), he flew global airlift and combat missions as second in command, responsible for up to fifteen armed aircrew members, holding a SECRET clearance, in support of Operations Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom, and Noble Eagle. His decorations include the Aerial Achievement Medal, the Air Force Commendation Medal, and the Expeditionary Medal, and he was an Honor Graduate of basic training.
Flight instructor
From 1997 to 2000, Anthony was an FAA Certified Flight Instructor (CFI/CFII), teaching Private, Instrument, and Commercial pilot courses at SUNY Farmingdale and then Mid Island Air Service in Islip. At Farmingdale he designed the university's private-pilot ground-school curriculum and wrote its standardization manual for private, instrument, and commercial flight maneuvers. The studio runs the same way: each type of job has a written procedure and checklist, applied the same way on every job.
Education
Anthony holds a B.S. in Aeronautical Science from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (minor in Aviation Safety; Dean's List, Honor Roll) and an M.B.A. from Fordham University, with a dual major in Marketing and Media/Communications Management (3.7 GPA). The business training means every job starts with how the images will be used in your marketing.
Commercial photography since 2006, drones since 2012
Since 2006, Anthony has run commercial photography and media businesses as an owner-operator, serving more than a hundred client organizations, including Google, Columbia University, the NYC Economic Development Corporation, and The Haskell Company at three U.S. Coast Guard stations. He has flown camera drones commercially since 2012, when professional camera drones were often custom-built. His FAA certificates: Part 107 Remote Pilot, Commercial Pilot (single- and multi-engine, instrument), Certified Flight Instructor (airplane and instrument), and a BE-400 jet type rating. Every flight is insured.
What that means for your project
Every job is planned before the crew arrives: airspace checked and authorized, the weather call made the day before, a written shot list flown in order, and files delivered complete, organized, and on schedule.
The crew
A two-person flight crew on every job.
Every NJ Drone Studio flight has two people: the pilot on the controls and a trained visual observer, or spotter, watching the aircraft, the airspace, and the ground. It is standard practice in professional aviation and keeps job sites safe. Every flight is covered by liability insurance.
See us fly
The crew test-flying aircraft and working on location, with a pilot and an observer on every flight. The octocopter shown above is one of the camera platforms we built ourselves in the studio's early years.
Certificates and ratings
Hire an Air Force-trained drone pilot in New Jersey.
Tell us about the project. The same pilot plans and flies every job.