Our team

Training efficiently and well. Based on this motivation, we started offering drone training in the Netherlands five years ago. Drone Class is now an accredited flying school active throughout Europe. With the best digital learning environment and competitive prices compared to fellow trainers.

Our courses for the open and specific category can be attended everywhere. With a success rate of more than 95%, you are in capable hands with us. We would like to welcome you for flying lessons or practical training at our office in Duiven. Not only do we serve the tastiest cappuccino along the A12, but we also have the space to sit comfortably at the table with you.

Drone Class was founded in 2018 by Sander Welgraven and Sem van Geffen. Sander is co-owner of Drone Class and former Dutch champion drone racing. He flies drones effortlessly in all sorts of conditions and loves to pass his skills on to you. You can always contact him for questions about devices, apps and applications. Sem is co-owner of Drone Class and accountable manager. With more than fifteen years of experience as a trainer/developer, he has laid the foundation for all successful training courses. You can always contact him for questions about legislation and regulations. Drone Class has a flat organisation and a small shell of freelancers around it, who provide support with operational tasks.

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Sem van Geffen

Co-owner

Sem is Accountable Manager of Drone Class. He develops courses and provides theory training. In addition, he oversees all developments in the field of legislation and regulations.

Sander Welgraven

Co-owner

Sander is Safety Manager of Drone Class. In 2015, he was Dutch champion in drone racing. He provides flying lessons, practical training, education and oversees drone applications.

Frederik Otten

Practical instructor

Frederik loves nature and technology. He has built and raced drones in the past. Based on his interest in drones, he strengthens the Drone Class team by providing flying lessons.

Wouter Welgraven

Examiner

Wouter welcomes candidates and conducts written exams. He does this for companies and schools in the Netherlands. He has years of experience in commercial services.

Our mission

We take our customers into the world of drones so that they can use this technology in a creative and responsible way.

Our core values

In our service provision to the customer, we want to be: Innovative. Efficient. Quality. Service-oriented. Reliable.

Frequently asked questions

  • Is Drone Class a certified flight school?

    We are recognised by the Dutch government as a flight school (NL-RTF-505/3) and designated entity UAS (IENW/BSK-2022/267111).

  • How many participants have you trained?

    We have trained more than 40,000 customers since the start of Drone Class in 2018.

  • How do you distinguish yourself from other trainers?

    Drone Class takes a no-nonsense approach to the legal and regulatory requirements for drone pilots. We do not train longer or more heavily than necessary.

  • What are your favourite drones?

    DJI Mavic 3 Pro (Cine), great for photograph/film. The M3 Enterprise is perfect for commercial usage and the Thermal adds infrared as an interesting option. The iconic Inspire 2 and 'golden oldie' Phantom 4 are still fun to fly.

  • How do you see the future of the drone industry?

    Positive. The opportunities are in Europe and in the long term in the specific and certified category. We work a lot with (inter)national drone companies and also secundairy education.