Build small. Fly real. Sell from Colombo.
A lean drone venture: bring 3D printers and parts to Sri Lanka, assemble and tune by hand, train local pilots, and sell both hardware and monitoring service. Phase 1 is hands-on, scrappy, and small — under $120k to first paid contract.
Up to 5 years tax-free on tech exports — material to unit margin.
Engineer ~$1,200/mo, tech ~$300/mo. ~5× cheaper than UAE/UK.
Direct sea route Shenzhen → Colombo. Container parts in 12–18 days.
26 national parks, $5B+ tea + tourism economy, post-IMF infrastructure cycle.
CAASL enforcing UAS framework now — first-movers shape the regulation surface.
Shiraz network unlocks UAE + UK channels that local SL co's can't reach.
Six concrete territories. Real customers.
| Zone | Area | Use case |
|---|---|---|
| Wilpattu National Park | 1,317 km² | Anti-poaching, leopard/elephant |
| Yala National Park | 979 km² | Anti-poaching, fire patrol |
| Hill country tea estates | ~2,000 km² | Pest, theft, fire, plantation health |
| Sinharaja + Knuckles forest | ~1,200 km² | Illegal logging, fire detection |
| Coastline | 1,340 km linear | IUU fishing, smuggling, coastal damage |
| Mahaweli irrigation network | ~1,000 km² | Infrastructure, water theft |
We assemble locally. Same skeleton, different roles.
| Class | Type | Spec | BOM | Retail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | Inspection / mapping Plantations, telecom towers, surveying. Easiest compliance — entry product. | 1.5 kg · RGB+RTK · 45 min | $1.8–2.8k | $4–6.5k |
| B | Surveillance light Anti-poaching, perimeter security. Needs MOD clearance — Phase 2. | 1.5 kg · EO+IR · 50 min | $2.4–3.5k | $5–8k |
| C | Firefighting Heavy lift water/foam drop or fire-ball droppers. Best PR & gov entry. | Hexa + 10–20 L payload | $12–15k | $25–40k |
| D | Agriculture spraying Tea, paddy, vegetables. Existing local market (SenzAgro, Aerogenii). | 10–20 L tank · 6 motors | $2.5–4k (kit) | $5–9k |
BOM = bill of materials at scale. Retail = local + export pricing range. Class B (surveillance) requires MOD clearance — sequenced after Class A trust is built.
Six months. Eight drones. Hands-on, no theatre.
Peter on the ground in Colombo. We buy 3 Bambu Lab printers, ship 8 sets of parts from Shenzhen, lease a small workshop, hire a senior aero engineer plus 2 techs, and assemble the first batch ourselves. Train 3 local pilots — ideally ex-SLAF or SLN. Demo to Forest Dept, plantations, and one NGO. First paid contract by month 5.
$118,000 to first paid contract.
Lean line item by line item. No fluff, no agency fees. Two-month runway buffer included.
Phase 2 ≈ $500–800k to scale to 40-drone fleet, 3 regional bases, 25-person team. Target Y2 revenue $1.5–2.5M.
Service contracts (per-hour or per-hectare), drone sales, training & maintenance, lease-to-own for small farms.
Y3 target ≈ $7–10M ARR. Export to India, Bangladesh, UAE via Shiraz network. Optional defense sleeve later — only with right local partner.
Small team. Founders on the bench.
Operating partner. On the ground in Colombo for Phase 1. Build, test, hire.
Distribution. UK + UAE B2B network. Sales for export tier.
Co-investor / drone supply contacts. Existing demand pipeline.
Local or regional. Drone build + flight ops lead.
Assembly, soldering, 3D-print operation.
Ideally ex-SLAF/SLN. BVLOS-capable after CAASL cert.
- · MOD clearance for surveillance class — slow, partner-gated.
- · Garuda Aerospace (India) and DJI dominate brand recognition.
- · Customs / forex shocks if IMF programme stalls.
- · Local pilot supply — ex-SLAF talent is finite.
- · Inspection + firefighting bypass MOD — clean entry.
- · Cost base 5× lower than UAE — exportable margin.
- · Shiraz unlocks B2B channels Sri Lankan co's can't.
- · $118k ticket — losing it is survivable. Winning it isn't.
Ready when you are.
Quick call with Shiraz and his partner to align on split, brand, and first 30 days. Peter flies to Colombo as soon as we say go.
peter@kolomiets.group