Pricing

A local search is $625 plus mileage, and that covers almost every case we fly. You will hear the number for your own case on the phone, and it is written on the agreement before you are asked to pay anything — nothing reaches an invoice that was not discussed with you first.

What a search costs

Local search

$625plus mileage

Within about 150 miles of Austin — almost every case.

Up to 3 hours on site, flown in the hours the conditions actually favor
Thermal and spotlight-equipped aircraft, flown by the pilot who reads the imagery
A search plan built from where and when the animal was lost
What we found, and what we cleared, told to you straight the same night

Mileage is $1.55 per mile, charged round trip from Austin. A search 30 miles out adds about $93.

What a search costs, in one table

These are the charges that actually come up. Nothing is added to an invoice that was not discussed with you first.

Charge	Amount	When it applies
Local search	$625	Within about 150 miles of Austin. Up to 3 hours on site.
Mileage	$1.55 per mile	Round trip from Austin, on every search.
Adverse weather surcharge	Quoted before deployment	When conditions require weather-rated aircraft — sustained wind over 20mph, gusts over 25mph, temperatures at or below 36°F, or fog and heavy mist.
Holiday surcharge	Quoted before deployment	US national holidays, the two days before and the two days after.

Cancelling

Nobody books a search days in advance — an animal is missing now — so these windows are short by design. They exist because a booked search is time we have turned other cases away for.

Measured from your scheduled arrival window

Notice given	Refundable
More than 5 hours	75%
2 to 5 hours	50%
Under 2 hours	Non-refundable

Once the search has begun — which includes traveling to you — the fee is non-refundable.
If we cancel — weather, airspace, safety, equipment — you choose between a full refund and a credit toward a rescheduled search. That is not at our discretion.

How booking and paying work

We talk it through on the phone first — what happened, where, the terrain, and what it would cost. You get the number for your case on that call, along with an honest read on whether a search would help at all.
If it makes sense, we send a service agreement to sign electronically, with the cost written on it. Nothing is committed until you sign.
Signing produces an invoice. It is paid before we deploy, so the search is fully arranged before anyone drives anywhere.
There is no charge for the call, for the assessment, or for being told a drone is the wrong tool for your situation.

Not sure what your case would cost?

Send us where the animal was lost and what happened, or call. You will get the number for your specific case, and a straight answer on whether flying it is worth your money.

Tell us what happened