Low-altitude economy boom drives demand for drone swarm flight planners in China

Mist hangs over a mountainous cherry orchard 1,500 meters above sea level in Hanyuan county, Ya'an city, southwest China's Sichuan Province, as dawn breaks at 6 a.m.

In the operations center, Li Peng, a dispatcher at JD Logistics, the logistics arm of Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com, is monitoring real-time data from 12 drone flight paths. In the mountains, several drones whir along his designed routes, carrying freshly picked cherries to a sorting center.

Li's role is officially known as a "drone swarm flight planner."

A drone light show is staged in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, June 17, 2025. (Xinhua/Huang Wei)

In July, China's Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security released its seventh list of new professions, including 17 new professions and 42 new job types, with drone swarm flight planner included. The planners design flight routes and manage drone operations.

Li starts each morning with four main tasks: planning flight routes, conducting safety checks, coordinating with authorities and monitoring flights in real time while staying ready to handle emergencies and conduct post-flight reviews.

Unlike drone pilots, his work requires both technical know-how and strategic planning skills, Li said.

"You don't need to write algorithms, but you do need a grasp of scheduling and flight principles," Li said, adding that this specialized knowledge explains why the role pays more than drone piloting

Li studied tilt-rotor aerodynamics at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics and worked in spacecraft design before moving to the tech industry as a data scientist and algorithm engineer. He returned to aviation in 2022 as a drone swarm flight planner.

Liu Jiaxin, 26, creates drone shows that blend technology, design and creativity.

Liu graduated from Wuhan Sports University and became a drone swarm flight planner at a company affiliated with CroStars, a drone light show provider based in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province. The company uses five-person teams for each show, with designers, programmers and pilots.

A memorable moment for Liu came during the 2024 Yangtze River Culture and Art Festival, where her team showcased cultural elements from 13 provinces. As 2,024 drones created formations in the night sky, Liu recalled, "The crowd's gasp made every bit of effort worth it."

"In the future, drones will integrate with fireworks, lights and music to create even more immersive experiences," she said.

Li said drone swarm flight planners typically come from three backgrounds: former drone technicians, experienced pilots and managers with strong coordination skills.

"Most of our team members were born in the 1990s and 2000s. They're creative, quick learners, and not afraid of hard work," Liu said. Li echoed that view, saying his young team stays eager to learn.

The 2024 government work report pointed out that China will foster new growth engines in fields such as biomanufacturing, commercial spaceflight and the low-altitude economy.

By late 2024, China had nearly 20,000 drone operations companies with total annual output valued at roughly 210 billion yuan ($29 billion).

The Civil Aviation Administration of China projects the low-altitude economy market will reach 1.5 trillion yuan by 2025 and could grow to 3.5 trillion yuan by 2035. As the sector expands, demand for drone swarm flight planners is rising.

For young people entering the field, Li recommends checking programs at leading aviation schools, including Beihang University, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, and Northwestern Polytechnical University, all of which have low-altitude economy programs.