Colorado is turning 150 this year, and instead of celebrating with loud bangs and accidental grass fires, the state is looking up and doing things a little smarter.
More than forty locations across Colorado will host CO150 drone shows throughout the year, using hundreds of synchronized drones to tell the state’s story in the night sky, as Westword reports. Think dinosaurs, mining history, railroads, and local pride, all rendered as glowing pixels that do not burn down nearby fields.
The spark for this approach came from Tom Dolan, founder of Brightflight, a Colorado based drone show company. Dolan has been flying drones for nearly two decades, but his business idea truly took flight after attending a 2022 Imagine Dragons concert at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.
The fireworks were impressive. The field behind the stadium catching fire afterward was less impressive.
“There has to be a better way,” Dolan thought, and for once, the answer involved more drones instead of fewer.
A local drone company takes center stage
Brightflight started small, with plans for weddings and modest corporate events. Colorado had other ideas. Demand quickly grew, and so did the fleet.
Today, Brightflight operates more than 800 drones, each costing around $1,000, most of them stored just north of downtown Denver. The company now employs three full time staff and around thirty part time crew members, flying roughly 95 percent of its shows within Colorado.
National drone show companies also competed for the CO150 project, but choosing a local company to celebrate a local milestone made sense. Brightflight already had working relationships with cities and event organizers across the state, which helped turn bids into bookings.
For many Coloradans, these shows will be their first time seeing a large scale drone display. Dolan knows that first impressions matter, especially when you are trying to replace a century old tradition involving explosions.
“We’re massively proud,” he says, which is drone pilot code for please do not blink during the good part.
How 500 drones tell a story without crashing
Each CO150 show runs about ten minutes and uses a fleet of 500 drones. The storyline starts with Colorado’s earliest days, including dinosaurs and Indigenous heritage, then moves through mining, railroads, and major landmarks like Union Station.
Every location also gets two minutes of custom content. Some towns want detailed storytelling. Others want quick highlights. All of them want to see their identity floating a few hundred feet above ground.
Designing these animations is the job of Brightflight Head of Multimedia Design Chris Probst.
He starts with simple line drawings, then turns them into 3D animations. The challenge is that drones must stay at least ten feet apart and fly no faster than 15 miles per hour, which means motion often has to be faked with clever color changes and lighting effects.
Weather is always a factor, but crowd control is another major concern. Drone shows attract people who want to stand directly underneath the launch area, which is not ideal for viewing or safety. Brightflight typically deploys about ten staff members per show to manage perimeters and keep curious spectators at a safe distance.
One major advantage over fireworks is noise. From the pilot’s position, the drones sound like a strong household fan. From the audience area, they are nearly silent.
And unlike fireworks, drones are not just about color and noise. They are about storytelling.
“Fireworks explode,” Probst explains. “Drones communicate.”
DroneXL’s Take
Drone shows like Colorado’s CO150 celebrations highlight where public events are heading, quieter, safer, more precise, and far more creative. With 500 drones acting as pixels in the sky, organizers are no longer limited to abstract flashes of light.
They can tell real stories, honor local history, and do it without risking fires or noise complaints. If this is what a state birthday looks like at 150, the future of outdoor celebrations is looking very airborne.
Photo credit: Westword, Brightflight.
