The US Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA) has awarded Northrop Grumman a contract to design an autonomous Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) capable of operating from a moving vessel at sea. Northrop Grumman was one of nine contractors – including AeroVironment, AVX Aircraft, Griffon Aerospace,
Events
This August, the FAA and AUVSI are co-hosting two events designed to advance the use of drones and Advanced Air Mobility (AAM). Also located at the Baltimore Convention Center from August 2-3, the AAM Summit will feature sessions and workshops to reimagine the transportation of people and goods
Transport
RigiTech’s Eiger drone has begun a 4-month pilot project in Uruguay, pioneering the first BVLOS operation in Latin America. Spanish-Uruguayan company CIELUM, in coordination with engineer Franco Simini from the biomedical engineering nucleus of the Faculty of Engineering (UDELAR) and Tacuarembó Hospital (ASSE), begun flying BVLOS (Beyond-
Business
Kosovo’s prime minister on Sunday announced that the Bayraktar TB2 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) purchased from Turkey have arrived in the country. Albin Kurti shared a photo of the Bayraktar TB2 UAVs on his social media account with the caption "Kosovo is now even safer." Posing in
Business
DroneShield Ltd has announce that it has received a record $33 million order from a U.S. Government agency. The award consists of DroneShield equipment and multi-year services. DroneShield’s U.S. CEO, Matt McCrann, commented: “We’re honoured to receive this award and support this customer. This award
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. announced that its family of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), which includes the Predator, Reaper, Gray Eagle, Avenger, and MQ-9B SkyGuardian/SeaGuardian lines, has surpassed eight million flight hours. GA-ASI aircraft have completed 566,000 total missions in nearly 40 countries around the world.
Military
Russia’s convoluted attempt to produce Iranian Shahed kamikaze drones domestically spotlights systemic flaws and mismanagement in its defense industry. According to leaked data published by the Russian opposition group “Protocol”, the Alabuga special economic zone in Tatarstan aims to manufacture Shahed-136 drones under an exorbitant deal with sanctions-
Drone Light Shows
On the occasion of Bastille Day, the record for the largest drone show ever performed in Europe was broken in the skies of Disneyland Paris by Dronisos, the European provider of drone entertainment. 1,495 drones gracefully danced in the sky just above Sleeping Beauty Castle, coordinated with stunning light
Commercial
Australian drone manufacturer and solutions provider Carbonix and Drone Data Management Platform provider Aerial Vantage, have completed their first commercial flights in Michigan. With missions taking place every fortnight, the ongoing campaign aims to extract insight through advanced drone capabilities and advanced AI data processing. The initial missions are a
Accidents
Drones fell from the sky and plunged into the Yarra River during a light display ahead of Friday night’s Matildas soccer match at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne. More than several hundred drones fell out of formation and flashing as they dropped into the water in Docklands. The drone malfunction
Business
As part of the development of the first EASA-certified UAS, German actuator manufacturer Volz Servos GmbH & Co. KG is to supply the certifiable actuators that will equip Thales’s UAS100 long-range drone. Volz and Thales signed the contract that will also call on Volz subsidiary Aircraft Electronic
First Responders
NASA researchers recently tested a mobile air traffic management kit for remote ground pilots across forests throughout Tennessee, Mississippi, Georgia, Florida, and South Carolina. During the testing, U.S. Forest Service pilots remotely operated Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), or drones, to drop ping pong ball-sized plastic spheres that ignited