Drones have become one of the most ubiquitous weapons to come out of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. They have given battlefield commanders unprecedented situational awareness and struck key targets all while keeping soldiers out of harm’s way. In the future, unmanned aerial systems will hold even more
Testing
During the first two weeks of July, Meteomatics performed a drone measurement campaign for meteorological soundings in the eastern part of Switzerland. Over 450 sounding flights were conducted with drones flying on five locations simultaneously: Altenrhein, Amlikon, Bad Ragaz, Oberriet and Schänis. During the campaign, the self-developed Meteodrone
Yesterday at NASA's UTM Convention, Amazon laid out its vision for a multi-tiered superhighway in the sky, one in which all drones flying above 200 feet would have the ability to communicate with — and ideally sense and avoid — other aircraft. It’s an attempt to put an
The Defense Intelligence Agency conducted the first Black Dart exercise in 2002 under a veil of secrecy, and the annual event stayed veiled through 2013. Now run by the Joint Integrated Air and Missile Defense Organization (abbreviated JIAMDO and pronounced “jye-AM-doe), Black Dart’s existence was revealed in
Seattle based Transtrex released the beta version of the first dynamic geospatial restriction system for Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS), at the NASA UTM Convention at Moffett Airfield, yesterday. Transtrex provides a highly reliant and scalable system to ensure safe and compliant UAS operations in the airspace up to 500 feet.
Regulations
International law firm Dentons named Jim Williams, formerly manager of the FAA’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Integration Office, as a principal in its public policy and regulation practice. Based in McLean, Va., Williams will advise clients on “aviation technology, regulatory and compliance issues with particular emphasis on the military,
A team from the University of Southampton has successfully launched an unmanned air vehicle produced via 3D-printing from the bow of a Royal Navy ship, demonstrating the potential of lightweight platforms to be utilised for short-range surveillance. Produced under the institution’s Project Triangle, the Southampton University Laser
An 18-year-old from Connecticut has posted a video on YouTube showing a small drone hovering about ten of fifteen feet above ground in a wooded area while a gun strapped to it was firing shots. The FAA said it was investigating whether Austin Haughwout of Clinton violated the
Regulations
Swiss professional drone manufacturer, senseFly, has announced that its eBee has become the first fixed-wing system to be designated a ‘compliant small UAV’ by Transport Canada—a distinction that moves organisations that use this drone a critical step closer to achieving Compliant Operator status. Canadian companies that employ drones
Weapons Systems / Lasers
As drone technology gains greater public attention, along with its potential for hostile action against American targets, Army engineers adapt ongoing research to counter aerial systems that could threaten Soldiers. At Picatinny Arsenal, the Extended Area Protection and Survivability Integrated Demonstration, or EAPS ID, began as an Army Technology Objective
Law Enforcement
The Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment has announced that it has successfully used three Altura Zenith ATX8 drones, manufactured by Aerialtronics, to monitor the traffic leading to and from the Concert at Sea festival in Zeeland. The drones monitored an area of 30 square kilometres and were supported with
Testing
Nokia has showed off how it plans to use drones to replace some of the inspection and maintenance work on cell towers which is currently done by human technicians.