Inspections
The FAA recently accepted Delta’s application to utilize camera-based, small drones to conduct visual inspections of our aircraft in the operation. Delta TechOps was granted this acceptance earlier this year and has thoughtfully been implementing drone inspections into our maintenance processes. These conditional visual inspections will initially be used
Agriculture
* M&S has announced the initial results from first retailer run ‘autonomous field’ trial, which will see the retailer selling lower carbon parsnips later this year. the first retailer to farm and sell a lower carbon vegetable following an ‘autonomous field’ trial. In partnership with long-term supplier, Huntapac, the
FPV
A Ukrainian company has developed and is currently testing a new auto-targeting system for FPV (First Person View) drones, aimed at enhancing autonomous attacks on fast-moving and maneuvering targets. The system is designed to be particularly effective in the final stages of flight, when operators might lose control due to
Training
Russian President Vladimir Putin inaugurated a college for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) specialists at the Rudnevo industrial park in Moscow, state news agency TASS reported. The Rudnevo educational centre aims to train approximately 3,000 students annually and comes as Russia is increasingly relying on drone technologies in its war
Accidents
A rare Sukhoi S-70 Okhotnik—the Russian air force’s first stealthy armed drone—got shot down apparently by an accompanying Russian fighter after the drone seemingly malfunctioned near the Ukrainian-held fortress town of Chasiv Yar in eastern Ukraine on Saturday. The wreckage rained down on nearby Kostyantynivka. Imagery from
Business
* Palladyne AI Corp., a developer of artificial intelligence software for robotic platforms in the defense and commercial sectors, and Red Cat Holdings, Inc. , a drone technology company integrating robotic hardware and software for military, government, and commercial operations, today announced a partnership intended to enhance the autonomous capabilities of all
Testing
* Skydweller Aero has successfully completed the uncrewed autonomous flight test campaign of its Skydweller Unmanned Aerial System. A series of uncrewed flight tests – with the two longest being 16 hours and 22 ½ hours – were launched from the company’s facility at Stennis International Airport in Kiln, Mississippi. This campaign is
Propulsion
* Hogreen Air, a local firm in South Korea, has unveiled a high-speed, long-range hydrogen fuel cell drone at the H2 Mobility Energy Environment Technology (MEET) conference in Seoul. The company developed this long-duration surveillance and reconnaissance hydrogen unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) for various mission execution. The drone utilizes hydrogen, either
Accidents
A prototype of Russia’s Hunter S-70 combat drone was shot down over the occupied Donetsk region, in what experts are calling a significant embarrassment for Moscow’s air force. The incident, which occurred near the front lines in the Donetsk Oblast, has raised questions about the drone’s deployment
FPV
The production of drones from improvised materials is no longer a novelty, but the cost-cutting and simplification of this process is still far from hitting the ceiling. A notable example is the recently presented Korean startup Peach, which showcased its product, the Papydrone-800, at the KADEX 2024 exhibition in Daejeon.
Military
* STM Defense Technologies Engineering and Trading Inc., which develops national and modern systems in line with Turkey's goal of a fully independent defense industry, has made a new development in the tactical mini UAV field, of which it is a pioneer in Turkey. Closely following the changing battlefields
Drone companies from Taiwan and the United States are exploring ways to work together in a market dominated by China, bringing together Taiwanese enterprises and more than two dozen American companies and officials recently in Taipei. Attacks by swarms of drones have become an almost daily occurrence in Russia’s