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The New York Police Department may soon be operating unmanned aircraft “as a law enforcement tool” in New York City, giving that agency the capability to monitor activities in city parks, on streets, and in other public areas from the air. In January, Gay City News made a Freedom of
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Canada is deploying unmanned surveillance aircraft to the High Arctic for the first time, as part of the largest military exercise ever in the Far North. Catapult-launched Boeing ScanEagle similar to those used by the Canadian army for surveillance in Afghanistan are to assist in a major air disaster scenario
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A former RAF pilot based in Northumberland is now using unmanned aircraft technology to safeguard, enhance and protect landscapes and wildlife in North East England. Nigel King joined the RAF in 1978 after studying electronic engineering at Newcastle Polytechnic, later Northumbria University where his wife Dr Helen King is a
Payloads
Highlight at The Black Hat Security Conference and DEFCON this year is an unmanned aircraft called the Wireless Aerial Surveillance Platform, or WASP. [Not to be confused with the WASP missile -Ed.] It’s an ex-U.S. Army target drone measuring over 6-feet in length and wingspan that has been
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The News Corp’s The Daily has a drone that it’s sent out a few times. Taking footage for news-gathering purposes seems like a commercial use of a drone. I followed up with the FAA asking if News Corp was one of the companies with an experimental certificate. The
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The Shadowhawk is a remote controlled mini-helicopter that can record footage as easily as it can shoot a stun baton. Vanguard Defense, who spent three years developing this buzzing robot, packed a lot into the copter’s seven-foot, 50-lb frame. The Shadowhawk comes in five different varieties and can be
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Insitu revealed its 1.6 kilo (3.5 lb) Inceptor VTOL UAS at the Airborne Law Enforcement Association 2011 Convention in New Orleans. The miniature helicopter has an endurance of 30 minutes and features the option to fit plug and play payloads including daylight and IR cameras in the nose.
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Aerovisión Spain has supplied an unmanned aircraft used in trials of monitoring the Spanish coast, within the remit of the WIMAAS (Wide Maritime Area Surveillance) project, financed by the European Union. This is the first time that an aeroplane of a non-military nature has taken part in controlling European coasts.
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The University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute and BP Exploration Alaska demonstrated the use of a three-pound unmanned aircraft, the Aeryon Scout, as a way of gathering 3-D aerial data to aid in oil spill clean up efforts. Through the use of this technology, oil spill responders can complete Shoreline
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Based on the successful acquisition of Ravens, the US Army has recently agreed to provide the U.S. Geological Survey's Unmanned Aircraft Systems Project Office access to over 21 Honeywell T-Hawks. These smaller and more compact UAS will enhance the capabilities of the office by providing a Reconnaissance
Electronic Sub-Systems
Australia's Sentient has announced that the Canadian Forces are currently conducting an operational evaluation of its Kestrel automated target detection software on board the CP-140 Aurora, Canada's primary Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance aircraft. The CP-140 Aurora is primarily used in coastal surveillance and sovereignty patrols. To
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A second unmanned aircraft will soon be based in Texas in an effort to help secure the U.S.-Mexico border. The Predator will be equipped with an electro-optical/infrared sensor system that vastly improves the operational effectiveness in CBP missions and is fitted with synthetic aperture radar suitable for