sUAS News

MMC UAV launched its brand new hydrone H that features a record-breaking 15-hour flight time on September 17th in Germany during the InterGEO 2019, the world’s largest conference and trade fair for geodesy, geoinformation and land management. It is a hydrogen-powered vertical take-off and landing drone with an integrated design. MMC-developed hydrogen fuel battery shows […]

Drone management platform SOARIZON by Thales has today announced that it has integrated with the location phenomenon what3words. Users of the platform, which is free to use, can search for a three-word address anywhere in the world when planning their drone flights. What is what3words? What3words is a really simple way to talk about location. […]

The FAA and several industrial partners have successfully concluded real-world testing of unmanned traffic management systems for integrating drones into airspace in the USA. “The Eldorado and Piute Valley has been the home of innovation in UAS airspace for commercial BVLOS operations. We started the nation’s first commercial droneport in 2015 and expanded our testing […]

Using the Wingcopter 178 Heavy Lift (HL) RPAS drone, both missions were to conduct aerial surveys of whales in Arctic waters. BVLOS permits are issue by Transport Canada and are rare and only issued to experienced RPAS companies. Arctic UAV’s chairperson & CEO Kirt Ejesiak says ‘We want to thank the leadership at Transport Canada […]

Link in the app makes reporting ‘just culture’ incidents easy London, UK; Altitude Angel, the world’s leading UTM (unmanned traffic management) technology provider, has today announced it has now incorporated the Incident Reporting service, as reported in its recent Just Culture initiative, in to all its apps and services. Launched earlier this month, the ‘just culture’ initiative […]

The African Drone Forum (ADF) explores the potential of unlocking Africa’s lower skies as a mobility resource. Envisioned to be the first event of its kind in Africa, it focuses on emerging transport technologies that can leapfrog the continent’s infrastructure deficit and address its public health and mobility challenges with a visionary, safe and scalable […]

Terra Drone group company participated in a mock oil spill response exercise to showcase the benefits of using drones over conventional methods Terra Drone Angola, a group company of the world’s leading provider of industrial drone solutions Terra Drone Corporation, has successfully demonstrated at an offshore oil field in Angola how drones can be used as […]

The DRONERESPONDERS Public Safety Alliance, the world’s fastest growing non-profit program supporting public safety UAS, today announced the creation of the DRONERESPONDERS International Advisory Council (DIAC) to serve the rapidly expanding constituency of international members joining the DRONERESPONDERS movement. DRONERESPONDERS Director Charles Werner announced the formation of DIAC while speaking to an audience of international […]

Internal combustion engines continue to be commonly used for powering unmanned vehicles, and in particular UAVs. In order to allow the autopilot (and by extension the operator) to control such an engine it is vital to ensure correct communications between the autopilot and the Engine Control Unit (ECU). The ECU not only provides throttle control, […]

U.S. Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL), Rick Scott (R-FL), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Josh Hawley (R-MO), and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) introduced the American Security Drone Act of 2019, which would prohibit the U.S. government from procuring drones manufactured by covered foreign entities identified as national security threats, such as China. “American taxpayer dollars should not […]

RAF Brize Norton recently hosted a stakeholder meeting at which its latest and near-final design for a larger area of controlled airspace surrounding the airfield was described in detail (see image). The GA Alliance (GAA) including the BGA was represented at the meeting alongside others from the GA community. The revised design replaces previously proposed […]

Drone threats, including the attack on Saudi Arabia’s oil assets this weekend, have escalated at unprecedented speed and global scale. The United States Air Force (USAF) has tapped into commercial innovation from Citadel Defense Company to protect warfighters and high-value assets from drone threats. The U.S. Department of Defense and Department of Homeland Security extensively validated Citadel’s counter-drone technology […]

This Monday, 16th of September 2019, INVOLI successfully showcased drones’ remote ID capabilities on its platform during a joint demonstration which took place in Bern, in an effort driven by some members of the Swiss U-Space Implementation (SUSI): ANRA, Orbitalize, skyguide and Wing. Known in the USA as “UTM” or “Unmanned Traffic Management”, the U-Space […]

Datumate, leading provider of construction data analytics and drone-based photogrammetry solutions, today announced the release of DatuBIM™ version 2.0, a platform for efficient, comprehensive and timely project execution management. The latest version boosts automation benefits to existing and new partners and customers, many of them being design partners of newly introduced capabilities. DatuBIM™ 2.0 serves the entire […]

DroneDeploy, the leading enterprise-grade drone software solution, today announced the agenda for its DroneDeploy Conference 2019, which brings together experts from agriculture, cybersecurity, mining, oil & gas, search and rescue, transportation, UAV, and more to discuss the future of drones and drone solutions. The fourth annual two-day conference takes place from October 16 to 17 at Bespoke San Francisco. […]

The Alliance Drone Team, one of the UK’s largest police unmanned aviation systems (UAS) programs, has been able to expand and effectively manage operations covering almost 5,000 square miles, thanks to Centrik. The operational management system – the only one of its type approved by Regulators to manage both manned and unmanned operations – has […]

senseFly, the global leader in-fixed wing drones, is excited to announce its status as a Trimble Select Partner. With this new partnership, agriculture professionals in North America and Europe get direct access to senseFly’s platform of drones through Trimble’s trusted distribution network. “We’re pleased to be chosen as a Trimble Select Partner,” said Gilles Labossière, senseFly CEO. “senseFly is […]

2019 is coming to a close, and the commercial drone industry is facing a lot of hard questions in the regulation and technology department. Hear the latest current goings-on and predictions for the next 6 to 18 months regarding UAS NAS integration, RID, UAM, UTM, C-UAS, BVLOS, and more. For some, this has become a […]

MADISON, AL – GeoCue Group will present a True View Demonstration Day in Davis, California with the partnership of California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection and California Department of Transportation on October 3, 2019. This demonstration will consist of an onsite flight of GeoCue’s True View 410 sensor mounted on the DJI M600. The demonstration flight […]

Plan offers unlimited use of the delair.ai cloud platform for maps and 3D models, collaboration, data storage, photogrammetry, and manual analysis at a fixed low monthly rate. Delair, a leading provider of visual data management solutions for enterprises, today announced its unlimited photogrammetry plan, available through its cloud-based delair.ai visual intelligence platform. The flexible plan […]

DJI, the world’s leader in civilian drones and aerial imaging technology, is introducing a series of product updates that streamline existing surveying operations. With enhanced data accuracy and simplified workflows, DJI continues to expand the capabilities of its product portfolio to better support the commercial drone industry. “The product improvements we are introducing at InterGeo […]

German-based Quantum-Systems GmbH released the enhanced version of the Trinity F9, the Trinity F90+ at the Intergeo today. With a flight time of 90+ minutes combined with long-range telemetry solution of up to 7.5 km and PPK capabilities for more accuracy. Comprehensive and state-of-the-art features are available on both sides, hardware and software. Increased flight […]

UAVs, or drones, are an emerging technology for high-resolution aerial mapping and provide a powerful new tool for agriculture, forestry, and environmental monitoring throughout the growing season. However, accurate vegetation mapping can require more advanced skills, such as the use of multispectral cameras, the need to cover larger areas with fixed wings, and image processing […]

Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: IRDM) today announced that it has been awarded a $738.5 million, seven-year, fixed-price contract with the United States Department of Defense through the U.S. Air Force Space Command (AFSpC) to provide unlimited satellite services from its unique Low Earth Orbit (LEO) constellation. Through what is known as the AFSpC’s Enhanced Mobile […]

Organization announces expansion plans at INTERGEO, the world’s premier geospatial event Lausanne, Switzerland – September 17, 2019 – Picterra, a geospatial software organization that enables users to extract satellite and drone imaging insights through a combination of artificial intelligence and human expertise, today announced $3.3 million in new funding that will help further democratize geospatial […]

Everyone included in the 54,978 as of 9/1/17 (besides the Part 61 wildcard, aka data collection shortcoming) would have needed to take the recurrent knowledge test to be current. As of 9/9/19, only 14,219 RPC holders have taken the test, so 40,759 are not legally in a position to operate sUAS for commercial purposes. Down […]

Saudi Aramco continues to respond to drone attacks to their facilities. In May 2019, a drone attack occurred on the country’s main cross-country oil pipeline. As a precautionary measure, the organization, temporarily shut down the pipeline and contained the fire which caused minor damage to a pump station. However, the issue of unauthorized drones in their airspace persisted and escalated. […]

Elistair and Silvus technologies united their expertise to provide mobile-networked multiple inputs and multiple-output (MN-MIMO) networking by embedding a Silvus Streamcaster 4200 MIMO radio into an Elistair ORION tethered UAS. The tethered UAS provides ad-hoc networking for the battlefield, to enhance situational awareness and facilitate communications and surveillance missions. With the integration of Silvus MANET […]

XAG announces that its Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) crop protection services have covered accumulated farmland of 20 million hectares, amid a large-scale cotton defoliation operation in Xinjiang, China. Among the first to introduce fully autonomous drones to transform the way crops are grown, XAG has become one of the world’s largest agriculture drone manufacturers and service […]

TOKYO—HAPSMobile Inc. (“HAPSMobile”), a subsidiary of SoftBank Corp. (TOKYO:9434) and minority-owned by AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVAV), today announced its successful completion of the first HAWK30 solar-powered high-altitude platform system (HAPS) test flight on September 11, 2019 (PT) at the NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center (AFRC) in California. HAWK30 is designed to serve as a stratospheric […]

Novadem, the French SME based in Aix-en-Provence, has just finalized the delivery of the 27 NX70 micro-UAV systems ordered by the French Defense Procurement Agency (DGA) last December. As a reminder, this order of more than 2M€ was placed in the context of an operational emergency, approved by the French Armed Forces Headquarter at the […]

Flirtey, the pioneer of the commercial drone delivery industry, has unveiled the Flirtey Eagle, the world’s most advanced drone delivery technology today with Senator Cortez Masto (D-NV) at The National Press Club in Washington, D.C. The company has released the much-anticipated first video of its next-generation delivery drone performing consumer and automated external defibrillator (AED) deliveries to customer homes. […]

Investments Validate the Program and Support the Region’s Growing Ecosystem UAS Investment is Supported by CNY Rising – The Region’s Comprehensive Strategy to Revitalize Communities and Grow the Economy SYRACUSE, NY: Five startups in the GENIUS NY accelerator, AutoModality, Civdrone, Fotokite, OmniMesh and TruWeather Solutions, have raised over $10 million in additional private investment. This follow-on-funding […]

UAVenture and Daedalean have published a teaser video announcing a new guidance system for professional UAVs ● The system is called Magpie and provides unrivaled AI-powered functions – vision-based identification of emergency landing sites during flight, as well as visual navigation that helps sustain GPS outages – in less than 500g package, and completely integrated […]

Cyberhawk Innovations today announced it has appointed John Comiskey as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Member of the Board of Directors. Comiskey most recently held the position of CFO of Endura, which in 2018 was acquired by Pentland Brands, owners of the Speedo, Canterbury and Berghaus brands. Since starting at Endura in 2015, John helped […]

DJI, the world’s leader in civilian drones and aerial imaging technology, and Delair, a leading provider of visual data management solutions for enterprise, today announced a partnership that will see the two companies collaborate on enhanced and integrated solutions for visual data collection and analysis for businesses. The partnership will include an agreement for Delair […]

High precision GNSS position correcting technology helps Quantum-Systems’ UAVs carry out life-saving work. Thalwil, Switzerland – September 12, 2019 – u-blox (SIX:UBXN), a global provider of leading positioning and wireless communication technologies, has gained another high-profile endorsement for ZED-F9P, its high precision GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) module that delivers centimeter-level accuracy within seconds. Quantum-Systems, […]

The N.C. Department of Transportation has been honored by a national organization for its pioneering use of drones to respond to hurricanes and deliver medical supplies. The National Association of State Aviation Officials (NASAO) named NCDOT’s drone program as the 2019 Most Innovative State Program at its annual convention in St. Paul, Minn., Tuesday night. NASAO honored […]

Well, it looks like the BMFA and ARPAS are helping push back at the UK’s drone registration scheme due to roll out in November. Winter is coming, the indoor flying season, no need to register or you might just fly a sub 250g machine outdoors until things settle down. This just in from the BMFA. […]

Supporting the Director of Program Management, the Program Manager will organize and coordinate activities and deliverables to reach milestones across a complex, multi-disciplinary and multi-functional team, in pursuit of building the first passenger service with an autonomous air taxi. The Program Manager will develop and implement appropriate and efficient strategies and tactics to drive towards […]

EUROCONTROL and partners are pleased to invite you to attend a conference which we are organising to present the U-space concept of operations (ConOps) as well as the results from SESAR Joint Undertaking’s portfolio of exploratory research and demonstrations. The event will take place on 30 September – 1 October in Brussels. As you can read from the […]

Over nearly a week of testing — a week that followed months of preparation and involved five types of aircraft, four aircraft software systems, more than 30 engineers, pilots, and operations experts, and 141 flights — the Virginia Tech Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership and its partners sought to answer an increasingly urgent question: How can we effectively manage […]

VAPOR 35 and VAPOR 55 add vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) and multi-payload capabilities, complementing and expanding AeroVironment’s leading fixed-wing small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) VAPOR all-electric Helicopter UAS product line delivers advanced performance, endurance and payload flexibility, with up to 10 lbs. (4.5 kg) of usable payload capacity, and one hour of flight time on […]

Cutting-edge video processing offers clearer, more actionable imagery for users on the ground HOOD RIVER, Ore.—September 10, 2019— Trillium Engineering, an industry leader in gimbaled camera systems for small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), successfully conducted a test flight of a new video processor that will dramatically improve the operation of Group 2 UAS. The current […]

BT and DroneShield have partnered to provide counter-drone solutions to BT’s customers across the UK Significant short-term and medium-term customer requirements following Gatwick Airport shut down in December 2018, and numerous other incidents involving drones in the UK BT is the largest telecommunications company in the UK DroneShield is the ASX-listed global counter-drone solutions leader […]

Virtual Surveyor has added cut-and-fill mapping capabilities to Version 7.0 of its popular drone surveying package. The new functionality enables users to quickly perform volume difference calculations and generate cut-and-fill maps from drone images captured on two or more different dates. “Calculating volume differences between surface models derived from drone imagery now takes less than […]

HAPSMobile Inc. (“HAPSMobile”), a subsidiary of SoftBank Corp. (TOKYO: 9434) and minority-owned by AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVAV), has received a limited flight release from NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center (AFRC), Airworthiness and Flight Safety Review Board to conduct a test flight of the HAWK30 aircraft in restricted airspace. AFRC is responsible to ensure ground and […]

The FirePoint Innovations Center at Wichita State University today announced registration is now open for the first-ever FirePoint C3 Challenge, inviting university students from around the U.S. to submit their best designs for the Army’s future unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) intended for next-generation combat and defense. To enter, teams must first register and then submit an Intent to Compete by October 18th. The […]

UK record for longest commercial drone flight Technology to be deployed to all North Sea assets in 2020 Latest addition to global emissions reduction programme BP’s North Sea business has successfully executed a groundbreaking pilot project testing innovative ways of remotely monitoring methane emissions on its offshore assets. The pilot, which combined highly advanced sensor […]

ALEXANDRIA, VA – SEPTEMBER 10, 2019 – Over the last few years, the National Agricultural Aviation Association (NAAA)has consistently needed to set the record straight about inaccurate and/or misleading claims made about how Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) technology can act as a wholesale replacement to manned aircraft applying crop protection products. NAAA believes UAV application […]