sUAS News

Nevada’s unmanned cloud-seeding research team today realised another fundamental capability in its effort toward enhancing snowfall in mountainous regions of the West. Flown at Hawthorne Industrial Airport under Nevada UAS Test Sites Certificate of Authorization (COA) and led by the Desert Research Institute (DRI) flight operations node, the Drone America Savant unmanned aircraft reached an […]

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) today released an updated list of pilot, air traffic controller, law enforcement and citizen reports of potential drone sighting with unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) – more popularly called “drones”. The latest data cover February through September 2016. Reports of possible drone sightings to FAA air traffic facilities continued to increase during FY 2016. […]

Sensor and sensing solutions company, Terabee, has released a new video showing how their alternative to traditional rotating LiDAR scanners, the TeraRanger Tower, can be used to perform drone collision avoidance against a wall. Based on APM 3.5, they’ve written drivers allowing the TeraRanger Tower to feed data to the autopilots’ object avoidance code-base. Terabee […]

AirMap, the world’s leading airspace management platform for drones, and senseFly, the world’s first choice producer of mapping drones, today announced that they have partnered to deliver AirMap’s airspace services to senseFly’s eBee fixed wing drones and albris quadcopter. AirMap’s airspace platform services will be directly integrated into senseFly’s eMotion flight and data management software, […]

AirMap, the world’s leading airspace management platform for drones, today announced a $26 million Series B funding round led by Microsoft Ventures, with additional participation from Airbus Ventures, Qualcomm Ventures (the investment arm of Qualcomm Incorporated), Rakuten, Sony, Yuneec, and existing investors General Catalyst and Lux Capital. The new investment brings AirMap’s total funding to […]

UAVAir, the UK’s leading drone training academy is clarifying the importance of gaining a CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) approved drone licence, in light of recent calls for new suggestions of improving drone safety in British airspace. Although the current regulations in place prohibit pilots from flying in congested areas and near airports, drones operating in […]

The National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) has approved the Unmanned Safety Institute’s (USI) online “Small UAS Ground School” for participation in the NBAA Professional Development Program (PDP), effective January 12, 2017. The course meets PDP Objectives: Operations Ops7 and Ops9 and course participants will receive 6 points for CAM Application 4 points for CAM Recertification. […]

On Friday, February 24, Ventus Geospatial, a C-ASTRAL BRAMOR gEO, ppK and gAS operator, will be conducting the first Transport Canada (TC) approved UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) test flight beyond a pilot’s visual line of sight (BVLOS) in non-military airspace. This flight test will be conducted at the Foremost Centre for Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) […]

Enter the Drone Girls. A new breed and welcome force in the rapidly changing fashions of the Drone industry. The face of the Drone industry is changing. Girl power is taking an increasingly important role in the Drone industry. And not before time. It has long been proven that women have skill sets in engineering, […]

At Skyward, we make operations management software for companies that use drones, so business managers and drone operators often ask us questions regarding safety, workflow, best practices, and business efficiency. These are great questions that most businesses are focused on—and that our software specifically addresses. We also receive dozens of questions each week about something […]

The University of North Dakota (UND) has newly created the UND Institute for Unmanned and Autonomous Systems and is seeking a founding Executive Director for the Institute who will be an energetic leader and passionate proponent for Unmanned and Autonomous research, education and economic development. Why UND and North Dakota? Over the past decade, UND and […]

The one with, AtlantikSolar and their 81-hour solar assisted flight as told by Philipp Oettershagen. A truly amazing accomplishment achieved with relatively low-cost solar cells. We will certainly be getting him back to tell us more on Drone Stuff This Week. Rob Swynnerton from http://www.flyingwings.co.uk and his separate lift thrust (SLT) electric flying wing the […]

FREDERICK, MD – The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) announced a new line of membership options created for drone pilots, a key part of an ongoing effort to unite manned and unmanned pilots for the common purpose of safe integration of all users. Having long been recognized for leadership in aviation safety and advocacy, […]

Amazon wants to fly a giant blimp and let deliveries swarm from it. UPS is perhaps a little more practical. Make the drone a force multiplier by doing two deliveries done at once from the same van. Get it most of the way to its destination, set it free and do another from the truck […]

When I worked directly with the FAA as a customer, one thing I learned the hard way is that seemingly common sounding words or phrases have very specific (and sometimes loaded) meaning when spoken within the context of the FAA or aviation. I have a feeling that Performance Based Navigation (PBN) is probably one of […]

Pro S3 is pleased to announce the release of the Venture T lines of mutirotor UAVs. Venture T offers unique capabilities concentrated in a single package, designed specifically for UAV training schools. Mr. Daniele Camatti CEO of Pro S3 says “UAV training activities requires specific performance characteristics not usually available in a standard commercial drone […]

DJI, the prominent pioneer in state of the art unmanned aerial photography equipment, has its sagacious eyes set on the North American Market, aiming to rattle the entire drone business in 2017. San Francisco residents are going to embrace an extraordinary month of February: the very first DJI authorised store, Magic Sky, will go into […]

On Tuesday, February 14th, I gave a presentation on drone applications to a room full of First Responders as guests of the Consumnes River Fire Department. Most of the material presented was focused on SAR and firefighting, but we covered some other safety and law enforcement topics as well. Before we go any further, I […]

FreeBird One is a unique and high-performing commercial UAV that could make a solid addition to an existing product portfolio, or offer a company using or planning to deploy a fleet of drones a proprietary vehicle that could differentiate its drone capabilities. Structurally-enclosed SurroundFrame carbon fiber airframe (able to withstand in-air collisions) Weatherproof (rain, snow, extreme […]

Cyberhawk Innovations, leader in aerial inspection and survey using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV), is offering to drone enthusiasts a rare opportunity to become part of one of the world’s fastest growing industries. Headquartered in Livingston, and with bases in Houston, the Middle East and Southeast Asia, Cyberhawk carried out the very first UAV inspection in […]

Stemme AG and S-PLANE Automation (Pty) Ltd today announced an agreement to integrate S-PLANE subsystems into the ECARYS ES15 aircraft to create an Optionally Piloted Vehicle (OPV). A comprehensive solution is offered, including the Ground Control Station, suitable for a variety of mission profiles. The OPV is a highly versatile vehicle, combining the benefits of […]

Glad that your teams are pumping out those drone delivery patents left right and centre. It will certainly be easier to stomp on any great ideas should anybody come out with anything close to what the dream factory bangs out. I was also very pleased to see that you picked up on my print your […]

Karma Vista Winery is utilising Great Lakes Drone Company to provide aerial data management and consultation for the 2017 growing season. Joe Herman, owner of Karma Vista Winery is excited about how this technology can redefine how they manage their fields this year. The data collected by regular drone overflights will provide them with real-time […]

Vigilant Aerospace has completed beyond line-of-sight flight testing of its new FlightHorizon collision avoidance system for drones at NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center in the Mojave desert. FlightHorizon is flight safety software that provides drone pilots with the ability to detect-and-avoid other aircraft. It is based on a NASA patent and prototype exclusively licensed by […]

A weighty and informative report from ORNL penned by Richard Lusk and William Monday. The report is crammed with information useful for any commercial UAS operator. It includes checklists as well. Always good to see other people’s thinking on that subject. The introduction is bang on as well, top notch, if you are a serious […]

The UAS (Unmanned Aerial Systems) industry includes a variety of aircraft and platforms necessary to accomplish a growing number of mission profiles and applications. There is a lot of interest in small (under 55 lbs.) platforms for commercial applications and for hobbyist, but there is also a growing demand for larger aircraft that carry larger […]

Crown Prince of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, honoured the winners of UAE Drones for Good Award and UAE AI/ Robotics Award for Good. Sheikh Hamdan was briefed on a number of hi-tech projects presented by the participating teams that offer applied innovative solutions in economy, humanitarian and scientific […]

Santa Fe– To protect facilities that are critical to the public’s welfare, it would be unlawful to fly an unmanned aircraft- commonly referred to as drones- within 500 feet of these installations. Drones would be banned from around facilities such as power plants, chemical storage facilities, and petroleum refineries under SB 348. The bill also […]

Intel may have used a Yuneec based platform, a company they have bought into, to drop a basketball for the Verizon Slam Dunk challenge. Yuneec seems to be the ugly step child of the Intel Drone group. We have not really heard much of the company recently. They were heralded as a DJI beater, that […]

Enough people must have saved enough money to buy big motors and batteries. Man carrying multirotors are popping up (see what I did there) everywhere. The Scorpion 3 has just been launched by Russian company Hoversurf. It looks um interesting in flight. Not sure I would want such a large prop near my legs. Sensibly the Hoversurf […]

Researchers at Utah State University last week unveiled their newest platform of unmanned aerial vehicles. The new ‘BluJay’ line of all-electric aircraft is used for research in agriculture and water resources engineering. “This aircraft represents the latest improvements in UAV technology,” said Dr. Mac McKee, director of the Utah Water Research Lab. “It can stay […]

In the modern age of solar 4.5 MW is not a big power plant, generally occupying less than 50 acres of land. But from the perspective of a field technician, size is all relative. A Needle in a Haystack “A plant that size has about 18,000 panels,” says Rick Lavezzo, the owner of ArrayCon, one […]

Land O’Lakes, Inc. is seeking proposed solutions that enable scalable, autonomous drone usage in precision agriculture (the “Solution(s)”). While drone technology is one of the hottest topics in the agriculture industry today, current solutions have not yet evolved to make drones a valuable or cost effective tool for farmers. Land O’Lakes, Inc., a farmer-owned cooperative, […]

Yesterday while scrolling through my Facebook feed I ran across this little gem of a post by Matt Gleason featuring a 3d printed micro quad, Mega Whoop, while there are sure to be others out there this is the first I’ve seen posted publicly in the 3d printed groups also now offered on thingiverse the […]

A new modular open source drone, UAV and AI brand, Gizmowl, based on the white owl theme is seeking support from makers and 3d printers. In drones and artificial intelligence technology development, a new and potentially popular brand has arrived on scene. It’s called the BSM Gizmowl and it hopes to carve out a Khan […]

DJI, the world’s leading maker of unmanned aircraft systems, and the Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA), the nation’s leading voice for aircraft modellers, are launching a joint program to promote safe and responsible drone operations, train public safety officers to use drones effectively, and support educational outreach efforts. DJI and the AMA will collaborate on […]

This week MultiGP Drone Racing (www.mulitgp.com) announced the 2017 MultiGP International Open, being held at the AMA National Headquarters in Muncie, Indiana, August 9-13, 2017. This one of a kind event is an open invitation connecting the global FPV community, which is one of the fastest growing sports communities in the world. The MultiGP International […]

What is the difference between an Insurance broker and an insurance underwriter? As an Insurance Broker and a consumer representative, that is a question we’re asked by many insureds at the beginning of their search for insurance. We know that many Insurance Underwriters are asked the same thing. There is no question that the Consumer’s […]

The micro-UUV is a flexible and affordable tool ideally suited for developers of autonomy and behaviors, power systems, subsea sensors, and new payloads. With a base system price under $15,000 it opens affordable UUV operations to any organization with undersea survey or science requirements. The micro-UUV has been delivered with sonar payloads, acoustic comms, 360 […]

Building on its strategy to drive innovation and adoption for IoT services in high-growth markets, Verizon today announced that it has purchased Skyward, a private company based in Portland, Oregon. Skyward brings drone operations management to the Verizon IoT portfolio, simplifying drone operations and management for organizations of any size. Terms of the transaction have […]

UAVenture has partnered with Flyingwings to develop the Falcon Vertigo, the first in a range of ready-to-fly hybrid vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) drones. When ordered together with the AirRails flight control system the Vertigo will be pre-tuned and ready-to-fly providing evaluators with a fast track way of trialling hybrid VTOL technology and seeing how […]

Microsoft wants to interrogate your mistakes. Arriving on GitHub today AirSim a free drone simulator that learns with you. Feeding back meatware control moves into robot control Artificial Intelligence algorithms. Our goal is to develop AirSim as a platform for AI research to experiment with deep learning, computer vision and reinforcement learning algorithms for autonomous vehicles. For […]

Sentera today announced its ability to convert a DJI Phantom 4 Pro drone into a precision scouting tool that collects TrueNDVI crop health data, just in time for the 2017 growing season in the northern hemisphere. By integrating the ultra-lightweight, super-precise Sentera NDVI Single Sensor onto the Phantom 4 Pro platform, agronomists and growers realise […]

BIRD Aerosystems unveils the Aeroshield POD: an integrated solution that supports the installation of the Airborne Missile Protection Systems (AMPS) on VIP wide body aircraft. Exposed by the company for the first time, the Aeroshield POD is fully operational and was already sold to many customers. BIRD Aerosystems specialises in the developing and deploying of […]

Sky-Futures, a global leader in innovation with drone-based technology, has been awarded a 3-year contract to inspect Eni facilities globally. Eni, one of the largest operators worldwide in the Energy Sector, operates in 66 countries. This global contract is the first of its kind between a drone-based technology business and an international oil and gas […]

Cyberhawk is the recognised world leader in the provision of industrial inspection and land surveying solutions using Remotely Operated Aerial Vehicles (ROAV) & Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV). Our customers include Oil & Gas, Utility and Renewables companies, both onshore and offshore, in the UK, Europe, Middle East and Asia.Cyberhawk provides highly differentiated services that offer […]

We at Kespry believe in a future where commercial drones are used in construction to cut costs, in agriculture to increase yields and reduce chemical use, in search and rescue to save lives, in the clean energy sector to improve the efficiency of solar and wind energy, and in a myriad of other yet-to-be-discovered sectors. […]

The emerald golfing greens have seen better days. According to the US National Golf Foundation, the number of players has almost steadily declined from over 30 million in 2005 (pre-recession), to 24.7 million today. 680 US and 158 Canadian courses have closed. “Golf course owners are working smarter to manage resources like water and labor […]

Dropping packages by parachute! Gosh, novel and original thinking from Amazon. What will they come up with next! Amazon was granted a patent yesterday by the US Patent Office. Something tells me I have seen it before. But it’s not just parachuting packages. It’s guiding the package as it falls towards it’s delivery point. A drone […]

There might be nine million bicycles in Beijing, but this week we saw one thousand drones flying over Guangzhou. Joshua Ziering from http://www.kittyhawk.io, gave a very compelling explanation of their flight logging and drone health monitoring system. The Aerovironment Quantix, what is the software it’s being bundled with? EuroUSC EuroUSC, Bruce Simpson of RC Model […]