UAV News Talk – Drone News, eVTOLs, UAS Policy & Air Mobility

DJI announces it’s “Government Edition” hardware and software to address data security fears, while one company drops Chinese drones from its services. A public safety alliance announces its board of advisors, an unmanned surface vehicle rescues swimmers, an interim report on UAS mitigation at airports is published, a drone operations app is launched in Australia, and a de-confliction service for...

The  Consumer Technology Association  (CTA) has performed a number of drone market research studies, including a consumer study titled  Drones: Public Perceptions & Consumer Attitudes  which looks at the number of owners by type of drone, general awareness of drones and safety messaging, purchase likelihood, and drone applications. Other aspects of consumer behavior such as...

Diana Cooper is the Senior Vice President of Policy & Strategy at  PrecisionHawk , a company that leverages advanced robotics, robust software, and rich data to extract the commercial value of drones. PrecisionHawk provides training, drone consulting, and global flight services. PrecisionHawk has joined the  Alliance for Drone Innovation  (ADI), a D.C.-based coalition of drone m...

Princess Aliyah Pandolfi from the  Kashmir World Foundation  is our guest. We spoke with her at the  Innovations in Flight  Family Day and Outdoor Aviation Display, held June 15, 2019, at the Smithsonian’s National Air & Space Museum, Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia. This annual event is held the Saturday before Father’s Day. Besides the museum exhibits,...

Highlights of the  FAA UAS Symposium  held June 3-5, 2019 at the Baltimore Convention Center. Presented by the  Federal Aviation Administration  and  AUVSI . FAA UAS Symposium 2019 Over 1000 attendees from industry, the government, and academia gathered for three days of keynotes, breakout sessions, and “how to” sessions. We discuss some highlights of the Symposium, includ...

DHS resources for the threat of UAS to critical infrastructure, urban testing of drone flights in Reno, using drone images as evidence, a delay for the remote ID NPRM, and a drone used by the Army Corps of Engineers. UAV News ‘We’re Not Being Paranoid’: U.S. Warns Of Spy Dangers Of Chinese-Made Drones NPR references the DHS Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) website  Unma...

The FAA has new recreational drone restrictions, along with exceptions for those that cannot be presently met. Also, drones that identify polluting ships, data security fears for Chinese drones, professional sports leagues weigh-in on drones, UAS that measure environmental conditions for weather prediction, and states in the US are actively using unmanned aircraft. UAV News FAA Implements New Recr...

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University offers an Unmanned Systems Science degree, delivery drones produce an annoying noise, Uber Eats is hiring UAS specialists, AUVSI announces humanitarian award winners, and autonomous BVLOS patrol drones are planned for the Australian coastline. Interview Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University  UAS Flight Standards and Training Manager  Michael Zebehazy &...

Professional-grade UAS components, a fuel cell system for UAVs, drone flying in national parks, the Choctaw Nation UAS Integration Pilot Program, new life for Piaggio Hammerhead, and the Northrop Grumman Firebird surveillance aircraft. UAV News UAV industry purging hobbyist-grade components from supply chain Fifteen years ago, practically all the drone components came from the hobby business. Comm...

An actively tethered UAS for situational awareness, a fixed-wing drone studies the atmosphere in Greenland, a larger “hive” drone releases a swarm of smaller “cicada” drones, Virgin Atlantic reports a drone near-hit, a drone that plants tree seeds, Wing receives FAA certification allowing delivery service in the US, and a drone powered by variable-buoyancy. UAV News Fotokite Launches Firefighter S...

New lithium metal batteries offer the prospect of greater capacity. Also, Parrot’s Anafi Thermal drone, a quadcopter over the Boston Red Sox, drones for sugarcane agriculture, the role of drones during the Notre Dame fire, parts delivery by drone for manufacturing, and indigenous people use drones to assert territory rights. UAV News Lithium-Ion Batteries Aren’t Good Enough for Electric Flight. Bu...

Comments close soon for an NPRM for sUAS operations over people and an ANPRM for safe sUAS operations. In the news, advice for drone operators near agricultural aircraft, rogue drones in China, Google’s Wing receives authority to operate in Australia, FAA close to awarding the first drone airline license, and GENIUS NY awards are announced. UAV News Safe and Secure Operations of Small Unmanned Air...

Drones for studying wildlife, wetlands, and tornadoes. Using them to resupplying troops and support a Mars rover. Also, gender diversity study of the drone industry, and airplane incidents that turn out to not be caused by drones. Guest Executive Wildlife Producer Heather. UAV News A Guide To Using Drones To Study Wildlife: First, Do No Harm A  Best practice for minimising unmanned...

FAA approves a fixed-wing drone swarm, firefighting drones under development, young girls trained to fly drones, costs of Gatwick incursions, mimicking a bat, and drones blamed for airliner problems. UAV News OSU receives first FAA authorization to fly unmanned aircraft in groups Oklahoma State University received FAA approval to fly drone swarms in the national airspace. Up to twenty drones can b...

The FAA proposal for flying small UAS over people, a terrain-following fixed-wing UAS with active navigation, using drones and citizen science for animal conservation, a greater surveillance role for FAA Flight Standards District Offices, and an autonomous grocery delivery service. UAV News Small UAS Over People: A New Safety Paradigm The FAA published a notice that would allow flying UAS over peo...

Pentagon interest in cargo drones for disaster relief, thermal imaging for search and rescue, BVLOS UAS for medical deliveries, drones that act like sheepdogs, drone laws in Japan, “drone parenting,” and a UAS remote ID whitepaper. UAV News The Pentagon wants to know if a swarm of drones can swoop in to help with hurricane relief In January 2019, the Defense Logistics Agency solicited a  Requ...

Drones that locate wildlife and select sick livestock, the FAA looks to Kittyhawk to redesign the B4UFLY app, an expanded role for LANNC, principles for autonomous vehicles in the city, a tourist is jailed for misusing a drone, and speculation about stealthy drones. UAV News Koala-spotting drones proves a flying success The Queensland University of Technology (QUT) published a study in the nature...

The NUAIR Alliance and UAS stakeholders establish a plan to support integration into the NAS, North Dakota kills a drone privacy bill while the University of North Dakota supports drone tech for bee populations, 50 applications for LiDAR-equipped drones, drone complaints in the UK, a new FAA drone marking rule, a drone shoot-down in Australia, a UAV helped a SWAT team, an agricultural drone fleet,...

Using drones for wildlife management and conservation: bears and drone noise, elephants and poachers, Kakapos and artificial insemination, and STEM drone projects to protect wild and endangered animals. Also, DHS and the Northern border, an Iranian drone, and a base jumping video. UAV News Bears Are Getting Used to Drones A new study in Conservation Physiology notes that unmanned aircraft systems...

Guest Kevin Gallagher  is President and CEO of  Simulyze , a provider of operational intelligence and technology applications for both federal and commercial organizations. He has more than 30 years of experience in system engineering and operational support. Kevin co-founded Simulyze to specialize in operational intelligence, situational awareness, and traffic management technology for...

A FLIR Systems acquisition and a nano-UAV contract, proposed drone rules for Australia, testing UAS in the wind, a market forecast for drones, and Amazon tests UTM. UAV News FLIR Systems acquires Aeryon Labs for $200 million UAS Magazine reports that FLIR Systems has acquired drone developer Aeryon Labs Inc. for $200 million. FLIR wants to be more than a sensor supplier and Aeryon develops quad-co...

Flights at another major airport were halted due to drone reports, but some experts question the accuracy of the reports. Also, Boeing and Airbus advance their urban air mobility projects, multispectral camera-equipped drones and crop health, a drone that launches and lands like a bird, Facebook and it’s drone project, U-Space for harmonized UTM, and a bladeless drone. UAV News Newark Airport Traf...

The FAA has released a draft of the NPRM that proposes rules for night flying and flights over people. Also, three UAS UTM Pilot Program projects awarded, drones survey Africa and identify illegal activity in India, Japan will issue underwater drone guidelines, and NASA contemplates a quadcopter for Titan. UAV News New FAA proposal would let drones fly over people and at night without a waiver Sec...

A fuel cell drone flies for over an hour, new drone laws for Canada and the UK, another airport incursion, terrorists and UAVs, the world’s smallest and lightest weather station, and using drones to insert sensors in the soil. UAV News First ever hour-long flight for hydrogen multi-rotor UAV with 5kg payload Project RACHEL is an attempt to develop a hydrogen fuel cell powered multi-rotor...

Recent drone news and a few predictions for the unmanned aircraft industry in 2019. UAV News NYC police to use camera drones for security at Times Square NYE party What’s the best anti-drone technology? Rain, it turns out. The New York Police Department had planned to utilize drones with cameras for the Times Square New Year’s Eve party, but inclement weather prevented their use. Drones likely to...