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

A long endurance solar-powered drone, UAVs used for offensive and defensive applications, autonomous pollination drones, and DJI interest in the UAS Integration Pilot Program. UAV News Naval Research Lab Adds Solar Power to Hybrid Tiger UAV Project The  U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL)  will use  Alta Devices  solar technology to help power the Hybrid Tiger UAV, a long endu...

The DOT announces the UAS Integration Pilot Program selectees, and the Small UAS Coalition responds. The future of Aurora’s Hybrid-Electric VTOL X-Plane is uncertain, and Uber wants to be your air taxi service provider, but many others want to play a role as well. UAV News U.S.Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao Announces Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration Pilot Program Selectees The U.S. D...

Testing at the Northern Plains UAS Test Site utilized the Rockwell Collins CNPC-1000 UAS command and control data link, the DOT published procedures for obtaining operator exemption to hold economic authority, New Zealand police ask the public to report drones instead of shooting them down, drones as autonomous air ambulances, battlefield deliveries by drone, the Customs and Border Protection dron...

The Intel Falcon 8+ becomes the first drone certified under UL 3030, DJI responds to security and privacy concerns, hydrogen fuel cells for drones, combating the Zika virus with drones, and an air taxi startup draws on an outside designer. UAV News First Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) and Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV) Certified by UL UL issued their first UL 3030 electrical system safety certific...

The Commercial Drone Alliance seeks to repeal Section 336, the FAA Reauthorization ACT of 2018 is introduced, Apple might not like drone flights over its new corporate headquarters, Temple University students build an autonomous drone for campus tours, and the DARPA Gremlins drone swarm program. UAV News Commercial Drone Alliance Calls for Section 336 Repeal: ‘Times Have Changed’ The FAA Moderniza...

Operators of recreational drones flying for commercial purposes, upset Google employees, arrests for illegal anti-drone systems, drone technology and the travel industry, UAS ID and tracking proposals, a business competition winner, mapping with a LIDAR-equipped drone, and an outdoor drone testing facility that is really indoors. UAV News NBAA Warns of Commercial UAS Violations In  UAS Operat...

The UL 3030 certification standard for small commercial drones that use lithium-ion batteries. UL  is a global safety consulting and certification company that was established in 1894. Previously a non-profit organization known as Underwriters Laboratories, the company transformed in 2012 into UL LLC, a for-profit company. UL has been developing a new certification called UL 3030 to help prev...

Lockheed Martin’s MQ-25 Stingray concept, UTM testing, nuclear power plant inspection, pizza delivery by drone, another near-miss, Canadian drone regulations, and a new drone racing idea. UAV News Skunk Works Reveals Stealthy UAV Demonstrator The Lockheed Martin Skunk Works is celebrating their 75th anniversary and they were a major sponsor at the LA County Airshow in California. Lockheed put the...

Picking up objects with a folding arm drone, a drone that protects dropped objects with an airbag, a large air freight drone, training drone photographers and videographers, a first night flight for the NTSB, a general aviation company partners with an unmanned company, and an autonomous vehicle accident. UAV News This Drone Has Retracting Arms that Allow it to Pick Up Objects South Korean scienti...

Testing the Cora electric air taxi in New Zealand, drone research at Ford, package delivery in the UK and in the U.S., UAS traffic management in Switzerland and in the U.S. UAV News Larry Page’s Flying Taxis, Now Exiting Stealth Mode The  Kitty Hawk  company calls  Cora  “your first step towards everyday flight.” Financed by Google co-founder and Alphabet CEO Larry Page, Kitty...

Observations from the FAA’s 3rd annual UAS Symposium. 2018 FAA UAS Symposium The Federal Aviation Administration ( FAA ) and the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International ( AUVSI ) co-sponsored the FAA’s 3rd annual Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Symposium on March 6-8, 2018, at the Baltimore Convention Center. David attended the event and he gives us his observations. Remote identifi...

Drone legislation priorities for 2018, UAVs and university research, Piaggio’s latest P.1HH HammerHead, unmanned vehicles from Turkey, the drones made by DJI, drone applications in Maine, and hydrogen fuel cells for drones. UAV News Commercial Drone Alliance: Legislative Priorities for 2018 Founded in 2016, the  Commercial Drone Alliance  is an independent non-profit organization led by...

A call for regulation of recreational drones, the accuracy of wildlife counts, a flying display device, the MQ-1 Predator retirement, using drones for automated inspection, and a Phantom may have caused a helicopter to go down. UAV News Airline Groups Call on US Congress to Regulate Drones Three groups want Congress to modify Section 336 of the 2012 FAA Modernization and Reform Act that restricts...

The changing landscape for drone services, drone swarms for urban tactics, a simulated drone attack in Idaho, European airport operators embrace the value of drones but look for protections, MIT develops a mapping system for drone navigation, the Department of the Interior uses UAVs with great results, and Intel at the Olympics. UAV News Here’s Why The Drone Services Industry is in Trouble In the...

Ehang flies their autonomous aerial vehicle with human passengers, reaction to a close encounter with an airliner, drone safety measures at the Olympics, drone video awards, drone package delivery by Airbus, and thoughts on cargo drones. UAV News Flying car? Watch as this drone flies around with passengers inside The Ehang 184 autonomous aircraft is rated for a 220-pound payload, a cruising altitu...

DroNet uses deep machine learning for autonomous flight, a labor union takes a stand on package delivery by drone, a tiny radar for sUAS, counter-unmanned aerial systems, and a British drone survey. UAV News AI-Powered Drone Mimics Cars and Bikes to Navigate Through City Streets Researchers have developed a drone that can autonomously fly through the streets of a city. DroNet uses minimal onboard...

Aurora Flight Sciences and PrecisionHawk receive additional funding, some first responders gain permission for BVLOS and night flights, the FCC imposes a civil penalty for communications violations, China is developing a heavy cargo drone, and KFC offers a build-a-drone promotion. UAV News Boeing’s New Drone Subsidiary Purchase Is Already Paying Off The U.S. Air Force awarded Aurora Flight Science...

Drone parachute systems to protect your UAV, state-level drone legislation, UAS disaster response training, large drone swarms and peeping drones, and a new drone registration class action lawsuit against the FAA. UAV News New Harrier Parachute Launcher is Light, Compact, and Easy to Use! Fruity Chutes  announced a new line of drone parachute launchers. The servo-activated Harrier Drone Parac...

Drone news from CES 2018, drones and asymmetrical warfare, situational awareness for sense and avoid from Insitu, a Cargo Air Vehicle prototype from Boeing, and GoPro exits the quadcopter market. UAV News Drones fly over Bellagio fountains during Las Vegas CES Intel Corp. flew 250 light-emitting Shooting Star drones over the Fountains at Bellagio at  CES 2018 . Intel plans a drone show at the...

DARPA Gremlins advance reusable drone technology, North Carolina plans UAS workshops for public safety agencies, Seaglider underwater drones set to explore Antarctic ice shelves, fuel cell propulsion systems will be integrated into the ScanEagle, and medical package delivery drones are successful in Africa. UAV News Air Force Could Test “Flying Aircraft Carriers” as Early as Next Year The U.S. Def...

An Aviation Rulemaking Committee has released their recommendations for identification and tracking of unmanned aircraft, Airbus looks to incorporate some Formula 1 technology into their Zephyr High Altitude Pseudo-Satellite, a proposal is submitted to send a multirotor drone to one of Saturn’s moons, a drone quickly finds a missing man, and the FAA prohibits drone flights over certain facilities....

Airways and AirMap partner on a three-month trial of a UAV traffic management (UTM) platform, NTSB issues Aviation Incident Final Report on drone collision with a helicopter, Singapore tests drone strikes on test dummies, recreational drone registration is signed into law, and using drones for law enforcement. UAV News New Zealand to trial drone traffic management system Airways  is New Zeala...

SkyX completes a data collection flight of a Mexican gas pipeline, Terra Drone uses the LTE network for unmanned traffic management, Europe moves toward drone standards, Maine law enforcement employs drones, China uses drones for monitoring forest fires, New Jersey tackles droning while drunk, and Airbus expands its investment in unmanned technology companies. UAV News Canadian drone remotely moni...

A study examines sUAS collisions with manned aircraft, Amazon patents a self-disintegrating drone, Mercedes completes 100 package deliveries by drone, a race that pitted an autonomous drone against a piloted drone, and marine mammals are disturbed by drones. UAV News Researchers Release Report on Drone Airborne Collisions A research team from  ASSURE  {Alliance for System Safety of UAS t...

David and Max take the week off due to the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday. We want to say “thank you!” to all our listeners around the world, as well as to our sponsors. Special thanks to @dronemama for working so hard to produce quality show notes each week. All the best, David and Max