Tag Archives: Kratos

420 Toroidal Propellers

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 30:45 — 21.1MB)

Subscribe: Google Podcasts | Email | RSS

Toroidal Propellers offer a solution for multirotor noise, layoffs at Prime Air, Valkyrie drones for the US Marines, regulating advanced air mobility in Utah, mapping a radioactive environment with a collision-tolerant drone, and a cargo drone that can carry 100 pounds for 600 miles.

UAV News

Toroidal Propellers May Quietly Pave the Way to UAM Package Deliveries and More

MIT might have a solution for the noise produced by multi-rotor propellers. The Structural and Thermal-Fluids Engineering Group at MIT Lincoln Laboratory is experimenting with toroidal propellers. [PDF] The toroidal propeller consists of two blades looping together so that the tip of one blade curves back into the other.

Key Features:

Decreases signals in the frequency range to which humans are most sensitive
Reduces noise without requiring supplementary components that add weight and increase power draw
Lessens the likelihood that the spinning propeller will cut, catch, or clip objects or surfaces in the drone’s path
Achieves thrust comparable to that of a multirotor drone propeller
Allows reliable fabrication with additive manufacturing techniques that make it possible to customize the propeller for various multirotor models and types

Toroidal propellers on a quadcopter. MIT Lincoln Laboratory. — Toroidal propellers. Image copyright and courtesy MIT Lincoln Laboratory.

Amazon’s drone delivery unit hit with layoffs just as 10-year-old project finally launches

It’s been a decade since Amazon’s Jeff Bezos unveiled the company’s drone project on 60 Minutes. Prime Air now has drone delivery operations in two small markets, but corporate cost-cutting is rampant in the tech industry. Amazon plans to cut 18,000 jobs and Prime Air is not immune. The company won’t say how many layoffs affect the program. Sources said employees in the design, maintenance, systems engineering, flight testing, and flight operations units were part of the layoffs.

Marine Corps buying Valkyrie drones to investigate ‘future autonomous platforms’

The Marines have a $15 million contract with Kratos for two XQ-58A Valkyrie drones. These large aircraft weigh about 6,000 pounds and have a 27-foot-wingspan. Likely missions include strike, intelligence gathering, and electronic warfare. Possible other applications are a “mothership” for small drones and the deployment of munitions.

What is ‘advanced air mobility,’ and why is the Utah Legislature looking to regulate it?

The Utah Legislature has been working on drone regulations and in 2022 a study group was formed to look at updating regulatory laws. A bill is now working through the state legislature that is described as a framework for regulation. Topics being discussed include tracking software for near-ground air traffic, noise concerns, and State supremacy over local jurisdictions

Inside the Department of Energy Project Using Drones to Map Radioactive Waste Storage Vaults

A Flyability Elios 3 drone has successfully completed a 3D LiDAR mapping operation of a storage vault holding radioactive waste. The vault is planned to be removed and the data collected by the drone will aid in planning the project. The operation was conducted last November at the Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center at the Idaho National Laboratory Site. A team of about 50 people was involved, the top of the vault was covered with a plastic tent (thus creating an “indoor mission), and a crane lifted the vault’s lid and hatch. Flyability specializes in confined space inspections.

MightyFly’s new autonomous cargo drone carries 100 lb for 600 miles

The MightyFly Cento autonomous VTOL drone is a hybrid with electric propulsion and a hydrocarbon combustion engine that charges the battery in flight. The carbon-fiber airframe weighs 355 lb when fully loaded with a payload of up to 100 pounds. For vertical flight, eight props provide lift while a pusher prop on the back is used for cruise flight.

Video: MightyFly, the future of logistics, testimonials

UAV Video of the Week

Drone shows moose shedding antlers in forest

A wildlife enthusiast’s drone captured the moment a moose shed both its antlers in a forest in Canada.

415 Amazon Prime Air Drone

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 34:09 — 23.5MB)

Subscribe: Google Podcasts | Email | RSS

The latest Amazon Prime Air drone, XQ-58A Valkyrie tactical drones, bringing a drone on a cruise ship, a drone light show fail, and attacking a navy with uncrewed surface vessels.

UAV News

Amazon reveals the new design for Prime Air’s delivery drone—here’s your first look

Amazon has continued to develop its delivery drone. The new MK30 drone has increased range, expanded temperature tolerance, and the capability to fly in light rain. It’s lighter and smaller than its predecessor and has redesigned propellers with 25% less perceived noise.

Air Force pilots to try out XQ-58A Valkyrie drones ahead of potential UAV wingman program

The 40th Flight Test Squadron at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida has taken delivery of the first of two Kratos XQ-58A Valkyrie tactical drones. They’ll test the ability of the drone to autonomously operate over vast distances. The Squadron will figure out the logistics and infrastructure needed to house and operate the Valkyrie.

Are drones allowed on cruise ships?

Using a drone to capture your cruise ship experience seems like a great idea, but can you do it? Of the eight major cruise lines, only three allow passengers to bring drones on board and you can’t fly the drone from the ship.

‘An expensive event’: 50 drones plunge into Swan River during sky show fail

As thousands of onlookers watched a nighttime drone show in Perth, 50 of the 500 drones fell from the sky into the river. The reason for the failure is unknown and under investigation by Drone Sky Shows, but GPS signal interference is being cited as a possibility.

Why Ukraine’s Remarkable Attack On Sevastopol Will Go Down In History

On October 29, 2022, Ukraine attacked the Russian Navy at Sevastopol with seven maritime drones. What these uncrewed surface vessels (USVs) accomplished might be considered historically significant. Not so much for the damage they inflicted, but for the way naval warfare will be viewed from now on.

UAV Video of the Week

Drones eye view of Hendrick Motorsports’ Campus

396 Drone-as-a-Service

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 28:40 — 19.7MB)

Subscribe: Google Podcasts | Email | RSS

A drone-as-a-service company is building a country-wide network in Germany, drones as tools, the impact of AI on UAV capability, a new hypersonic drone, an apple-picking drone, creating a digital twin of a national treasure, and a lethal killer drone.

Drone-as-a-Service from Beagle Systems. — Beagle Systems drone station.

UAV News

Beagle Systems launches first station in country-wide drone network

In Germany, Beagle Systems GmbH is building a nationwide network of landing and charging stations for drones. Beagle Systems is a drone-as-a-service provider that specializes in long-range UAS flights that are controlled from the Hamburg company headquarters. The company hopes to serve the delivery, courier, and express services market.

The Real-Life Evolution of the Drone

Early on, some people considered drones to be “toys.” But drones have come a long way since then. Now they are tools for marketing, wildfire restoration, wildlife study, public safety, newsgathering, and a lot more.

The Role Of Drones In Connecting AI And Human Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence (AI) plays an increasing role in the missions of UAVs. Deep learning algorithms are trained with images and used to classify items detected by a variety of sensors. Affordable AI solutions are available and their integration with drones will continue to accelerate.

Hypersonix and Kratos to Launch Hypersonic Drone Next Year

The DART AE drone is 3D-printed and powered by a hydrogen scramjet engine. A Kratos Defense booster will accelerate the vehicle to over Mach 5, then the Hypersonix Launch Systems Ltd. scramjet engine will ignite. Mach 5 to 12 speeds are claimed for the engine which has been tested in a shock tunnel up to Mach 10. The drone will fly autonomously “along a programmed flight path to a predetermined landing location.”

Apple drones are now reality… in orchards cultivating fruit

Apple growers have found that it is difficult to find workers to pick apples. Israeli startup Tevel Aerobotics Technologies is offering its Flying Autonomous Robots (FAR) platform. A ground vehicle slowly drives between rows of fruit trees while several quadcopters are tethered to the vehicle. They have arms and articulated grippers that identify ripe apples, pick them and place the crop on QR-coded spots.

How Did Data Captured by Drones Help Create a Digital Twin of the Széchenyi Chain Bridge?

The Széchenyi Chain Bridge in Hungary opened in 1849 and is an historic landmark. Upgrade work on the 380m-long, 14.8m-wide suspension bridge began in 2021 and they wanted to capture a “digital twin” of the bridge. A team worked to scan and model the bridge using ground surveys, aerial scans, and boats. Ventus Tech provides professional aerial and sonar surveys and they collaborated with Bimfra Kft., a Building Information Modeling (BIM) firm.

Video: Széchenyi lánchíd digitális ikermodell elkészítése [Development of the digital twin model of the Széchenyi chain bridge]

Mentioned

Smart Shooter’s launches SMASH Dragon UAV

Smart Shooter designs, develops, and manufactures automatic targeting and firing systems for small arms. Their new SMASH Dragon is an armed drone system.

Video: SMASH Dragon Unveiled | Why An Unmanned Drone Killer UAV Is What Israel Needs Right Now

374 Drone Soccer

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 39:12 — 26.9MB)

Subscribe: Google Podcasts | Email | RSS

Get ready for drone soccer! Also, a heavy lift unmanned rotorcraft, David get’s to say “attritable” again, making a drone invisible, a drone ground station for the military, the sound of the Mars helicopter, drones and avigation easements, flinging drones off an aircraft carrier, and Chicago’s secret drone program.

UAV News

Colorado to host nation’s ﬁrst ‘drone soccer’ tournaments

In this educational “e-sport” from United States Drone Soccer, participants learn to build, program, fly, and repair drones. The racing drones are surrounded by plastic exoskeletons and the game is played in a netted arena. Each team tries to fly their drones into the opponent’s hoop. They keep the other team from doing the same by blocking and bumping the drones. In March 2021, the Academy of Model Aeronautics recognized U.S. Drone Soccer as an authorized STE(A)M program.

Flight Testing Soon for Upgraded Marine Corps K-MAX UAS

First flight of the heavy-lift K-MAX Titan unmanned rotorcraft was conducted by Kaman Air Vehicles. Two Marine Corps K-MAX aircraft are being upgraded with the K-MAX Titan unmanned system and the sensor-based autonomy suite from Near Earth Autonomy.

Skyborg autonomy ‘brain’ flies for first time aboard Kratos UTAP-22 UAV

In a 2h 10min test flight April 29, 2021, the US Air Force’s Skyborg autonomy core system flew aboard a Kratos UTAP-22 Mako tactical UAV at Tyndall AFB in Florida. This was the first time the autonomy core has flown Kratos Mako UAV. This represented “Milestone 1” of the ongoing “Autonomous Attritable Aircraft Experimentation” campaign.

Another 360-degree ‘invisible’ drone hits the market

Current 360-degree cameras use two lenses to capture the entire world view but put one on a drone and you get the drone in the video. Now NewBeeDrone uses the Insta360 ONE R camera in its Invisi360 drone. You provide the camera and mate it with the Invisi360 and you’ve got 360-degree video without the drone.

Video: Introducing Invisi360

Portable drone hangar gets military certification

The Eas y Aerial Easy Guard ground station was certified to MIL-STD 810G. The station looks like the familiar Pelican case and allows a drone system to take off, land, and charge in the field. The system is mobile and easily deployable. The Easy Guard has an automated roof opening and closing system, can be deployed from a pickup truck traveling up to 25 miles per hour, and has sensors and external cameras for situational awareness.

NASA’s Perseverance Rover Captures First Video and Audio Clips Of Ingenuity Helicopter On Mars

NASA’s Perseverance Rover recorded the sound of the Ingenuity helicopter as it flew on Mars.

Video: NASA’s Perseverance Rover Hears Ingenuity Mars Helicopter in Flight

No “Drone Toll Lanes”: AUVSI Speaks Out Over Avigation Easements

According to USLegal.com, an avigation easement is a right of overflight in the airspace above or in the vicinity of a particular property. It includes the right to create noise or other effects as may result from the lawful operation of aircraft as well as the right to remove any obstructions to such overflight. AUVSI worries that avigation easements could be used to create “toll lanes” for drones.

Behold The Turkish Navy’s Drone Aircraft Carrier

The Turkish navy is modifying a new assault ship to include a winch-and-pulley system and a bow ramp. This would allow fixed-wing drones to easily launch from the ship. The illustration of the carrier shows Baykar TB-2/3 drones on the deck.

CPD launched secret drone program with off-the-books cash

The Sun-Times reports that last summer, the Chicago Police Department started a drone program without telling the public. The Electronic & Technical Support Unit (Counter-terrorism) funded this with off-budget cash. Training was underway in June 2020 and at the time the director of police research and development, wrote in an email, “Some of the Drone uses will be for missing persons, crime scene photos, and terrorist-related issues.” This comes to light because a transparency nonprofit called Distributed Denial of Secrets leaked hacked city emails.

UAV Video of the Week

Epic Footage From Drone Getting Wrecked By A Tornado

The drone didn’t survive, but some video did.

Video: 05-02-2021 Yazoo City, MS – Damaging Tornado Close Range Drone

Mentioned

FAA Safety Briefing – Sharing the Skies Safely | May/June 2021 [PDF]

Feature articles include:

Sharing the Skies Safely: An Overview of Unmanned Traffic Management
Rolling Out the Rules: New Drone Rules Advance the Vision
Don’t Fear the Drone!: Let’s Reap the Benefits that Drones Have to Offer
Engaging with Academia: How the FAA is Helping Prepare Tomorrow’s UAS Workforce
You’re Not Alone with Your Drone: Building Safer Skies Through Education

372 Great Lakes Drone Company

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 41:13 — 28.3MB)

Subscribe: Google Podcasts | Email | RSS

An interview with Great Lakes Drone Company, producers of drone light shows. Also, first responders and augmented reality controlled UAVs, drones that locate trash, Wing drone delivery expansion plans, QR codes in the nighttime sky, and a drone that launches a drone.

Guests

We talk with Ashley Munson and Lindsay Nitz from Great Lakes Drone Company about producing drone light shows. Recorded at the 2021 Sun ‘n Fun Aerospace Expo on April 17, 2021.

UAV News

New Headsets Let Police Control Drone Swarms ‘Hands Free’

Researchers want to support firefighters in Montréal during fire-related emergencies. Their solution is a swarm of drones and an augmented reality headset. They designed an AR interface using the Magic Leap 1 headset that can manage the UAVs in stressful situations.

Drones for the Environment: Battling Trash in San Francisco Estuaries

California researchers are using imagery from unmodified DJI Mavic 2 Pro drones and AI to find plastics and trash along the banks of creeks and streams. The idea is to collect the rubbish before it washes into the bay or the ocean.

Alphabet unit Wing seeks FAA OK to help expand U.S. drone operations

Wing wants to grow its drone delivery service beyond the Christiansburg, Virginia residents that are now supported. Wing is petitioning the FAA to consolidate remote pilot operations from local facilities “to regional operations facilities that are capable of safely controlling a larger number of aircraft simultaneously.” They also want to use a derivative version of the drones and change the operator line check requirement to every 12 months instead of every three months. The FAA says they’ll accept public comments on the petition before making a decision.

The future of advertising is here, and it’s a giant QR code formed by drones flying over Shanghai

Chinese video sharing and streaming site Bilibili created a large nighttime drone display that included a QR code in the sky using 1,500 drones. This was part of a light show celebrating a video game anniversary. Bilibili posted a video with the entire performance:

Video: Princess Connect! Re:Dive drone show

Valkyrie drone launches even smaller drone from inside payload bay

A Kratos XQ-58A Valkyrie experimental “attritable” drone successfully released an ALTIUS-600 autonomous drone. The ALTIUS-600 is a small tube-launched drone made by Area-I and it was released from the Valkyrie internal weapons bay. The XQ-58A Valkyrie is designed and built by Kratos for the USAF Low-Cost Attritable Strike Demonstrator program. The ALTIUS-600 is part of the ALTIUS family of autonomous UAS that can be launched from the air, sea, and ground from systems like the Common Launch Tube (CLT), Pneumatically Integrated Launch System (PILS), and other launch systems.

365 Remote Identification Implications

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 32:46 — 22.5MB)

Subscribe: Google Podcasts | Email | RSS

Remote Identification from the eyes of different stakeholders, the Speed Racer is revealed, a buyer’s guide to drones for beginners, wet drones in Scotland, saving dolphins in New Zealand, Skyborg is coming this summer, and rogue drone detection and mitigation.

UAV News

How You Fly Determines Where You Stand: A RID Comparative

The final remote identification rule differed from the NPRM, and this article examines how the rule impacts different stakeholders, including service suppliers, drone service providers and operators, security agencies, hobby and recreational users, foreign-registered drones, designers, and producers.

Skunk Works Reveals Speed Racer Configuration

Lockheed Martin Skunk Works has provided some information about their secretive air-launched UAS. The Speed Racer has a hexagonal fuselage with folding and swept wings and two canted aft dorsal tails and one ventral tail. In a company video, the Speed Racer was launched by what looks like a Beechcraft 1900D.

7 Best Drones for Beginners: Your Buyer’s Guide

This article proposed some beginner drones ranging in price from $45 to $330.

Scottish police slammed over non-waterproof drone purchase

Scottish police chiefs purchased $83,000 worth of DJI Matrice 210 drones to help locate missing people and to lower response times. The problem is the Matrice 210 isn’t designed to fly in the rain and 16 of them have crashed flying in wet weather. DJI says the Matrice 210 is certified to an IP43 rating which is insufficient in the rain.

New Zealand Supporting Drone Project to Monitor Rare Dolphins

High hopes: drones join fight to save New Zealand’s rarest dolphin

The Māui Drone Project will use drones to monitor and protect the Maui dolphin, one of the world’s rarest marine mammals. It is estimated that there are only 63 adult members of the species left. The fixed-wing VTOL drones will find and track Maui dolphins, fly over them without disturbing them, and collect data on their habitat, population size and other behaviors. In testing, the drone can distinguish Māui dolphins from other species with over 90% accuracy, using AI technology. The one-year project is a collaboration between the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI), the MAUI63 nonprofit wildlife organization, and the World Wildlife Fund-New Zealand.

Video from WWF New Zealand: MAUI63 Drone Launch

USAF to flight test Skyborg autonomous system at Orange Flag this summer

The US Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) is developing the Skyborg autonomous aircraft. The program is in its early development phase but ultimately Skyborg technology will be incorporated into UAVs that are considered expendable in combat. The technology will be tested during Orange Flag exercises this summer. AFRL has contracted with Boeing, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, and Kratos Defense & Security Solutions to develop the prototypes.

FAA Selects Five Host Airports to Test and Evaluate Unmanned Aircraft Detection and Mitigation Systems

The FAA has selected five host airports to evaluate technologies and systems that could detect and mitigate potential safety risks posed by unmanned aircraft. The effort is part of the FAA’s Airport Unmanned Aircraft Systems Detection and Mitigation Research Program. Researchers plan to test and evaluate at least 10 technologies or systems at these airports.

See the news release: FAA to Test and Evaluate Unmanned Aircraft Detection & Mitigation Equipment at Airports.

Testing will begin in 2021 and continue through 2023 to create standards for future unmanned aircraft detection and mitigation technologies at airports around the country. The FAA selected the following airports:

Atlantic City International Airport in Atlantic City, New Jersey
Syracuse Hancock International Airport in Syracuse, New York
Rickenbacker International Airport in Columbus, Ohio
Huntsville International Airport in Huntsville, Alabama
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in Seattle, Washington

354 Home Design for Drone Deliveries

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 28:55 — 19.9MB)

Subscribe: Google Podcasts | Email | RSS

Designing homes to accept deliveries by drones, a Smellidrone, Virginia partners with a UAS company, launching smallsats, refreshments delivered to golfers, a passive perching mechanism for micro drones, contract awards for loyal wingman prototypes, a long-range medical test flight in South Korea.

UAV News

Drones are poised to reshape home design

If delivery drones become prolific, that might have implications for the way homes are designed to accept deliveries by drone. That includes the location where deliveries are made and how they are are made.

Tech startup Valqari is developing drone-delivery mailboxes where the top of the mailbox acts as a landing pad, the drone activates a retractable door, and space opens to accommodate packages. These mailboxes could be mounted on rooftops and windowsills of homes, or be part of a neighborhood bank of mailboxes.

The Paramount Miami Worldcenter condo building in Florida was designed to include a “skyport” platform on the roof. The platform could accommodate VTOL vehicles for residents or a package delivery area.

Walmart submitted a patent application for a delivery chute mounted onto an apartment building. Drone deliveries would be dropped through the chute and onto a conveyor belt, then packages would be carried to the building’s mailroom for distribution.

‘Smellicopter’ drone sniffs its way around its surroundings

Researchers from the University of Washington are using live moth antennas on an autonomous drone. Use cases include detecting chemicals in the air, gas leaks and explosives, locating disaster survivors, and narcotics detection. Most human-made sensors are not sensitive enough or fast enough. Professor Thomas Daniel, a biologist at the University of Washington says, “Cells in a moth antenna amplify chemical signals. The moths do it really efficiently – one scent molecule can trigger lots of cellular responses, and that’s the trick. This process is super-efficient, specific, and fast.”

Drone company to invest millions, build new headquarters in Virginia

Silent Falcon UAS Technologies intends to invest $6 million for its new East Coast headquarters for research, development, and manufacturing at the Front Royal-Warren County Airport. The company manufactures UAS components and sensors for the security, military, and commercial markets. The partnership with Virginia will create 250 jobs for the area. The Unmanned Systems Lab at Randolph-Macon Academy will act as part of a pre-professional pathway initiative for students.

Aevum unveils smallsat-launching drone aircraft

Huntsville, Alabama startup Aevum unveiled its Ravn X drone. The aircraft will become the first stage of its smallsat launch system. The company wants to provide a fast-response service using autonomous aircraft that can take off from any mile-long runway.

One of the many perks at Michael Jordan’s Grove XXIII golf club? Drones deliver drinks and snacks

At The Grove XXIII in Hobe Sound, Florida, Michael Jordan’s golf club, drones are delivering beer and food to players on the course. Video shows a multirotor lowering a bag to a thirsty golfer on the course.

Mechanical gripper allows drones to hang from objects

Engineers at Colorado State University have developed a gripper for micro air vehicles (MAVs). The gripper is intended to mount on the top of third-party MAVs so they can rest and save batteries when they don’t need to be flying. The gripper has a vertical plunger-like pad in the middle that is mechanically linked to two diagonally raised folding arms. The MAV flies up against the underside of a horizontal object and the force of impact pushes the pad down, engaging the two arms to clasp the object.

Video: Passive Perching for Flying Robots with Bistable Grippers

These Three Companies Will Build Drones To Carry The Air Force’s “Skyborg” AI Computer Brain

Boeing, General Atomics, and Kratos were all awarded 24-month contracts. The three will build prototypes that will be “missionized prototypes with the ability to fly in experimentation events while teaming with manned aircraft.” The Air Force says it expects all three companies to deliver an initial batch of prototypes no later than May 2021. Speculated aircraft are the Kratos XQ-58 Valkyrie drone or variants, the General Atomics Avenger drone or a version of the Predator C, and the Boeing loyal wingman-type design from its Australian division.

PABLO AIR succeeds in simultaneous delivery using two drones in a 50-mile circular flight

In a recent test flight, Korean UAV company PABLO AIR shipped medical supplies to two islands with two drones. The roundtrip journey was 50 miles and the mission took one hour and twenty minutes. This was the longest drone flight made in Korea and took place in inclement weather with VTOL) drones.

338 Drones and Biomimicry

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 33:47 — 23.3MB)

Subscribe: Google Podcasts | Email | RSS

Avian biomimicry, stadium sanitizing with a drone, a Galileo competition, a new HALE flies, drones and electromagnetic pulses, wildfire data from drones, new standards from EASA, an F-15 with a loyal wingman under its wing.

UAV News

Biomimicry from The Drone Bird Co. — The Aves from The Drone Bird Co.

A Bird James Bond Might Love

Netherlands-based The Drone Bird Co. knows something about biomimicry. The company has used flapping drones masquerading peregrine falcons to disburse populations of pest birds. Now the company has a non-flapping series called Aves (“aves” being Latin for “birds.”) CEO Jan-Willem van den Eijkel: “The AVES series is basically a very big fixed-wing bird whether it’s a gull, a hawk or an eagle. You can make any shape, but the gull was the most ambitious because of the wing shape. If you look at the gull, you’ll see there is no tail or stabilizer, so to make it look like the gull and fly stably, we had to test and develop a lot.”

Pennsylvania company using disinfecting drones to help fans return to stadiums in fall

Aeras Fog Company says their drone can sanitize an entire stadium in three hours. The 50-pound MG1S drone can spray disinfectant up to 20 acres-an-hour. People can occupy the sanitized space within three minutes. The drone is similar to those used for fertilizing crop fields.

MyGalileoDrone competition seeks UAV innovations

The European GNSS Agency (GSA) has launched the MyGalileoDrone competition. “The aim of the contest is to design, develop, test, and prepare for commercial launch a drone-based application and/or service able to provide a position and/or time fix by using a Galileo-enabled receiver.” Galileo can be used on the drone, smartphone app, payload, or in any other device supporting the Galileo drone application. Initial ideas should be submitted by Aug. 31, 2020.

American Made Swift High-Altitude-Long-Endurance UAS Completes Landmark First Flight

Swift Engineering‘s high altitude long endurance (HALE) UAS completed its maiden flight at New Mexico’s Spaceport America. The Swift HALE UAS is designed to operate unmanned at 70,000 feet and offers 24-hour persistent and stable upper atmosphere operations for commercial and military surveillance, monitoring, communications, and security applications. The 72-foot solar-powered air vehicle weighs less than 180 pounds and can safely carry up to 15-pound payloads for missions.

Northrop Grumman to use Epirus’ C-UAS EMP weapon system

Northrop Grumman will use the Leonidas electromagnetic pulse (EMP) weapon system from Epirus. Leonidas uses solid-state commercial semiconductor technology for C-UAS defense and when fired, it creates an EMP that can be directed for precision targeting. It can “sanitise a volume of terrain or sky, creating a force field effect.” This will become part of the Northrop Grumman Counter-Unmanned Aerial System (C-UAS) systems-of-systems solution offering.

Plymouth Rock Technologies Forms Strategic Alliance With Hummingbird Drones to Fight Wildfire Threats

Plymouth Rock Technologies Inc. (PRT) develops threat detection technologies while Hummingbird Drones deals with wildfire analysis from drones. The companies are working together to mount sensors on drones and provide software that allows live actionable data for wildfire analysis.

EASA publishes proposed standards for certification of light drones

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has proposed Special Condition Light UAS standards in a 31-page draft document. The standards are applicable to unmanned aircraft under 600 Kg with no occupants. EASA is defining risk-based certification requirements. The proposal is open for public comments until September 30, 2020.

F-15 Eagle Seen Loaded With Loyal Wingman Drone For Previously Unknown Tests

An F-15C was photographed in a hangar with a loyal wingman drone attached to its left underwing pylon. The modified UTAP-22 Mako is from Kratos Defense and Security Solutions. The UTAP-22 reportedly has a price of between $2 and $3 million, can carry up 350 pounds of stores or other payloads, plus an additional 500 pounds of stores externally on underwing pylons and wingtip pods.

Video of the Week

360° video – The NRC’s Aerial Robotics Laboratory

The National Research Council of Canada’s Aerial Robotics Laboratory is an indoor drone testing environment designed for the development of contact-based drone applications on elevated structures.

UAV182 Super Bowl Goes Gaga Over Drones

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 32:39 — 22.5MB)

Subscribe: Google Podcasts | Email | RSS

Drones appear at the Super Bowl, Kansas wants to be an unmanned aircraft leader, UAS for newsgathering gains momentum, an unmanned air combat drone, drones that seed clouds, and those that pollinate.

Intel® Shooting Star™ drones light show at Super Bowl LI

UAV News

Lady Gaga Halftime Drone Swarm Was Pretaped to Shield Crowd

The Super Bowl LI halftime show included 300 drones choreographed by Intel. The drones were filmed in advance to comply with the requirement for no flights over people, and the TFR in effect for the event. Also, One of Amazon’s delivery drones showed up in a Super Bowl ad. In the Amazon TV commercial, an Amazon Echo is used to order Doritos from Amazon Prime Air, then the drone appears outside the window.

Kansas UAS director outlines initial drone plans

Kansas Department of Transportation’s unmanned aircraft systems director Bob Brock wants to make the state a leader in UAS technology. Brock wants to protect privacy, ensure public safety, help farmers and ranchers adopt UAS to reduce costs and increase yields, and make Kansas a leader in the UAS industry.

WBRC FOX6 News first to use drones for news, weather, traffic coverage

WBRC FOX6 News in Birmingham, Alabama now has two licensed drone pilots. They plan to use their “Sky Tracker” drone for weather and traffic coverage, newsgathering, marketing and creative services, tower inspections, and sales initiatives.

More Details Emerge On Kratos’ Optionally Expendable Air Combat Drones

Kratos Unmanned System Division (KUSD) is developing the XQ-222 unmanned air combat vehicle (UCAV). In 2016, Kratos was awarded a demonstration contract with the Air Force Research Laboratory under the Low-Cost Attritable Strike Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) Demonstration (LCASD) initiative. KUSD said under the contract award, they “will design, develop, deliver, demonstrate and test a technical baseline for a high-speed, long-range, low-cost, limited life-strike UAS.”

Can drones make it rain? Nevada officials upbeat on cloud-seeding prospects

In 2016, the Nevada Institute For Autonomous Systems (NIAS) successfully tested a cloud-seeding payload flown by a fixed-wing drone. This generated a lot of interest from around the world. They expect to make major strides with cloud-seeding operations within the next few weeks.

Scientists Are Building Bee-Like Drones to Fight the Coming Bee-Pocalypse

Some data suggests that the bee population is shrinking worldwide. Bees are critical for pollination so the potential impact on crops is large. Now scientists from the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) in Japan are exploring a solution. They found that a certain sticky substance was good at picking up pollen. Then they glued animal hair to the bottom of a tiny G-Force PXY CAM drone and applied the sticky goo to the hair. Just by flying around and knocking into flowers, the drone picked up and deposited pollen grains.

UAV Videos of the Week

DARPA demonstrates SideArm UAS capture system

DARPA’s SideArm research effort seeks to create a self-contained, portable apparatus able to horizontally launch and retrieve unmanned aerial systems of up to 900 pounds. In December 2016, Aurora Flight Sciences successfully tested a full-scale technology demonstration system.

Mavic Pro on Floats

Listener Mike attended the Central Florida Mavic Owners group meet-up, and one of the guys had a Gator Skinned Mavic on floats. He recorded some video of the float Mavik with his own Mavic.

Mentioned

The “RETREEV Compact Retrieval Tool” from TEC Accessories, a very small pocket-sized grappling hook that might be helpful to retrieving drones from trees (or your keys from a storm drain).