UAV042 It used to be UFOs, now it’s UAVs

Nighthawk IV UAS

AUVSI’s Unmanned Systems 2014 conference and trade show, a drone narrowly misses a commercial flight, and hack-proof UAS software from DARPA.

Guest: Bob Schmidt, President, UAV Propulsion Tech.

AUVSI’s Unmanned Systems 2014 conference and trade show was held in Orlando, Florida May 12-15, 2014. Bob attended and he offers his perspectives on the event. Follow Bob on Twitter as @Schmidtproducts.

The News:

Drone just missed turbo-prop over Perth military airspace

A De Havilland Dash 8-300 turbo-prop on approach to Perth Airport encountered a strobe light coming towards them. After taking evasive action, the object passed them about 20 m horizontally and 100 ft vertically. Was it a UAV at 3,800 feet?

Airplane Near-Misses: How Often Do They Happen?

Actually, quite often, according to the FAA.

DARPA unveils hack-proof drone

The Defense Advance Research Project Agency (DARPA) has a project to develop hack-proof software for aircraft navigation and control. In the High Assurance Cyber Military Systems project (HACMS), cyber experts were unable to hack into a prototype quadcopter running the software.

Videos of the Week:

David’s pick: Superyacht mast pulled, filmed by a Drone. This is Superyachting. Big boat, big mast, impressive aerial views.

Max’s pick: Basic Quadcopter Tutorial – Chapter 1. This 9-part video tutorial shows how to build a quadcopter from components. Produced by Hoverfly, who develop multi-rotor aerial systems, including a tethered quadcopter.

Listener Feedback:

Departments of Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, 2015 [PDF] Will more money help the FAA develop UAS regulations sooner? From Bill.

How to shoot amazing video from drones. A compilation of videos shot by UAV’s. From Kevin.

Northrop Grumman to collaborate with RMIT University on UAS. Northrop Grumman and the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) University plan to study airworthiness operating requirements for UAS in Australia, Focusing on larger aircraft.

Micro-Aircraft Declared Safe to Fly in U.S. Skies. Applied Research Associates, Inc. produces the Nighthawk IV UAS, launched by hand or tube with GPS and a built-in autopilot. It weighs 1.6 pounds, has a 60 minute flight time, and a range of over 10km. From Jesse. (Photo above.)