Monthly Archives: December 2018

269 Rogue Drone at the Airport

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A rogue drone repeatedly violated Gatwick Airport airspace with massive consequences. Separately, a drone is suspected of colliding with an airliner. Also, ANSI releases a standardization roadmap, and drones are being used to study peatlands in Australia, deliver items over a mobile network, locate nests of protected birds, and support Mars rover tests.

UAV News

Rogue drone pilot taunts police: Army join snipers in cat and mouse game as Gatwick drone is spotted over runway AGAIN just minutes before it was due to re-open – with chaos set to last until Christmas Eve

Gatwick Airport was thrown into chaos as the airport was shut down after a rogue drone repeatedly entered the airspace. Some 760 flights were grounded and 110,000 people were stranded. A drone buzzed the airport many times and the authorities were hard-pressed to remove the threat.

ANSI Standardization Roadmap for Unmanned Aircraft Systems Published

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) announced the publication of the Standardization Roadmap for Unmanned Aircraft Systems (Version 1.0). The roadmap was developed by the Institute’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems Standardization Collaborative (UASSC) “to coordinate and accelerate the development of the standards and conformity assessment programs needed to facilitate the safe integration of unmanned aircraft systems into the national airspace system of the United States.” The roadmap examines 64 issue areas and identified 60 gaps with no published standard or specification.

Using Drones to Monitor Peatlands

Researchers in Australia are interested in monitoring peatlands and they are using ultra-high spatial resolution imagery from drones. The researchers want to test the viability of creating hydrological models that monitor hydrological changes and assist in the rehabilitation of damaged peatlands.

Vodafone Conducts UK’s First Drone Delivery Over a Mobile Network

Vodafone has made a drone delivery over a 4G mobile network. The Christmas drone made a short 800-meter flight and delivered festive treats.

Video: Vodafone brings Christmas cheer with UK’s first drone delivery over a mobile network

Boeing 737 damaged in possible drone crash near U.S.-Mexico border

Aeromexico Flight 773, a Boeing 737, was struck in the nose on final approach to Tijuana International. The damage was substantial and the incident is under investigation.

Drones can detect protected nightjar nests

Cardiff University ecologists conducted a pilot study in South Wales using drones with thermal imaging sensors to locate ground-dwelling nightjars without disturbing the birds.

Self-driving rovers tested in Mars-like Morocco

Three autonomous SherpaTT rovers were tested for over two weeks in an environment close to that of Mars. Prior to the tests, ESA used a drone to map the location and create high-resolution digital elevation models.

Is someone getting a drone for Christmas? Raleigh will help you find a place to fly it.

The City Council of Raleigh, North Carolina approved a policy for where and when people can fly drones in the city’s parks. The city parks department then created a website with the rules and a map showing where you can take off and land: Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones) Guidelines in Raleigh Parks.

268 Drone Surveillance Systems

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Drone surveillance systems for your home, around your yacht, and at maritime ports. Also, Intel inspects bridges with drones, a drone down under flies over an Airport, and a former FAA Administrator finds a home with drones.

The "Bee" drone surveillance system. Courtesy Sunflower Labs.
The “Bee” drone surveillance system. Courtesy Sunflower Labs.

UAV News

Sunflower Labs is building a drone surveillance system for high-end homes

Sunflower Labs is developing an outdoor home security system with three components: an autonomous drone with a camera called the “Bee,” sensors that also light up the area called “Sunflowers,” and a self-charging station for the done called the “Hive.” The Sunflowers identify people, cars, and animals and determine speed and direction of approach. The Bee flies autonomously to the scene, guided by the Sunflower sensors, and streams live video. When the Bee is done, it returns to the Hive which recharges the drone, protects it from the weather, and houses the system’s computer.

Port of Amsterdam trials GPS-based UAV monitoring system

Martek Anti-Drone Systems is providing its M.A.D.S. (Marine Anti-Drone System) in a 4-week trial at the Port of Amsterdam. Port customers are looking at their own legitimate drone operations but there is also the opportunity for illegal drone operations. The Port wants to find out who is flying what, where, and why.

Martek also markets its system to yacht owners. When a threat is detected, M.A.D.S. creates an electronic exclusion zone around the yacht. If a drone enters, the system blocks the drone’s control/video communications signal, which initiates the drone’s fail-safe mode to land or returns to its operator.

Intel Collaborates with Two Departments of Transportation for UAS Bridge Inspections

Intel’s Falcon 8+ drone hardware and software were used for bridge inspections and the Daniel Carter Beard Bridge over the Ohio River connecting Ohio and Kentucky, and the Stone Arch Bridge in Minnesota, a pedestrian and bicycle bridge.

The 8-lane Daniel Carter Beard Bridge would normally experience lane closures for the inspection. With inspection by drone, this was not required. Inspection hours at the Stone Arch Bridge was reduced by 28 percent, at a cost savings of about 40 percent. Video: Intel Commercial Drones Speed Up US Bridge Inspections.

Hunt after drone flies near plane at Perth Airport

A drone was spotted flying over Perth Airport, first by a pilot in a plane taking off and then by an airport worker. Air traffic control alerted all pilots and the Federal Police and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority were notified. Neither the drone nor the operator has been found.

Mr. Michael Huerta, Former USA FAA Administrator, has Joined ParaZero’s Advisory Board

Huerta is now on the Advisory Board at ParaZero, the drone parachute system we talked about in Episode #262.

Mentioned

The UAV Digest will be attending the 4th Annual FAA Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Symposium, February 12-14, 2019 at the Baltimore Convention Center. The FAA, industry, academia and other government agencies will discuss the latest topics related to the growing use of UAS and its integration into the national airspace. Registration for the 2019 event is now open.

267 Drones and the Public Safety Sector

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Drone programs for the public safety sector, post-emergency reforestation from DroneSeed, package delivery from Wing and Amazon, a new Airbus high altitude pseudo-satellite flight base, and a proposed BVLOS infrastructure for North Dakota.

UAV News

Send in the drones: NYPD launches its new ‘unmanned aircraft’ system

The NYPD Technical Assistance and Response Unit has acquired 14 drones to be used during emergencies such as rescue missions, inaccessible crime scenes, and hostage situations. They stressed that the drones will be unarmed, they won’t carry out routine patrols, and they won’t spy on potential suspects, but the Legal Aid Society and the New York Civil Liberties Union have concerns.

Detailing the Success of the L.A. Fire Department’s Drone Program

The LAFD created their drone program to provide Incident Commanders with better situational awareness. They spent two years of planning how the drones would be valuable and how they were going to operate the program. Their theme was transparency and communication within the department and with the public.

Swarms of drones can now plant trees in areas devastated by fires

The recent wildfires in California’s were devastating with loss of life, loss of property, and loss of forests. The forests need to be restored and DroneSeed is planning to assist with their system that creates a 3D terrain map with lidar, uses a multispectral camera for soil and vegetation data, and then determines the best location to plant a tree. DroneSeed “seed vessels” include a nutrient puck with a seed in the middle and capsaicin on the outside to help keep animals from eating them. DroneSeed has FAA approval for multi-craft, over-55-pounds UAVs that can work in swarms of up to five crafts to cover larger areas.

Los Angeles Area UAS Disaster Conference to Explore Evolving Role of Drones in Public Safety, Emergency Management, and Wildfire Fighting

Two UAS Drones Disaster Conferences are planned for 2019: Los Angeles March 8-9 at the Columbia Memorial Space Center, and Miami April 11-12 at Florida International University. These will discuss and showcase the role of UAS in preparing for, responding to, and recovering from major incidents and disasters. The conferences will feature presentations, workshops, and live flight demonstrations.

Google’s drone delivery spin-off ‘Wing’ aims to be operational in 2019

Google’s Wing delivery drones head to Europe

Wing is the drone delivery company owned by Google’s parent Alphabet. A flight test program in Helsinki, Finland is to start in the spring and they plan to become operational by the end of 2019. Customers will order through an app, packages can weigh up to 1.5kg (3.3lbs), and delivery will be free during the trial period. Wing will use their own UTM system.

Amazon delays on five-year drone delivery promise

Meanwhile, Amazon will miss its 2013 prediction that delivery drones would be operating in five years. Amazon remains committed, but says they are staying away from fixed timelines.

Airbus opens flight base in Australia for Zephyr UAS operations

Airbus Defence and Space announced the opening of the world’s first High Altitude Pseudo-Satellite (HAPS) flight base serving as the launch site for the Zephyr UAV in Wyndham, Western Australia. Airbus Press Release: Airbus celebrates opening of the world’s first Zephyr Solar High Altitude Pseudo-Satellite operating site.

Burgum announces $30 million UAS infrastructure proposal to support statewide beyond visual line of sight operations

The governor of North Dakota announced a proposal to build out infrastructure for beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) operations for unmanned aircraft systems across North Dakota. The $30 million investment would establish a statewide BVLOS network for UAS command and control, and surveillance equipment for safe integration of manned and unmanned aircraft.