Tag Archives: uAvionix

426 ADS-B Spoofing

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uAvionix detects ADS-B spoofing, racing drones are delivering explosives, an aerial tanker that autonomously guides and controls multiple drones, self-flying F-16s that test loyal wingmen, the Condor heavy-lift UAV wins its first customer, a new mini light tactical UAS, and Archer Aviation and United Airlines plan air taxi service in Chicago.

UAV News

uAvionix Announces truSky ADS-B Spoofing Detection for SkyLine UAS BVLOS Operations

uAvionix offers its SkyLine UAS BVLOS service to manage the command and control infrastructure and assets across diverse frequency and radio types. Now the company is introducing truSky ADS-B spoofing detection for Skyline. It validates that a particular ADS-B signal is actually coming from an aircraft, and not being broadcast to spoof the signal.

ADS-B spoofing can be used for nefarious purposes and interferes with ATC and detect and avoid systems. It compromises airspace awareness and risks airspace safety and security.

uAvionix truSky works with a network of low-cost dual-frequency ADS-B ground receivers. The aircraft’s signal is confirmed to come from the aircraft’s position. With multiple sensors, truSky backward calculates the aircraft’s position and compares it to the position stated in the ADS-B transmission. When used with the uAvionix SkyLine platform, aircraft are color-coded based on confidence scores.

How racing drones are used as improvised missiles in Ukraine

The war in Ukraine seems to be demonstrating the use of drones in a conflict like never before. Ukraine is even using racing drones as loitering munitions. In a video released last year, a racing drone dives through an open doorway into a building occupied by Russian troops and explodes. There is even a Ukrainian military drone team called Angry Birds. They say they carry out half a dozen racing-drone attacks a day.

Airbus tanker plane takes autonomous control of multiple drones

Airbus Defence and Space has autonomously guided and controlled drones using an A310 Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) flying testbed. The technology is called Auto’Mate, which cuts down on crew fatigue, human error, and training costs. This is seen as a milestone on the way to fully Autonomous Formation Flight and Autonomous Air-to-Air Refueling (A4R).

US Air Force plans self-flying F-16s to test drone wingmen tech

The Air Force plans a fleet of at least 1,000 collaborative combat aircraft, or CCA. But you can’t have loyal wingmen without trusted autonomy, so the service has asked for $50 million to start Project Venom (Viper Experimentation and Next-gen Operations Model). The project would let the Air Force experiment with six F-16s to test and refine the autonomous software.

Drone Delivery Canada sells its first Condor heavy-lift UAV

Drone Delivery Canada sold their first Condor heavy-lift UAV to the Transport Canada agency. The sale was valued at CAD $1.2 million ($880,000) and the company will provide operating and testing support. Air Canada was the sales agent brokering the deal. The Condor is 22 feet long, five feet wide, and seven feet tall with a cargo capacity of 400 pounds. The range is just over 124 miles and the operating speed is nearly 75 mph.

The Drone Delivery Canada Condor hovering. — The Condor, courtesy Drone Delivery Canada.

SURVEY Copter Unveils ‘CAPA-X’ Modular VTOL UAV

At the SOFINS Special Forces exhibition, SURVEY Copter presented a new light tactical UAS called the CAPA-X [PDF]. It features a modular design: Propulsion can be configured for VTOL or HTOL and the payload bay can integrate different types of sensors. Either short or long wings can be configured for hovering at high cruising speeds, or for increased flight autonomy. SURVEY Copter has been an Airbus subsidiary since 2011. They design, produce, and provide operational support for light tactical UAS.

The SURVEY Copter CAPA-X drone in flight. — The CAPA-X, courtesy SURVEY Copter.

Archer Aviation and United Airways Establish Air Taxi Route in Chicago

The companies announced their plans to launch an air taxi service in Chicago in 2025. Passengers will fly a 10-minute trip between O’Hare International Airport (ORD) and Vertiport Chicago. Archer Aviation has flown its prototype, the “Maker” and the production aircraft is the “Midnight.” Archer plans to deploy 6000 aircraft By 2030.

Video: United and Archer Announce Next UAM Route: Chicago

416 European Drone Strategy 2.0

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European drone strategy 2.0, armed drones for Ukraine, drones used for poaching and other wildlife investigations, drone videos of three active volcanoes, dynamically assigning frequencies for UAS command and control, a survey of consumer attitudes on home drone delivery of goods and food, liquid hydrogen power, and the Dover AFB sUAS program.

UAV News

Drone Strategy 2.0: Creating a large-scale European drone market

The European Commission adopted the European Drone Strategy 2.0 which offers a vision for the further development of the European drone market. The Commission wants to ensure that society supports drones. By 2030, the Drone Strategy envisions a number of services, including emergency services, mapping, imaging, inspection and surveillance; the urgent delivery of small packages, such as biological samples or medicines; Air Mobility services, like air taxis that provide regular transport services for passengers, initially with a pilot on board, but ultimately fully automated operations.

The Commission’s strategy includes operational, technical, and financial actions:

Adopting common rules for airworthiness, and new training requirements
Funding the creation of an online platform to support local stakeholders and industry implementing sustainable Innovative Air Mobility.
Developing a Strategic Drone Technology Roadmap to identify priority areas for research and innovation, to reduce existing strategic dependencies and to avoid new ones arising.
Defining criteria for a voluntary cybersecurity-approved drone label.

See: A Drone Strategy 2.0 for a Smart and Sustainable Unmanned Aircraft Eco-System in Europe [PDF].

Senators urge Pentagon to send advanced Gray Eagle drones to Ukraine

After some reports that the Pentagon had decided to not send armed drones to Ukraine, sixteen Senate Republicans and Democrats sent a letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin objecting. In the letter, the Senators say, “This particular [Unmanned Aerial System] will increase Ukraine’s unmanned capabilities in the near term and demands careful reconsideration. Most importantly, armed [Unmanned Aerial Systems] could find and attack Russian warships in the Black Sea, breaking its coercive blockade and alleviate dual pressures on the Ukrainian economy and global food prices.” The General Atomics MQ-1C Gray Eagle drones can hold up to four Hellfire Missiles.

Poachers beware—new drone team launched to assist in wildlife crime investigations

The five Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (DWR) drone law enforcement officers have been trained and have their FAA pilot licenses. The drones will assist officers in their investigations through increased documentation of crime scenes and locating evidence.

Drones capture video of three active volcanoes around the world

Watch videos of three active volcanoes: Mauna Loa in Hawaii, the Villarrica volcano in Chile, and Russia’s Shiveluch volcano.

uAvionix Awarded FAA contract to Implement and demonstrate C-Band Frequency Assignment Manager (FAM) with Multiple UAS Operations

uAvionix won a contract from the FAA for end-to-end demonstrations of a Frequency Assignment Manager (FAM) as a component of the uAvionix SkyLine™ Command and Control Communications Service Provider (C2CSP) management platform. The system will dynamically assign UAS C-Band Command and Non-Payload Control frequencies to UAS with CNPC radios. uAvionix teamed with the Northern Plains UAS Test Site to develop command and control concepts.

The contract demonstrations include:

Managing a pool of frequencies in a geographic area.
Allocating available frequencies to a specific CNPC radio for a specific mission.
Receiving assigned frequencies for the designated mission.
CNPC radios operating on the assigned frequencies.
Non-interference when multiple aircraft are operating in the area.

Do US Consumers Want Drone Delivery? Auterion’s 2022 Report

Auterion surveyed 1,000 Americans to get their perspective on drones. 94% view drones as having a potential positive purpose in the world. 67% view drones as more environmentally friendly than trucks. 57% think the adoption of small-quantity drone deliveries is a good thing for the environment. 47% said they would make a purchase from a specific retailer due to the option of a drone delivery program. 64% believe drones are becoming an option for home delivery now or will be in the near future. Press release: Drones set to make the future of holiday shipping greener. Download the report: Drone Delivery in the United States.

This New Airplane Could Be The First to Fly on Carbon-Free Liquid Hydrogen

Since 2016, the German company H2Fly has been flying an airplane powered by a hydrogen gas fuel cell. The Hy4 is a four-seat aircraft and in April it set a record for the highest zero-emission flight, at 7,230 feet. H2Fly plans to switch from Hydrogen gas to liquid. That would double the range. Testing is scheduled for 2023. The company has entered into a partnership with Deutsche Aircraft to develop a fuel-cell-powered aircraft that will hold up to 40 passengers, with a range of 1,200 miles.

Video: Präsentation der sechsten Wasserstoff-Antriebsgeneration in der Hy4

Eye in the sky: SUAS program takes flight at Dover AFB

The 436th Airlift Wing Plans and Programs office at Dover AFB has an sUAS program jointly run with the Bedrock Dover AFB Innovation Lab. Recently, a Skydio X2D Small Unmanned Aerial System drone was tested during its first operational flight around a static aircraft at Dover on Nov. 4, 2022. The X2D was selected from other Department of Defense-approved systems due to its advanced obstacle avoidance system and other possible capabilities.

373 ASRS for UAS Operators

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The NASA/FAA ASRS safety reporting system is now extended to UAS operators. Also, an autonomy Level 4 drone, learning from dragonflies, a triple-drop drone, a possible ADS-B solution for UAVs, getting your groceries delivered in Ohio, and a virtual UAS Symposium.

UAV News

FAA’s Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS) now available for drones

NASA’s Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS) collects confidential information about near misses from pilots and others. The data is used by the FAA to make aviation safer while maintaining confidentiality to maximize the number of incidents reported. Aviation Safety Reporting Program (ASRP) for UAS describes how “NASA’s ASRS has a reporting form tailored to the UAS community. This will ensure that the safety data that is collected will result in actionable information for the entire aviation community.”

Exyn Technologies’ drones achieve autonomy milestone with on-board mapping

Drones from Exyn Technologies have reached “Level 4A” autonomy and can explore a designated 3D area without a remote operator and operate without GPS. All spatial and mapping computations are done onboard, and unlike Level 3 autonomy, they do not require an operator who can take over if required.

The company says, “We developed an autonomous system that can take you into dark, dirty, dangerous environments. Place it at the edge of danger and send it off to collect the information that you need. Oftentimes the information you need is beyond the line of sight, both in terms of communications as well as visual.”

See The 6 Levels of Vehicle Autonomy Explained for more.

Future drones likely to resemble 300-million-year-old flying machine

Researchers at the University of South Australia designed and tested components of a dragonfly-inspired drone. They describe the dragonfly as the “apex insect flyer” because of its flying abilities. The team modelled the aerodynamic properties of the dragonfly’s body, studied dragonfly wing geometry of 75 species, and created 3D images of the wings. The researchers believe drones that mimic dragonflies could perform many tasks, such as collecting and delivering unbalanced loads, safely operating near people, exploring delicate natural environments, and executing long surveillance missions.

Published in the journal Drones, 27 March 2021: Biomimetic Drones Inspired by Dragonflies Will Require a Systems Based Approach and Insights from Biology

Wingcopter debuts a triple-drop drone to create ‘logistical highways in the sky’

Wingcopter is a German startup that calls their Wingcopter 198 “the world’s first triple-drop delivery drone.” It’s fully autonomous, fixed-wing, BVLOS, and one operator can manage up to 10 Wingcopter 198s simultaneously. It has quick-swap batteries and can deliver up to 3 packages in a single flight. The company is currently pursuing certification from the FAA that would allow it to operate commercial flights in the United States.

New Patent Integrates UAS into National Airspace Systems, Enables ADS-B Inert & Alert Capability

The patent from uAvionix (U.S. Patent 10,991,260) is titled “Intelligent Non-Disruptive ADS-B Integration for Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS).” The uAvionix patent claims to allow UAS to use ADS-B in a way that minimizes spectrum use. Under the Inert and Alert Concept, the UAS ADS-B solution stays “inert” or in a “listen” mode that is not broadcasting. However, when a safety-critical event takes place, the UAV begins broadcasting its ADS-B position as an “alert.” Once the conditions are safe again, the system reverts to its “inert” state.

Kroger to Deliver Groceries Via Autonomous Drones in Ohio

Forget something for your picnic or barbeque? Drones can help you out in Centerville

Supermarket chain Kroger wants to deliver groceries with autonomous drones, and they are starting a pilot program in Centerville, Ohio, south of Dayton using drones from Drone Express. Test flights near the Kroger Marketplace in Centerville will be managed by licensed Drone Express pilots from an on-site trailer, with additional off-site monitoring. Customer deliveries should begin within a few months and a second pilot is scheduled to start this summer at a Ralphs store in California.

FAA To Host Second Virtual UAS Symposium

The FAA has announced that it will be hosting a two-part virtual UAS/drone symposium in 2021. What the FAA is calling Episode III is scheduled for June 9-10. Episode IV is September 14-15. The FAA notes, “Each episode will feature keynote presentations, expert panels, guided and non-guided networking discussions, one-on-one meetings with experts in the FAA UAS Support Center, and informational sessions with live Q&A.”

Episode III in June will focus on international operations, STEM, public safety operations, recreational drone operations and commercial drone operations.

Episode IV will address UAS traffic management, technology, the FAA BEYOND program, advanced air mobility and international operations.

The symposium is co-hosted by the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI).

FAA UAS Symposium program

Commercial UAV Expo Americas, September 7-9, Las Vegas

Showcasing the global commercial UAV industry, with a special focus on solutions in the Americas region and urban air mobility. Collocated with the Urban Air Mobility Summit.

Commercial UAV Expo Europe, December 7-9 Amsterdam

In its third year, this show co-locates with Amsterdam Drone Week for 2021. This leading pan-European conference and expo is focused on commercial drones.

Video of the Week:

The makers of that Bryant Lake Bowl drone video now have a Mall of America version

Rally Studios of Minneapolis released a first-person video from the Mall of America and its indoor theme park, Nickelodeon Universe.

Video: The Quack Attack is Back

UAV190 The Application of ADS-B to Drones

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Putting ADS-B on small drones, faster and more agile drones for the Drone Racing League, speeding up Part 107 approvals at the FAA, and equipping U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents with sUAS.

ping ADS-B transceivers and transponders shown to scale with a DJI Matrice 100. Courtesy uAvionix.

Interview

Tim Trott, “The Drone Professor,” talks with Ryan Reed from uAvionix at the 2017 Sun ‘n Fun International Fly-In Expo held April 4-9, 2017 in Lakeland, Florida. They discuss the emerging ADS-B options for drones, and how uAvionix is addressing the problems of spectrum congestion and screen clutter.

UAV News

ESPN’s Drone Racing League returns with faster, bigger races

The Drone Racing League is introducing the Racer3 drone for season two. All competing pilots will use the Racer3, which is more powerful and agile than the Racer2. The new drone features 209 LED lights with a built-in LED matrix display, a custom 1,800mA battery, and proprietary internal long range radios for live events and broadcast.

In DRL’s next-gen Racer3 drone combines speed, performance, ESPN quotes DRL founder and CEO Nick Horbaczewski: “It is dramatically more powerful, faster and more agile than the Racer2. The Racer3 can go from zero to 80 miles an hour in less than a second, which means it can basically accelerate on a dime — which makes for really exciting racing and allowed us to create larger courses, more extreme courses.”

Races air on ESPN starting June 20, 2017.

FAA Will Release Maps to Speed up Drone Authorization Applications

The FAA wants to help drone operators improve the quality of their Part 107 airspace authorization requests, and speed up the processing of requests. On April 27, 2017, the FAA plans to release a set of UAS facility maps that show areas and altitudes near airports where UAS may operate safely. These maps will be available at http://www.faa.gov/uas for download in several formats and can be viewed on mobile devices.

Drone pilots can refer to the facility maps and align their applications with altitudes that the maps indicate are likely to be approved for small UAS operations. This simplifies the process and increases the likelihood that the FAA will approve the requests.

The US Border Patrol is trying to build face-reading drones

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is soliciting proposals for small UAS to be used by Border Patrol agents in the field. They are looking for drones that can be carried in a truck, deployed by a single Border Patrol agent in under 5 minutes, include sensors such as infrared cameras and facial-recognition, and distinguish between people, animals, and vehicles. CBP expects to be able to cross-reference drone observations with law enforcement databases.

UAV Video of the Week

Safety Drone?!? Check out the Tracker Drone Bojiang S5C-2 Review – TheRcSaylors

The RcSaylors YouTube channel covers RC, but they frequently provide consumer drone unboxings, reviews, and giveaways.

UAV162 A Call for Harmonized EU Drone Rules

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Manned aviation associations want drone safety rules across the EU, Israeli Air Force changes UAV training system strategy, a Lockheed Martin and the Warsaw University partnership, observations from the Commercial UAV Show Asia, Mercedes and Matternet partner on package delivery, and Huerta delivers InterDrone keynote.

Organizations calling for harmonized EU rules for drones

News

EU aviation groups want all drones to be registered

Ten manned aviation associations issued a Joint call to safely integrate Drones / UAS into Europe’s Airspace [PDF]. They believe the safety risks associated recreational drones are underestimated and they want harmonized rules across the EU. The groups are calling for:

Extensive public awareness campaign
Registration of all drones (Ireland and USA cited as examples)
Mandatory training and certificate/license
Technical Performance Limitations (geofencing)
In-depth research into the impact of collisions between drones and manned aircraft
Integration of recreational drones into national Model Aircraft Flying Regulations
Increase in the effectiveness of enforcement.

Signatories are: Airlines for Europe (A4E), Airports Council International Europe (ACI EUROPE), Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation (CANSO), European Cockpit Association (ECA), European Helicopter Association (EHA), European Regions Airline Association (ERAA), International Air Carrier Association (IACA), International Air Transport Association (IATA), International Federation of Air Line Pilots’ Associations (IFALPA), and International Federation of Air Traffic Controllers’ Associations (IFATCA).

IAF will select existing UAV for training academy

The Israeli Air Force (IAF) had initially planned to ask Israeli UAV manufacturers to develop a dedicated training system for its unmanned air vehicle academy. Instead, the IAF will now select an Israeli off-the-shelf UAV for training.

Lockheed, Warsaw U demonstrate UAV fleet command and control

Lockheed Martin and the Warsaw University of Technology (WUT) are engaged in an advanced applied research program to optimize fleets of manned and unmanned aircraft. They’ve conducted a demonstration where they use advanced math to model the constraints and calculate a “best answer.” The model typically offers a 10 to 20 percent improvement over other methods.

On the Ground at the Commercial UAV Show Asia 2016

The Commercial UAV Show Asia 2016 was held September 1-2, 2016 in Singapore. Netherlands-based Aerialtronics, who specializes in precision agriculture and inspection, showed a gas-sniffer to detect gas leaks in pipelines. Parrot offshoot SenseFly showed applications for agriculture and property mapping. The eBee SQW fixed-wing drone was there, and based around the Parrot Sequoia multispectral camera. Ukrainian-based manned aircraft maker Skyeton recently started manufacturing airframes and avionics systems for third-parties looking to fly their own sensor packages. The Commercial UAV Show next visits the London ExCel center on October 19-20, 2016.

Draganfly Innovations Receives Permission to Test ADS-B Communications Technology

Canada’s Draganfly has become that country’s first UAV manufacturer to receive permission to test an integrated command-and-control system that utilizes automatic dependent surveillance broadcast (ADS-B) avionics with their UAV. Draganfly is partnering with uAvionix.

Mercedes partners with U.S. startup to push drone delivery forward

Daimler AG, the maker of Mercedes-Benz cars and trucks, has acquired a minority stake in Matternet in 5-year, €500 million project to develop drones for networked electric delivery vans. The adVANce initiative will encompass vehicle digitization, automation, robotics and mobility solutions technologies. The Vision Van would have a human driver making deliveries, with the drone simultaneously making additional deliveries.

Drone forensics boosts UAS defense

Department 13 is offering a commercial service that provides drone forensics to clients such as border patrol, prison security, and law enforcement.

Proposal for drones to fly over crowds in the works, FAA chief says at Las Vegas conference

FAA Administrator Michael Huerta delivered the keynote at InterDrone, and confirmed that a proposal to fly over crowds will be released by the end of this year. FAA is working on a proposal for flying beyond visual line of sight.

UAV157 Government and Private Sector Initiatives for UAS Integration

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Initiatives announced by the U.S. Government and private sector that advance the integration of Unmanned Aircraft Systems into the National Airspace System. Also, a 2.5 ounce ADS-B solution, drones that obstruct fighting wildfires, and drones that help fight wildfires.

The pingBuddy WiFi ADS-B receiver

White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) Workshop on Drones and the Future of Aviation

White House Announces New UAS Commitments Made Across the Board

At the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) Workshop on Drones and the Future of Aviation, many steps were announced that advance the integration of UAS into the National Airspace System:

The National Science Foundation will receive $35 million to research how UAS can be deployed for applications like infrastructure inspections, disaster response, agricultural, and studying severe storms

The U.S. Department of the Interior will use UAS in search-and-rescue operations and to augment manned aircraft operations.

UAS industry associations committed to implement educational programs that address privacy best practices.

The FAA will charter an Unmanned Aircraft Safety Team (UAST) similar to the existing Commercial Aviation Safety Team. Government and industry stakeholders will “analyze safety data and develop non-regulatory interventions to mitigate potential causes of accidents involving unmanned aircraft.” See FAA Announces Drone Advisory Committee.

By winter 2017, the FAA will propose rules for operating sUAS over people, and ask for public comment.

NASA will conduct research on detect-and-avoid and command-and-control technologies that lead to standards.

NASA and the FAA will launch a data exchange working group under the UAS Traffic Management (UTM) research team to develop common a data format for sharing information between UAS operators and UTM users.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) will begin collecting gravity measurements with RPVs that improve surface elevation measurements over the United States. NOAA will also investigate how to add UAS observing capabilities to the NOAA fleet of ships.

The Department of the Interior (DOI) will share near-real-time fire location information with the public by July 2017. By December 2017, the DOI will augment manned aircraft missions by developing payloads that can be flown by UAS. By October 2018, the DOI will develop and maintain a training program for the use of UAS in Search and Rescue (SAR).

The U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General will publish new findings and analysis of public opinion on drone deliveries.

In the private sector:

Zipline International will demonstrate using UAVs to deliver medical supplies in hard-to-reach areas.

Flirtey will focus on humanitarian applications for drone delivery technology.

The Commercial Drone Alliance will lead an effort to educate the American public on the integration of UAS into the National Airspace System.

Sinclair Broadcast Group, the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI), and the Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA), will develop and broadcast drone safety public service announcements.

Alphabet’s Project Wing will conduct an operational research study of delivery drones at an FAA UAS Test Site. See Alphabet will begin testing its delivery drones inside the US at test centers. They will also “develop and deploy an open-interface, airspace management solution for safe low-altitude small UAS (sUAS) operations using existing low cost, scalable communication and information technologies.”

The Drone Racing League (DRL) will release best practices for the drone racing industry, including event guidelines, organization, and safety measures

PrecisionHawk is announcing its Phase I Pathfinder results demonstrating the safety of extended visual line of sight (EVLOS) operations for drones in rural areas.

The Women of Commercial Drones organization and the Commercial Drone Alliance announced their collaboration to advance women’s participation in the UAS industry.

DJI is supporting 4-H’s National Youth Science Day in October 2016. This year’s theme is “Drone Discovery,” to inspire kids and young adults to explore science, technology and engineering in more depth.

DroneBase and Drones & Good are forming a partnership to provide transitioning military Veterans with training programs and apprenticeships to start a career in the commercial drone industry.

Details of the Workshop initiatives can be found in: FACT SHEET: New Commitments to Accelerate the Safe Integration of Unmanned Aircraft Systems.

News

uAvionix ADS-B Solution Weighs 2.5 Ounces

uAvionix showed its micro ADS-B products at AirVenture and created quite a stir among the experimental and light sport aircraft crowd. The “Ping Chip” micro-circuitry was designed and built by uAvionix for the mass UAV market. The 12-gram pingBuddy is a low-cost receiver with built-in Wi-Fi and ADS-B dual link in.

DJI and uAvionix Collaborate on ADS-B Collision Avoidance Developer Kit

Darren Liccardo, the VP of Engineering for DJI says, “DJI developers will now be able to process ADS-B data and close the loop all within an embedded computer onboard the vehicle.” With a Ping ADS-B receiver, a drone could sense surrounding aircraft and take action if necessary, to avoid a collision. The DJI Onboard Software Development Kit (SDK) allows access to the flight control system of the drone, so developers could create custom applications for collision avoidance rules that are applicable to the specific mission.

Drones That Launch Flaming Balls Are Being Tested To Help Fight Wildfires

Wildfires can sometimes be stopped through controlled burns, which seek to eliminate the fuel for the fire. This can be dangerous and expensive, and now the University of Nebraska is conducting tests where a sUAS is used to deliver flammable balls that initiate a controlled burn.

Drones Are Interfering with Range 12 Firefighting Efforts, Crews Say

“Range 12” refers to a wildfire in southeastern Washington State, where drones continue to interfere with firefighting efforts. Bureau of Land Management spokesman Randall Rishe says, “I have been on the ground with a tool in my hands, where you have a fire coming right at you. You need that helicopter making that drop right in front of you to help it slow down so you can dig that line. And there’s a drone. That helicopter has to leave, and it’s like your saving grace, you watch fly away.”

Video of the Week

Olympic 2016 – Rio de Janeiro

In honor of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games here’s a video showing all the venues.