Category Archives: News

‘Commercial Vendors and the Public Safety UAS Sector’ Report Issued

Drone search and rescue expert Gene Robinson (left) interviews members of the Los Angeles Fire Department UAS team at the DRONERESPONDERS U.S. Public Safety UAS Summit

The lack of standardized training and certification is the top issue hampering public safety drone operations, according to DRONERESPONDERS – the world’s fastest growing non-profit organization supporting public safety UAS. The determination stems from a double-validated research initiative based on survey data, as well as live focus group feedback conducted during last week’s U.S. Public Safety UAS Summit held at Commercial UAV Expo Americas in Las Vegas. Continue reading

Swift Assists Bahamas Relief Efforts

Swift Team captures images of the rebuilding efforts in seaside communities

The Government of Bahamas recently engaged Swift Engineering’s Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) Team to support the country’s post-hurricane relief efforts. Following the Category 5 Hurricane that caused damage along with parts of its archipelago, the government engaged Swift to conduct 98 day and night mapping missions over two weeks. Continue reading

GA-ASI’s Predator Series Passes Six Million Flight Hours

Predator B ISR at Gray Butte

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. has announced that its Predator-series of Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA), which includes the Predator, Predator B, Gray Eagle, Avenger and MQ-9B SkyGuardian lines, has surpassed six million flight hours. The milestone was achieved on October 31, 2019 with GA-ASI aircraft having completed 430,495 total missions with close to 90 percent of those missions flown in combat. Continue reading

PRIMOCO Tests UAV Navigation’s Flight Control System

Primoco, a Czech company, has been testing the latest version of UAV Navigation’s Flight Control System (FCS) on its 150kg fixed wing UAV. During the tests Primoco noted a number of improvements, including more efficient and advanced control, and in particular a completely automatic take-off and landing capability without using RTK or DGPS systems. Continue reading

Chinese Military Equipment Lacks Quality, Say Experts

China is making significant headway in terms of international arms sales, with the country having surged into fifth place globally and now trailing only the USA, Russia, France and Germany respectively. However, there are numerous signs that the quality of Chinese military products is lacking, with even US government  officials weighing in on the topic. Continue reading