Category Archives: Non-Military & Commercial UAS

21st Century Helicopter Flies 4-5 Hours Unmanned


Exhibiting amongst the world’s largest helicopter manufacturing companies at the HAI Heli-Expo in Louisville, Kentucky this week, Olaeris unveiled AEVA, a new unmanned aircraft with a 4-5 hour flight time. AEVA represents a pivot in the world of VTOL aviation, being described by the industry as the “21st Century Helicopter”. Continue reading

Facebook to Test Internet UAV this Year

aquila-drone-facebook

Facebook will begin test flights of its solar-powered Internet UAV later this year, according to CEO Mark Zuckerberg. The Aquila aircraft has the wingspan of a Boeing 737 but weighs about the same as a car. Its wings are covered in solar panels that provide enough energy to keep it aloft for three to six months at an altitude of 60,000 to 90,000 feet, well above aircraft. Continue reading

UAS Learn to Navigate Forest Trails in Switzerland

In Switzerland emergency centres respond to about 1,000 to calls about hikers lost or injured in the forests annually, according to the University of Zurich. But research the university has completed, in collaboration with Università della Svizzera italiana and the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland, may help speed up the search and rescue process.

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