An eye-catching stunt to pilot a drone over 10 kilometres of stunning Hong Kong countryside in order to deliver a chocolate bar to a friend took months of careful planning, one of the project’s pilots has revealed. Continue reading
Category Archives: Non-Military & Commercial UAS
Indian Regional Police Forces Ban Private UAS
Days after the Chennai police said that it was considering regulation of private use of drones or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), Kolkata Police banned any private use of UAVs or drones in the city. This comes in the wake of a private drone crashing into the White House compound in Washington D.C. on Monday.
Spain Releases List of Approved UAS Operators
The Spanish State Aviation Safety Agency, a division of the Ministry of Public Works and Transport (Ministerio de Fomento) has just published a list of approved UAS operators.
DJI to Disable Phantom in No-Fly Zones
Manufacturer DJI will disable all of its devices within a 15.5-mile radius of downtown Washington D.C., following the crash landing of one its quadcopters in the White House compound on Monday. Continue reading
Unlicensed UAS Pilots Face One Year Jail in Thailand
Personal drones will come under control under a new regulation now being drawn by the Transport Ministry in Thailand. Continue reading
New Malware Can Bring Down Drones Mid-Flight
Maldrone bills itself as the “first backdoor for drones.” Developed by security researcher Rahul Sasi, this malware tricks a drone’s autonomous decision-making unit into handing over control to a hacker. Once the drone has been infected, that hacker can do anything from flying the drone to the destination of their choice to making the drone just drop out of the sky. Continue reading
FAA Settles Pirker Case
The FAA has settled the fine in the Huerta v. Pirker court case for an estimated $1,100 penalty to Raphael Pirker, who was originally fined $10,000 by the FAA for using a RiteWing Zephyr II aircraft to film promotional videos for the University of Virginia Medical Center. Continue reading
FAA Grants Two More UAS Exemptions
The Federal Aviation Administration continues to allow expanded commercial use of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) operations by granting two more regulatory exemptions, bringing the total to 16 grants. Continue reading