No one seems to know much about the Air Force’s X-37B secret space plane except that it appears to be working exactly as designed. The unmanned Boeing-built craft, which resembles a miniature space shuttle, returned to Earth on Friday after nearly two years — 674 days, to be exact — in space. It’s the X-37B program’s third mission to space and by far the longest. Continue reading
German Luna UAS Cannot fly in Ukraine in Winter
Germany’s Luna UAS cannot fly in Ukraine during the winter period for technical reasons, so the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) monitors will not be able to use them, the Bild newspaper said on Friday.
Football Stadium UAS Flights Investigated by UK Civil Aviation Authority
UAS spotted flying over English football grounds are being investigated by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). The remote-controlled aircraft flew over stadiums recently in Nottingham and Derby as games were under way. The flights could be in breach of legislation that states they must not be flown within 150m of built-up areas.
Student UAS Project to Monitor Natural Gas Pipelines
Cedarville geology and geoscience students are working on two senior projects using an Unmanned Aerial System (UAS), , as part of a partnership with Remote Intelligence, LLC., in Wellsboro, Pa. Remote Intelligence is partnering with Cedarville to provide guidance and material resources to students. Cedarville and Remote Intelligence are also in preliminary talks to study how UAS systems could help in the planning, construction, and monitoring of natural gas pipelines.
Second Insurance Company Requests FAA Permit
State Farm Insurance Company is seeking permission from the Federal Aviation Administration to test the use of drones to capture images, including damage to roofs, during catastrophes.
Yamaha Waits for FAA Approval on Agricultural UAS
The Yamaha Motor Co. is waiting to hear whether the Federal Aviation Administration will grant its RMAX drone a regulatory exemption that will let it operate commercially in certain areas of the U.S. The helicopter has been used in Japan for about two decades to spray crops.
Second Triton UAS Completes First Flight
The U.S. Navy’s second MQ-4C Triton unmanned aircraft system (UAS) has successfully completed its first flight. Operating out of a manufacturing facility in Palmdale, a Navy and Northrop Grumman flight test team conducted the 6.7-hour flight Oct. 15. The flight is a critical first step in preparing the aircraft to fly to a Navy facility in Maryland later this month.
High Efficiency GaAs Solar Cells Can Quadruple UAS Flight Endurance
Alta Devices has announced cooperation with Airware to enable manufacturers of small unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) to integrate solar power into their aircraft. Alta Devices, which makes what are claimed to be the world’s thinnest and highest efficiency solar cells using GaAs, holds the world record for solar cell efficiency at 28.8 percent. Continue reading