The Dutch parliament has approved legislation that will allow UAS to be used for video surveillance of the country’s citizens. Almost all political parties voted in favour of an amendment to the snappily named municipal act relating to the extension of the authority of the mayor to deploy camera surveillance, which had been proposed by two MPs, Ivo Opstelten and Ronald Plasterk. Continue reading
South Korea Confirms Crashed UAS from North Korea
South Korea has concluded that two UAS equipped with digital cameras that crashed in different locations in the past 10 days were North Korean. The Blue House said yesterday it is attempting to come up with measures to better detect small UAS, including the introduction of a radar designed to detect craft flying at low altitudes. Continue reading
South African CAA Approval Not Necessary for UAS at Africa Aerospace and Defence Exhibition
South African defence industry companies such as Denel and Paramount Group along with foreign manufacturers of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), also known as unmanned aerial systems (UAS), wanting to fly them at Africa Aerospace and Defence (AAD) later this year will only have to obtain military permission. Continue reading
Failed Power Converter Caused MQ-1B Predator Mediterranean Crash in 2013
A failed power converter in an MQ-1B Predator’s onboard control module led to the crash of the aircraft over the Mediterranean Sea, Sept. 17, 2013, according to an Air Combat Command Abbreviated Accident Investigation Board report released on Wednesday. Continue reading
Curtiss H75-C1 Hawk
The Curtiss P-36 Hawk, also known as the Curtiss Hawk Model 75, was an American-designed and built fighter aircraft of the 1930s and 40s. A contemporary of both the Hawker Hurricane and Messerschmitt Bf 109, it was one of the first of a new generation of combat aircraft—a sleek monoplane design making extensive use of metal in its construction and powered by a powerful radial engine. Continue reading
CAA Gets First UK Conviction for Dangerous UAS Flying
A TV-repair shop owner who has become the first person convicted in the UK for “dangerously” flying a UAS says the fine and legal costs will bankrupt him. Robert Knowles, 46, of Barrow-in-Furness, was fined £800 and ordered to pay costs of £3,500 at the Furness and District Magistrate court on Tuesday after being prosecuted by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). Continue reading
FAA Rules Out Use of Military Airspace for UAV Tests
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Department of Defense (DoD) are enforcing limitations on who can use military airspace, a move that will curtail the number of possible places researchers can fly tests with unmanned aircraft. Continue reading
South African Civil Aviation Authority to Crackdown on Illegal UAS Flying
The South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) is set to clampdown on the illegal flying, in civil airspace of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) or Unmanned Aircraft Vehicles (UAV), as normally referred to. The move was prompted by recent reports that purported that there are individuals and/or organisations that are already operating or intending to operate UAS in the South African civil aviation airspace. Continue reading