DroneDJ

European aviation and aerospace giant Airbus has announced its expansion in the booming security and defense UAV sector with the acquisition of US tech company Aerovel, maker of the innovative Flexrotor intelligence and reconnaissance data collection drone.

The future of autonomous piloting has come at least two steps nearer with news that two breakthrough trial flights were completed by different aviation tech companies – including one whose systems permitted a cargo plane to fly with nobody in the cockpit.

Were there any doubt remaining about how the war in Ukraine has transformed the way drones are deployed – and how manufacturers now view military applications as the most lucrative area in the sector – Airbus provided compelling evidence by founding a new US unit dedicated to creating UAVs designed for martial applications in the bustling business activity.

Airbus has remarkable success in developing its record-shattering Zephyr high-altitude platform system (HAPS), but now the European aviation giant is now looking to bring in outside investors to help take the solar-powered drone to market.

Supernal, the advanced air mobility (AAM) unit of South Korean automotive giant Hyundai, has struck a partnership Microsoft to create cloud-based tools for use in craft design and flight simulation, and eventually in the manufacturing and maintenance of planes.  

Armed forces in much of the world are developing small, uncrewed aerial assets to assist larger aircraft in military operation ­– including combat situations. European aviation giant Airbus is similarly working on what it calls Remote Carrier drones, and this month successfully tested them in two different scenarios.

Ohio-based logistics company Drone Express is readying to manufacture a new version of its DE-2020 delivery drone, which would use Microsoft AI for in-flight navigation systems. “While our competitors are focusing on how to carry more weight, we are focusing on building a more intelligent aircraft,” quips Beth Flippo, CEO of Drone Express.

European aircraft and aerospace giant Airbus says it successfully tested a small-scale demonstration version of its future “cargo copter” drone, which is designed to transport 250 kg of payload across a maximum range of just over 300 kilometers.

Aviation giant Airbus is expanding its efforts to develop advanced air mobility (AAM) and air taxi services with a project to prepare operation of its CityAirbus NextGen electric takeoff and landing (eVTOL) craft in Japan.

France’s military has announced certification of the Airbus Aliaca maritime reconnaissance, monitoring, and data collection “mini-drone” – a somewhat approximate description of a UAV with a 2.2-meter wingspan and payload capacity of 16 kgs that will soon be accompanying French Navy vessels.

So close, but in the end, no superlative cigar. After 64 straight days of solar-powered flight, the US Army’s Airbus-built Zephyr UAV reportedly plunged from the skies over Arizona, just hours shy of breaking the all-time record for continuous navigation by an aircraft.

There’s no longer any question about whether the US Army’s experimental flight of the solar-powered Zephyr UAV will break the aerial endurance record, only by how much the craft will shatter that mark with each additional day it remains aloft.

Microsoft is offering a preview of its new AI-powered simulator for drones, flying taxis, and other advanced aerial mobility (AAM) vehicles. Project AirSim can be used to build, train, and test autonomous drones through hyper-realistic simulations of real-world scenarios. The goal is to help drone makers encode autonomy without the need for deep expertise in AI.

European aircraft manufacturer Airbus is teaming up with Munich Airport International in a project to offer a full range of advanced air mobility (AAM) solutions – from electric vertical takeoff and landing craft (eVTOL) to vertiport infrastructure – to cities and regions around the globe looking to develop looming next-generation aircraft services like air taxis.

Airbus has announced its Zephyr solar-powered high-altitude platform system (HAPS) drone has completed a barrage of summer tests in Arizona, including what the European aviation consortium described as a record-setting 36 days of flight time spread over a two-day mission. 

Aviation giant Airbus and two Israeli companies have been tasked with tracking down migrants trying to enter Europe via the Mediterranean with drones. The companies will be paid €100 million or about $118 million.

HAPS Mobile and Alphabet’s Loon has delivered the world’s first LTE connectivity from a fixed-wing autonomous glider during a recent test flight. The team even had a video call from the LTE connection to make sure it was working correctly.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) has released its final report on the Airbus Zephyr drone that fell from the sky due to unstable weather near Wyndham Airport, Western Australia. The drone appears to have experienced a series of uncommanded turns, causing it to break apart mid-flight.

brigkAIR and Airbus have announced their Deep Drone Challenge for the public with up to €50,000 ($60,000) in prize money and professional mentorship. If you are at least 18 years old and live in Germany, you can attend whether you’re a student, professional, hobbyist, or inventor.

When the 10 sites for the US Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) Integration Pilot Program (IPP) were first announced, it always struck me as odd that DJI (and Amazon!) were not mentioned as partners in any of the test setups, even though their drones were widely used by others in the program. Finally, about one year into the UAS Integration Pilot Program, DJI officially joins it as one of the partners at Memphis International Airport.

Expand
Expanding
Close

More and more police departments around the country are using drones and starting drone programs. The Chula Vista Police Department reported on Wednesday that they flew more than 1,000 drone missions in the first year since launching their Drone as a First Responder (DFR) program, which is part of the UAS Integration Pilot Program. The drone program assisted in 130 arrests.

Expand
Expanding
Close

As part of the UAS Integration Pilot Program, the University of Alaska completed the first-ever ‘Beyond-Visual-Line-of-Sight’ drone flight without a visual observer to inspect a four-mile stretch of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline. The BVLOS drone flight was made possible with Iris Automation’s onboard detect and avoid system – called Casia.

Expand
Expanding
Close