Sydney’s massive New Year’s Eve fireworks could be replaced by drones for good after Liberal councilor Craig Chung gave the go-ahead for the City of Sydney to report on the feasibility of using drones. The proposal came up due to the massive bushfires that destroyed much of eastern Australia.
Sydney’s fireworks could be replaced with drones
The AUD$6.5 million New Year’s Eve celebration continues to feel the pressure from the public and politicians to scale back and use the money in other areas, such as bushfire prevention.
Because of all the pressure, Craig Chung decided to bring forward a proposal to test and report on using drones as a viable replacement.
“As the first major city to celebrate New Year, all eyes are on us. It would be a great signal to the world that Sydney is progressive and looking for ways in which it can reduce emissions.”
Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore has also commented on the use of drones, and by her responses, it looks like she is for the idea.
“In recent years, such innovation has led to a more environmentally sustainable display and increased lighting effects and projection.”
The major issue with canceling the fireworks once set up and prepared for is the money. The fireworks bring people from all over the world and make AUD$130 million for business. Due to this, if the fireworks are replaced by drones, organizers must be sure that drones will provide a similar if not better experience than the current displays.
Matthew Chieng had the following to say on the topic of canceling Sydney’s New Year’s Eve fireworks.
“My personal opinion is you could save the $6.5 million for the fireworks, but you’re taking away $130 million from businesses. What does that achieve? They’ve already planned for it all.”
While it seems unlikely that drones will be replacing fireworks this year as planning has likely started already, there is a great chance that within the next few years, drones will replacing the massive fireworks show. Drones have already been used for the last few years, in events around the world, during Super Bowl LIII as well as China’s ‘New Year’s Eve’ celebrations.
Stay in touch!
If you’d like to stay up to date with all the latest drone news, scoops, rumors, and reviews, then follow us on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram, or sign up for our daily email newsletter that goes out every weekday at 6 p.m. ET.
Buy your next drone directly from manufacturers such as DJI, Parrot, or Yuneec, or retailers like Adorama, Amazon, B&H, BestBuy, DroneNerds, or eBay. By using our links, we will make a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for helping DroneDJ grow!
Photo: Andreas Dress
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
Comments