Bruce Crumley

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.

Drone delivery company Wing is moving to bolster activity in what’s already its most vibrant Australian market by taking a new approach to flight and logistics center location, beginning with trial services in the Queensland city of Ipswich.

The Air France group offered a first sign this week that it’s preparing to follow other airlines in embracing emerging advanced air mobility (AAM) aircraft and services, with the announcement that its AFI KLM E&M maintenance unit is partnering with Toulouse-based vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) plane developer Ascendance Flight Technologies.

Stakeholders in next-generation aircraft development and their future activity have hailed the signing of the Advanced Air Mobility Coordination and Leadership Act into law by President Joe Biden, calling it a milestone in the effort to launch and expand AAM services across the US.

Swiss mapping, surveying, and modeling tech company TOPODRONE has introduced its AQUAMAPPER solution that adds underwater LiDAR and bathymetry capacities to the company’s range of drone-transported data collection equipment.

Next-generation aircraft developer Joby says it has applied for design certification of its electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) plane in Japan, which is expected to be a particularly promising market for urban air mobility (UAM) activities.

Manna Aero CEO Bobby Healy is preparing to nearly quadruple the company’s current potential client base in Ireland with the start of drone deliveries in a large Dublin-area town in a few months. From there, he plans to launch activity in European Union nations he considers ready for aerial services. Healy tells DroneDJ in the second part of our interview why he believes its regulations put the EU in particularly strong position to take the global lead in emerging UAV-based services; how Manna’s full-stack drone manufacturing and operation model gives it a business advantage; and why a trained programmer who successfully built two tech travel sector companies decided drone deliveries would be his next challenge.

Drone data collection, surveying, and infrastructure inspection company Soaring Eagle Technologies has added another Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) waiver to its collection – this one permitting virtually unlimited geographic range of mission operation.

Geek-inclined volunteers to Ukraine’s fight against Russia’s invasion won’t be limited to piloting repurposed consumer UAVs anymore, thanks to a new app allowing anybody in the country to provide craft and position information on attack drones and missiles that aerial defense forces can use to neutralize those threats.

Tech entrepreneur Bobby Healy’s objective is as simple as it is enormous. He wants to use the momentum he’s created establishing Manna Aero as Ireland’s hottest aerial tech business to transform it into the biggest and best drone delivery company on the planet. And to do that, he’s readying its launch across the European Union in the coming months, with the US following hard on that.

In response to the summer’s record heat waves amid an enduring period of drought, UK utility Anglian Water moved to ramp up its use of drones to spot pipeline leaks faster – an effort that has already spared the company and its customers countless gallons of expensive wasted seepage.

EHang, the China-based developer of next-generation aircraft for use in urban air mobility (UAM) services, has taken another step in its efforts to usher in the launch of air taxis around the globe by successfully completing demonstration flights of its EH216 in a European Union-sanctioned event.

Canada’s diversified drone services company Volatus has announced it is acquiring a majority stake in Alberta-based Synergy Aviation, which specializes in UAV deployment in the inspection of vast expanses of oil and gas infrastructure.

Next-generation electric takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft developer Archer Aviation has announced it will be presenting the version of the air taxi it will take into production at an event in November.

Aircraft manufacturer Embraer’s aerial mobility company, Eve, has announced a partnership to equip vertiport operational services provider Skyway with its software solution for urban air traffic management (UATM) systems.

Google’s corporate cousin Wing is preparing to initiate drone delivery services in Ireland with trial flights planned to begin in November.

Counter-UAV detection and mitigation specialist Dedrone has unveiled its new hand-held DedroneDefender solution for effectively jamming invasive craft in urban environments.

Ukraine officials aghast at Moscow’s merciless aerial attacks on the nation’s cities and civilian targets take note: US airspace security and protection specialist Fortem Technologies has upgraded its DroneHunter F700 anti-UAV system to more effectively defeat even larger and faster Group 3 craft like Russian Orlan-10s and Iranian Shahed-136s.

Delta has added itself to the list of airlines partnering with developers of electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft (eVTOL) in its deal with Joby to transport premium passengers by air taxis to airports for quicker commutes to their flights.

United Airlines is going beyond its investments in shorter-range electric takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxis with companies like Archer and Eve Mobility, and preparing to reinforce its relationship with a Swedish maker of battery-powered planes that will operate on its regional US routes.

International logistics and drone delivery company Swoop Aero is launching a new service in its home market with aerial transport of lab samples from the Moreton Bay islands off Australia’s east coast city Brisbane.