Bruce Crumley

European aviation giant Airbus has signed a deal with authorities in Saudi Arabia that will update and expand the fleet of traditional helicopters in the Kingdom, while also preparing it for the operation of future urban air mobility (UAM) craft and services like air taxis.

Leading urban air mobility (UAM) aircraft manufacturer, Volocopter, has announced its long-serving CEO, Florian Reuter, will be stepping down in September and make way for former Airbus Defense and Space boss, Dirk Hoke.

Among the large number of heroes in the Ukraine’s determination to repel invading Russian armed forces is a mid-size, locally made drone known as the Punisher – something of a weaponized step-up vehicle from consumer craft to the formidable Turkish-built Bayraktar TB2 UAVs also being flown in the country’s defense. As Team Putin might woefully attest, the pint-size Punisher has been living up to its name.

Researchers involved in a unique wildlife project are flying drones in an effort to track invasive Burmese pythons that are infesting the Everglades and other natural areas of Florida.

African national flag carrier Kenya Airways says it will continue diversifying its activity and income sources by rolling out air taxi services in 2025 ­– part of its efforts to develop next-generation urban air mobility (UAM) operations.

In the wake of the Russian shelling of Ukraine’s enormous Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, contamination detection specialist US Nuclear Corp. says it is sending one of its specialized DroneRAD UAVs to Ukrainian authorities to help monitor the facility’s reactors for potential radiation leaks.

A UK consortium known as Skybus has completed a feasibility study for using a large-size electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft as a form of mass aerial transit that might operate like the organization’s name.

Swiss vertical takeoff and landing aircraft company Wingtra will be giving away three WingtraOne drones as prizes in its new Earth Day Challenge, whose winners will be selected on the merits of their proposed environmental or humanitarian projects.

In a sign that the oft-celebrated (and of late mourned) special relationship between the US and UK is alive still, a rapprochement between the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) on advanced air mobility (AAM) craft is stoking the ambitions of vehicle manufacturers like Joby already active in both nations.

The South Korean capital Seoul is upgrading its stable of smart city light poles with drone-equipped models that will aid officials to battle the problem of illegal parking and monitor traffic snags.

In one of those periodic developments that pits questions of privacy against the rights of people to fly camera-equipped UAVs as they’d like, the Missouri legislature began debate this week on a proposed law to prohibit drones from photographing people or their property without consent.

Singapore companies F-Drones and Marco Polo Marine are teaming up to create what they say will be the world’s first large-scale, electric aerial delivery UAVs designed to service offshore wind farms – and at 90% less cost than current transport options.

Less than a week after Ukraine officials called on private citizens to put their drones to use in defending cities from invading Russian forces, signs are accumulating that consumer UAVs are increasingly taking to the air – and flowing in from abroad – for operation in the conflict.

US defense and security company Leidos Inc. has won a $26 million Air Force Research Laboratory contract to deliver its next-generation counter-drone system designed to neutralize attacks by both individual and swarming UAVs.

A hydrogen-powered drone built in China has reportedly set the nation’s endurance record for UAV flight, with the fixed-wing craft doing so in vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) mode.

Biological science students at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo have schooled themselves in the art of drone piloting as part of their noble pursuit of counting members of local elephant seal populations.

Australian air logistics and drone delivery specialist Swoop Aero has marked another milestone in its healthcare operations in Malawi by delivering Pfizer COVID-19 vaccinations requiring ultra-cold supply chain conditions.

The antennae of drone watchers have started twitching again after drone pilot and DJI leak conduit OsitaLV tweeted claims the company will discount its Air 2 drone while it undertakes previously rumored development a new Mini 3.

Google’s corporate cousin Wing is again expanding its activity in Australia with enlarged drone delivery service in the Canberra area, including orders from its new supermarket client, Coles.

Edinburgh company Flowcopter is trying to bridge a major problem in deploying UAV on extended offshore missions: Smaller craft have neither the heft nor battery life to handle the exacting conditions, while gas-powered engines aren’t well-suited to quick adjustments rotor flight requires. Its solution is a long-distance, heavy-lift drone equipped with hydraulic motors that effectively regulate spin rates.

San Francisco-based electric takeoff and landing (eVTOL) vehicle and air taxi company Archer Aviation finished last year with a bang. Now, its co-founders and -CEOs Brett Adcock and Adam Goldstein tell DroneDJ why they think 2022 will be even more exciting.