A startup in Western Ukraine has developed an anti-drone gun it says can drop Russian craft over two miles away, making the locally produced device a potentially lifesaving defense asset for troops battling repurposed Russian consumer UAVs.
Expand Expanding Close
Autonomous aerial vehicle (AAV) company EHang has found yet another partner to promote Urban Air Mobility (UAM) in Spain and Europe. ENAIRE, Spain’s national air navigation services provider, has agreed to collaborate with the Chinese eVTOL maker on the UAS traffic management project, U-Space.
Expand Expanding Close
The DJI Fly app has received a fresh update (version 1.6.8) today. And it’s packed with some incredible new features for Mini 3 Pro users.
Expand Expanding Close
Eve, Embraer‘s urban air mobility (UAM) division, says it has signed a deal with a subsidiary of Kenya Airlines for the acquisition of up to 40 electric takeoff and landing aircraft (eVTOL), with initial deliveries expected in 2026.
Expand Expanding Close
Developer of next generation electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, Archer Aviation, says testing of its Maker air taxi prototype is progressing so well it believes it can start full transition trial flights by the end of this year.
Expand Expanding Close
DJI’s official eBay storefront is now taking 15% off a selection of its certified refurbished quadcopters with free shipping across the board. Headlining this time around is the DJI Mavic Air 2 Drone at $679. Down from the original $799 price tag, this is marking the third-best price of the year. Mavic Air 2 delivers a folding design with 34-minute flight time and plenty of compelling features for those who want something a bit more capable than DJI’s more entry-level offerings. That’s on top of added features like ActiveTrack 3.0 for automatically following a subject, a built-in 48MP camera for capturing 4K60 aerial footage, and upgraded APAS mapping functionality. At this price, you’re effectively getting a flagship drone for the price of a starter quadcopter. I personally bought one of these the last time the quadcopter went on sale and have been enjoying the higher-end experience. You can learn more in our hands-on review and then head below for additional deals and info on the warranty.
Read More
Aerial geophysical mapping specialist Overhead Intelligence has used a drone equipped with Iris Automation safety avionics tech to operate a combined extended visual line of sight (EVLOS) and beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) magnetometer survey mission over a wide area of Canadian mineral deposits.
Expand Expanding Close
Less than a week after it received Federal Aviation Administration Part 135 certification allowing it to operate in the US as a commercial airline, instant logistics specialist Zipline launched regular drone delivery service of medical supplies and prescriptions in North Carolina, in support of its three major healthcare partners.
Expand Expanding Close
Join Yifei and Seth for this week’s weekly round-up of news from the drone industry. Each week they discuss the top stories and pick a drone video of the week.
Shop DJI, Autel, or other drone products on Amazon to support the show.
Red Cat Holdings subsidiary Skypersonic says it has successfully completed the world’s first transcontinental drone inspection relying only on an internet connection from a normal mobile phone. A fully operational utility plant in Turin was inspected using an indoor drone controlled from Orlando, some 4,800 miles away.
Expand Expanding Close
Moves are under way to create the first mass-scale UAV manufacturing operation in Russia, though details of that effort make it unlikely it will compensate for the worsening shortage of commercial drones in the country, as store-bought craft continue being snapped up and sent off to the war effort in Ukraine.
Expand Expanding Close
Last week Micron announced it is breaking the record for the largest MicroSD card to come to the market. Coming in at 1.5 TB, is Micron’s new microSD card the best option for all-day drone storage?
Expand Expanding Close
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.
Expand Expanding Close
Officials in Kenya will be deploying drones over construction sites across the country as part of a monitoring program to both ensure full compliance with building codes, in addition to cracking down on contractors working without proper permits.
Expand Expanding Close
In case anyone needed additional proof of just how grim and merciless the invasion of Ukraine has become, contributors to a few Reddit subreddits have helpfully provided new evidence. Yesterday, a video was posted featuring footage from a purported Ukraine drone as it hovers over, then drops a grenade near a Russian soldier as he tries to empty his bowels – immediately generating bountiful commentary, none of it sympathetic.
Expand Expanding Close
Skydio is expanding its drone insurance policy to protect X2 enterprise users against accidental damages from collisions, water damage, and unrecoverable landings.
Expand Expanding Close
DJI has expanded the availability of its mobile app dedicated to the Agras line of agricultural drones. The previously Chinese-only DJI SmartFarm app now supports English, Japanese, and Thai languages, too.
Expand Expanding Close
In a move that may get Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, and other Internal Revenue Service-averse billionaires contemplating a move into the armed forces, legislation has been tabled in the US seeking to extend many remote operators of military drones the same tax-exempt combat compensation that troops in combat battle receive.
Expand Expanding Close
Indoor Robotics, an Israeli drone technology startup, has raised $15 million in Series A funding to boost the production of its automated security robot, Tando. The indoor drone, which is already in use at several warehouses, data centers, malls, and retail establishments, can be used for other functions also, such as monitoring temperature and air quality.
Expand Expanding Close
Last-mile drone delivery company SkyDrop has completed production of the fleet of UAVs it will use to transport Domino’s pizza orders to customers in New Zealand, bringing it closer to the launch of services the two companies announced earlier this year.
Expand Expanding Close
Airspace Link is now one step closer to its mission of building a Waze for drone pilots and supporting safe integration of drones into the national airspace.
Expand Expanding Close
UScellular and Ericsson are using drones to test 5G network performance at altitude. Initial trials have been conducted in Beloit, Wisconsin, using a drone that was flown between two UScellular commercial 5G towers.
Expand Expanding Close
German electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft (eVTOL) developer Volocopter has signed a deal with avionics specialist Diehl Aerospace to create an optical fly-by-light flight control system for its VoloCity air taxis.
Expand Expanding Close
Despite initial Russian claims that an oil refinery that burst into flames after being struck by two “terrorist” drones of purported Ukraine origin, rising speculation – backed by some visual support – suggests the kamikaze UAVs may have been bought for several thousand dollars on the Chinese marketplace Alibaba. If so, that kind of procurement and deployment should get people thinking in a variety of ways.
Expand Expanding Close