DroneDJ

Among all the cases of drones deployed to deliver drugs and other contraband into prisons around the globe that DroneDJ has reported over the months, the plot busted by Louisiana police this month is one of the largest and most audacious of those aerial criminal enterprises.

California drone startup Parallel Flight Technologies (PFT) has secured work from a unit of the US Department of Defense to develop its super heavy-lift Firefly UAV to fulfill the agency’s critical, long-distance mission objectives.

Skyports Drone Services is again expanding its global business footprint, this time in Australia through a new partnership developing the long-range beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) operations of Sydney-based UAV data collection specialist Carbonix.

ParaZero has announced the addition of a unique safety functionality for its drone safety parachutes to support geocaging capabilities.

In what may rank as one of the most “no kidding” cases of creativity, determination, and inspiration being given its rightful due, Australian UAV company SYPAQ Systems has been awarded the country’s 2023 tech innovation award, based in large part to the major benefits its cardboard-made drones have afforded Ukraine’s defensive efforts.

DJI has released an exciting new firmware update for the Air 3, making its all-around drone compatible with the latest-generation Goggles Integra as well as Goggles 2 and RC Motion 2 remote controller. These peripherals were first released alongside the DJI Avata FPV aircraft.

Adding to its collection of precedents in electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft development, Joby said it has become the first manufacturer of future air taxis to deliver its craft to a US customer – in this case the Air Force.

The time-tested parental observation advises that one learns more about a situation by heeding what people do rather than what they say. That may also be said of the recent decision by the Baltimore Police Department in establishing its new drone fleet using DJI drones – and in doing so broadly reflecting the frequent response of independent administrations to the largely politicized moves by Congress, US government agencies, and several state legislatures to blacklist the UAV giant’s craft from official use across the nation.

This morning DJI released its latest sub-250 drone that we’ve seen leak over the last few weeks. Has the hype lived up after flying it for the past week? Are the changes worth upgrading from the Mini 3 Pro that came out less than a year and a half ago? Here’s our full review of the DJI Mini 4 Pro.

World-leading camera drone maker DJI has unveiled its new sub-250-gram Mini 4 Pro ($759), a product whose official rollout is generating excitement among company fans despite the abundance of revealing images and specs leaked on it over the past few months.

Payloads aboard drones used to drop contraband into prisons around the world usually comprise drugs, tobacco, and cellphones, though one curiously creative – and now definitely busted – trio in Australia decided to diversify its illicit recreational cargo by adding a USB drive filled with porn to the mix.

A French tech startup is to looking to speed the processing of medical analyses – and resulting treatment – by delivering patient samples between medical facilities using drones for a group of hospitals in the country’s Normandy region.

DJI Phantom 4 RTK and Mavic 2 Enterprise series drone users are finally getting the much-awaited firmware update that adds support for Remote ID in the United States.

Even as international drone delivery company Wing continued to expand its activities around the globe over the summer, it appears to have paused aerial services in the Canberra capital of its booming Australian market amid an update of its operating model.

We (almost) all use it, we love it, although it can sometimes be a pain in the butt to have to remember to check it, but Aloft has just announced it has passed one million authorizations using FAA’s LAANC program on its app. The company also shared trends on the use of the program over the last year by both Part 107 and recreational pilots.

We spoke too soon. Just when it seemed like scooping DJI with its own teaser for the September 25 Mini 4 Pro release couldn’t be topped, yet another leak about the not-merely-rumored drone now provides additional, crystal-clear photos of the craft in bucolic settings.

(Updated: Live now)

Terra Drone Corporation, one of the top drone service providers in the world, has started offering agricultural spraying services in Southeast Asia. The company has scooped up precision agriculture tech from Indonesian startup Avirtech and established a new entity called Terra Drone Agri to cater primarily to palm plantations.

Japan-based electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) plane maker SkyDrive has gotten a bit more tailwind in the commercialization push of its three-seat “flying car” with an order of 50 craft from leasing firm Solyu of South Korea.

Security and defense UAV tech specialist Red Cat Holdings has expanded its work with US government agencies through an additional contract to supply Teal 2 drones to Customs and Border Protection (CBP) operators.

Skydio has unveiled its latest drone, the triple-camera X10 with an all-new NightSense feature that enables autonomous flights in zero-light environments. Designed as a versatile solution for enterprise and public safety applications, the X10 is Skydio’s first offering since exiting the consumer business earlier this year.

Aerospace experts from US conglomerate Honeywell are teaming up with a division of the Department of Energy to devlop a compact form of hydrogen fuel storage designed specifically for longer-haul drone use.

Public safety and emergency response organizations using drones in their work will find it easier – and much less expensive – to monitor the airspace around them during their work thanks to a new partnership between UAV remote identification tech specialist AirSentinel, and the nonprofit DroneResponders association.

DJI has released the latest firmware update for the Matrice 30 (M30) drone series. The September 2023 update focuses on improving flight safety, adding more custom options, and improving the Pilot 2 app’s user interface.