BridgerCup 2017 from Digital Aerial Media on Vimeo.
The 3rd Annual Bridger Cup is a fun event for all, to be held this Sunday, July 23rd at 1:00 pm at the Gallatin County Fairgrounds in Bozeman, Montana -- gateway to Yellowstone Park. The event will take place during the fair itself, so attendees will enjoy access to all of the attractions, rides, exhibits and other amenities of this excellent county fair.
UAS
UAS
VStar Systems and Martin UAV complete flight demonstration of MA-C2E/Lite SIGINT Sensor
VStar Systems, which is a privately held aerospace and defense systems company, and Martin UAV, which specializes in research and development, manufacturing, and operator training for complete UAS, have announced the successful completion of a demonstration of the new COMINT capabilities onboard the Martin UAV V-Bat aircraft.
VStar Systems was invited overseas to demonstrate the capabilities of its MA-C2E/Lite, which is a modular Signal Intelligence Sensor that weighs approximately two pounds, and provides COMINT capabilities to Martin UAV’s line of V-Bat drones.
The MA-C2E/Lite system is designed to “function as a highly modular, scalable, flexible tactical COMINT sensor,” with special emphasis on addressing design challenges created by Class 2 or 3 UAS.
Draft regulations for UAS operations released by Government of Canada
According to Vertical Magazine, Unmanned Systems Canada has announced that the Government of Canada has released draft regulations for UAS operations for public comment in Canada Gazette Part One.
Described as a milestone, the announcement will reportedly “establish a regulatory environment for UAS operations within visual line-of-sight (VLOS),” which will build off procedures developed and refined over the last decade.
Speaking about the draft regulations, an Unmanned Systems Canada representative says, “the announcement lays the groundwork for continuing to open up Canada’s industry through our regulatory process.”
Webinar on Unmanned Aircraft Systems and Inspection Methods, July 26
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 18, 2017
Contact: Tom McMahon, tmcmahon@auvsi.org, (571) 255-7786
uAvionix and ForeFlight announce Scout ADS-B receiver for general aviation
uAvionix and ForeFlight have announced the availability of Scout, which is a “revolutionary portable, dual-band ADS-B receiver” that provides inflight weather and traffic information to ForeFlight’s Mobile app in the “smallest, most elegant form-factor on the market.”
There is no hardware to assemble, no software to download and nothing to configure in order to set up and use Scout. Instead, all a user has to do is position Scout on any window surface using its ball-joint and suction cup mounting system, plug it into a power surface, and fly whatever aircraft is being flown.
Any five volt Micro-USB power source can power Scout, including rechargeable USB batteries or existing USB chargers installed in aircraft.
Police forces launch first fully operational drone unit in United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, Devon & Cornwall and Dorset Police have become the first police forces in the country to launch a fully operational drone unit.
The UAS will be used for a variety of missions, including searching for missing people, responding to major road traffic collisions, and combatting wildlife crime.
According to Chief Superintendent Jim Nye, Commander for the Alliance Operations Department, there are currently five officers trained to use UAS across both forces.
The plan is for an additional 40 officers to complete their Civil Aviation (CAA) training over the next 12 months, so that they can be fully accredited, which will allow them to operate the UAS.
Drobotron dubbed world’s first digital “drone billboard”
A UAS with a 40″ x 10” full color Lumenix 360 Display Sign attached to it is believed to be the world’s first digital “drone billboard.”
Developed by Central Floridian Bobby Watts, the UAS, known as the Drobotron DL1200 drone, is used to display video clips, still photos and text.
Via an article from ClickOrlando.com, Watts, who is licensed by the FAA to fly UAS commercially, explains what led to him coming up with this innovative use of drone technology.
“No matter where I go and fly a drone, everyone looks up at it. We've even been to the Cape filming rockets, and people will turn around from the rocket and look at our drones,” Watts says.
Naviator hybrid unmanned vehicle completes first air/water drone inspection of high value assets
On June 18, the first combination aerial and underwater bridge inspection was successfully conducted on the Delaware Memorial Bridge Twin Spans, using a hybrid unmanned vehicle called the Naviator, which can fly and swim.
The inspection was a result of a collaborative effort that included the Delaware River Bay Authority (DRBA), Rutgers University-New Brunswick (RU-NB) and SubUAS LLC.
All parties involved with the inspection have high praises for the Naviator unmanned vehicle, and believe that the vehicle can be a gamechanger for a lot of industries moving forward.
NBC Connecticut unveils DroneRanger fleet for newsgathering
NBC Connecticut/WVIT have unveiled “Connecticut’s only fleet of top-of-the-line UAS drones for broadcast,” known as DroneRanger.
The fleet will be used to capture “exclusive, close-up views of local breaking news and weather events that take place throughout the market,” with the goal of ultimately enhancing the station’s local news and weather coverage.
“Drone technology allows us to apply a unique perspective to every aspect of news coverage,” says Susan Tully, President and General Manager of NBC Connecticut.
