During the Bayonet Focus (BF) 17-03 exercise, Shadow UAS operators and maintainers of 7th Infantry Division worked on their skillset at the Yakima Training Center in Washington, at a recently built UAS airfield.
Imagery support for units conducting the BF 17-03 exercise was provided by the soldiers, which gave UAS personnel and service members in the field more realistic training.
“This is different than training back at Joint Base Lewis-McChord because we are in a more tactical setting and we move a lot faster,” says Spc. Brysen Borja, a UAS operator with 2-2 Stryker Brigade Combat Team, via DVIDSHub.net.
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Kespry enters insurance sector and brings UAS platform with it
Kespry has formally entered into the insurance sector, which will allow the company to “extend its end-to-end and easy-to-use enterprise drone platform by offering insurance specific functionality such as inspection-quality imagery for roofing and automated analysis to assist claim adjusters.”
The Kespry UAS captures data that delivers high-resolution imagery with 1 mm per pixel resolution, which can detect physical damage and granule loss. Rooftop imagery is available onsite in less than 10 minutes, giving field and desk adjusters access to comprehensive roof dimensions and automated damage detection.
Textron Systems unveils NIGHTWARDEN Tactical Unmanned Aircraft System
At the 2017 Paris Air Show, Textron Systems Unmanned Systems introduced its NIGHTWARDEN Tactical Unmanned Aircraft System (TUAS), which has a maximum speed of up to 90 knots, an endurance of up to 15 hours and a payload capacity of up to 130 pounds.
With more than 400 hours of flight time under its belt for potential customers, including delegations from the Mideast, the Asia-Pacific region, and from Europe, the NIGHTWARDEN TUAS has undergone thorough internal testing and demonstration efforts.
The NIGHTWARDEN TUAS builds upon the lineage of TUAS that Textron Systems has developed, and according to the company, the NIGHTWARDEN is the “new next-generation platform, representing the production-ready model of the developmental Shadow® M2.”
Douglas County Search and Rescue team uses UAS to locate and rescue missing hikers
On June 15, the Douglas County Search and Rescue team in Colorado used a UAS to locate two missing hikers and a dog in the Pike National Forest, after they mistakenly left the Devil's Head trail.
The hikers were able to call 9-1-1 with limited cell service, and the Douglas County Search and Rescue volunteer teams responded to the area. More than two dozen people responded, which included foot searchers, ATVs, a K-9 team, and the UAS team.
About two hours after the teams responded to the area, the UAS team made visual contact with the lost hikers, and shortly after that, a search team on foot made contact with the hikers.
According to Incident Commander Bruce Fosdick, the UAS saved hours of time in searching for the hikers.
Weekend Roundup
This Week in the Unmanned Systems and Robotics World
Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper has signed a bill that mandates the creation of a study on how UAS can help public safety agencies with their missions, and in turn, lower their dependence on manned aircraft. Through H.B.1070, a UAS pilot program will be established, and the Department of Labor and Employment will receive authorization “to provide resources for the training and development of eligible pilot program members.” The results of the program (which will be funded through gifts, grants and donations) and the study will be submitted to General Assembly committees. (Unmanned Aerial)
uAvionix introduces PingStation, an all-weather, networkable ADS-B receiver for UAS
UAvionix has introduced its latest product, PingStation, which is an “all-weather, networkable ADS-B receiver for low and high altitude aircraft surveillance.”
Because of its robustness, PingStation can be “permanently mounted outdoors in harsh environmental conditions,” and it can also be used as a mobile asset for roaming operations thanks to its small size.
Among its many potential uses, PingStation could be used for Unmanned Traffic Management (UTM) systems, airport surface and region situational awareness, FBO/flight school fleet tracking and management, and it could be a component of UAS Ground Control Stations (GCS) and/or UAS Detect and Avoid (DAA) systems.
China’s solar-powered UAS flies in near space region
The project team under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation has announced that the country’s first near-space solar drone, called Caihong (CH), or Rainbow, has successfully completed a flight at an altitude of 20 kilometers, or nearly 12 and a half miles.
The UAS, which has a wingspan of 45 meters, flew “smoothly in near space for over 15 hours under control, finishing its scheduled path,” and then landed safely.
Delair-Tech’s UAS selected as drones of choice for French government agencies purchasing fixed wing UAS
A week after it was announced that Delair-Tech and RTE set a new distance record by flying a civilian UAS 30 miles beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) in France, it has been announced that Delair-Tech’s DT18 and DT26X UAS have been selected as the drones of choice for French government agencies purchasing fixed wing UAS.
The Union of Public Procurement Groups (UGAP), “which acts as the purchasing conduit for government agencies across the country,” made the decision, and as a result, UGAP will add Delair-Tech’s UAS to its purchasing catalog, which is used by public agencies such as the army, police forces and firefighters.
Rochester Police Department demonstrates Indago UAS being used for Project Lifesaver program
The Rochester Police Department in Rochester, Minnesota, has demonstrated its new UAS, which is a Lockheed Martin-manufactured Indago UAS that can fly 55 minutes, and is capable of flying in inclement weather.
The Indago UAS will be used as a part of the Project Lifesaver program, which is designed to “respond quickly to save lives and reduce potential injury for adults and children who wander due to Alzheimer's, autism and other related conditions or disorders,” according to the Post Bulletin.
Through the program, when clients wander, a transmitter that they are wearing is activated.
Police in China using UAS for various tasks
UAS are being used across China to help police conduct a variety of missions.
Recently, a UAS was used to help search for, and capture, a man who robbed a woman and then disappeared into a “sprawling, muddy village” in the Minhang District.
Through the Shanghai Daily, officer Wen Jia of the Tianyuan Xincun police station (which handled the Minhang robbery) explained why the UAS was so beneficial in this situation by saying, “in the case of the June 1 robbery, we didn’t have enough manpower to quickly search the whole village. A drone did the work for us.”