Business and Finance

Airbus – one of several players in the race to make Urban Air Mobility (UAM) a reality – has delved into how open the public is to the idea of getting from A to B using unmanned aircraft. The report can be read in full, here. The study’s headlines are …

UK insurtech startup Flock has launched a monthly subscription product, Fly Unlimited, to provide commercial drone operators with flexible month-to-month insurance. Complementing Flock’s existing on-demand coverage, Fly Unlimited provides a middle ground for commercial pilots flying multiple missions each month. Instead of an annual commitment with significant upfront costs, the new subscription provides …

National mapping agency for Great Britain and leading geospatial data organization Ordnance Survey (OS) has announced plans to launch a solar-powered drone that will fly at high altitude to complement existing satellite mapping systems. The aim of the High Altitude Psuedo Satellite (HAPS) project, called Astigan, is to provide faster, higher quality images …

DJI has announced an update to its European geofencing technology. The Geospatial Environment Online (GEO) 2.0 system is being rolled out across 32 European countries with new measures placed around airports with help from UK drone services platform Altitude Angel. DJI to deploy “bow tie” safety zones around European airports Read …

A Swiss drone company is joining forces with the European Space Agency’s initiative to rocket high-tech startups into successful orbits around the business world. Drone Harmony of Luzern, Switzerland has joined the ESA Business Incubator Switzerland, allowing the start-up to upgrade its UAS missions-planning platforms using satellite data. Created three years …

Drone manufacturer Yuneec has announced that its commercial hexacopter, the H520, will now be optionally available with an RTK (Real Time Kinematic) system. The addition of the RTK system from Swiss company Fixposition, means that even under difficult GPS conditions – in dense urban areas or canyons, for example – …

In a separate announcement,  FLIR announced a 39.6 million dollar order to deliver FLIR Black Hornet Personal Reconnaissance Systems (PRS) for the U.S. Army.  This tiny drone will support platoon and small unit level surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities as part of the initiative named the Soldier Borne Sensor (SBS) Program. …

One lesser known commercial usage of drones: to identify, and in some cases to mitigate or remove, invasive species. Invasive species –  in this case rats – have been a problem for the eco-system of parts of the Galapagos islands for many years.  Drones have proven to be an invaluable …

Skylogic Research, the leading commercial drone industry research and advisory services firm, just announced the release of their latest research on commercial drone operations. The Economics of Using Drones for BVLOS Inspections is a white paper sponsored by PrecisionHawk, the leading provider of drone technology for the enterprise, which provides …

A new report forecasts that the commercial drone market will exceed $15.1 billion by 2027. The Strategy Analytics Advanced Defense Systems (ADS) service report, “Commercial UAS Market Outlook 2017-2027” predicts that 49% of demand for commercial drone platforms by 2027 will be in the agriculture, commercial security and first responder …