Read or listen to all of the headlines in one place: excerpts from the DRONELIFE drone news of the week of December 9, 2022.  Click on the titles below for the full story.

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Drone as First Responder International Initiative: DRONERESPONDERS, UAS NORWAY Partner

The DRONERESPONDERS Public Safety Alliance has announced a partnership with UAS NORWAY for the global advancement of the Drone as a First Responder (DFR) concept through the DFR International Initiative (DFRII).   Informed by advancements made in the United States, the DFRII seeks to extend the program worldwide with shared resources, working groups, white papers, regulatory information, webinars and conferences. The partnership was announced last week at the UAS Norway Security Conference by Lt. Abrem Ayana, Brookhaven Georgia Police Department and Barry Brennan, Flying Lion, Inc. on behalf of DRONERESPONDERS.

Skypersonic Drones on Mars? NASAs Fascinating Simulated Mars Missions

Skypersonic has announced that it recently delivered to NASA the hardware and software for a rover and drone system that the crew members of NASA’s Simulated Mars Missions will use to remotely explore Martian-like terrain around Earth – all from their 1,700-square-foot simulated Martian habitat at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.  The Skypersonic drone and rover system were recently tested on an active volcano, demonstrating their suitability for use in the challenging environment found on Mars.  In a fascinating project, crew members of the Simulated Mars Missions CHAPEA, will spend one year living and working in a habitat at Johnson Space Center that has been designed and built to simulate life on the Red Planet.

LuxTonnerre, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Drone Regulations in Japan: Ban on Automated Flight Over Residential Areas Lifted

While the Japanese government has shown support for the commercial drone industry since former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe stated that drones were an important part of the fourth industrial revolution, drone regulations in Japan have limited drone traffic in cities and residential areas.   Now, Kyodo news reports that the ban on automated flights over residential areas has been lifted, clearing the way to more widespread drone delivery.  In April of 2015, an anti-nuclear protester used a consumer drone to deposit a small quantity of radioactive material on the roof of then-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s residence, prompting the enactment of strict rules about the flight of drones over residential areas.  Until today, drone regulations in Japan allowed automated drone flights only over uninhabited areas including mountains, rivers, and farmlands.

Warren County Community College Drone Training Program: Putting the Focus on Safety Education

The Warren County Community College drone program is one of the best of its kind, with the highest quality training along with the highest level of accessibility. The program is keeping safety at the forefront of the curriculum with an important new hire.

In another expansion of its nationally recognized drone and unmanned systems program, Warren County Community College has added a former air traffic controller, NY/NJ control tower manager, and drone flight safety expert to the staff as a now recognized senior adjunct professor.

Squad of US marines waiting for medevac bird

Savback Helicopters Commits to Speeder Air Utility Vehicles: First Civilian Sale

The Mayman Aerospace Air Speeder is a unique addition to the drone market – a fast, maneuverable cargo aircraft with heavy payload capabilities. Now, US-based manufacturer Mayman has announced that their Nordic sales and marketing partner, Savback Helicopters, has signed a Letter of Intent for 25 Speeders intended to support military customers in the Scandinavian region.

Sagetech Avionics on Dawn of Drones December 7: Situational Awareness

Join Dawn and special guest and sponsor-of-the-month, Tom Furey CEO of Sagetech Avionics, as they kick off this 4-week series dedicated to The Best of 2022 on the Dawn of Drones podcast. Sagetech, creators of comprehensive UAS situational awareness systems incorporating mission-critical collision avoidance, transponders, software, and related technologies for both military and civil use, have had yet another incredible year –as has the industry writ large. Celebrate with us as we round out 2022 together and learn more about this all-star company that is helping to keep our skies safer!

Digital Towers Could Direct Air Traffic from 100 Miles Away: Saab and Altitude Angel Partne

Altitude Angel and Saab have announced their formation of a partnership that will enable the integration of Altitude Angel’s UTM technology platform as part of Saab’s Digital Tower (r-TWR), a flexible and scalable solution for a variety of use cases.  Building upon Saab’s video processing, visual presentation, and automation solutions, the r-Tower is currently utilized by civil and military airports in Sweden, UK, US, and Germany, with further implementations underway in Belgium, Netherlands, Ireland, and Romania.

Event 38 Adds NextVision EO/IR Payload to E400 Fixed Wing Mapping Drone

Mapping drones manufacturer Event 38 Unmanned Systems has announced that its latest fixed-wing mapping drone, the E400, is currently available with a gimballed EO/IR camera from NextVision.  A maker of stabilized cameras and accessories for a range of commercial and industrial uses, NextVision’s gimballed EO/IR cameras capture high-quality visual and thermal imagery and video which can then be streamed directly to a ground station.

Improving Drone Data Capture: Visual Intelligence Partners with Gimbal Manufacturer Gremsy

Drone sensor and software automation platform Visual Intelligence and drone camera gimbal stabilizer manufacturer Gremsy have announced a partnership for the production of a multiple-axis gimbal able to carry a multiple-camera array for vertical data collection. The partnership will grant customers the ability to quickly purchase engineering-grade sensors and deploy fleets of drones to collect data in volume, across hundreds or thousands of sites.

INVOLI Ground Receivers Could Help Expand Drone Operations in Uncontrolled Airspace

Air traffic detection company INVOLI has expanded its offering of ground-based surveillance receivers with the G-1090 product line. The five air traffic receivers in the line are able to detect a range of modes and signal frequencies from assorted aircraft, enabling drone operators to conduct more missions in uncontrolled airspace and low-altitude U-space airspace in various scenarios. The standard G-1090 detects transponder messages over the 1090 MHz frequency, used by INVOLI’s Multilateration to calculate the position of aircraft emitting Mode S and Mode A/C messages and to validate the position sent through ADS-B messages.

Skydio Introduces Skydio Dock and Dock Lite: Small, Lightweight Solutions for Remote Drone Ops

Docking systems, or “drone-in-a-box” solutions, are the way of the future for remote drone operations.  A docking station that can monitor internal and external conditions and recharge drone batteries combined with software for remote operations enables operators to execute drone missions from miles away – or from a central operations hub.  That’s a holy grail for many industries, the point at which already valuable drone technology and drone data increases its ROI exponentially.  As the FAA allows more missions beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) – and the drone industry awaits a final rule on BVLOS operations – remote drone ops have become a near term option for many industries.

LIFT Trains US Air Force to Operate HEXA eVTOL Aircraft

U.S. Air Force photo/Samuel King Jr.)

On November 16th, the Lift HEXA electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft lifted off at Duke Field for its flight piloted by Airmen, who remotely controlled the aircraft in a series of take offs, flights and landings. The flight was conducted as an early step in establishing a training program to incorporate Airmen into the aircraft’s flight operations, both to validate the HEXA’s training program through operation within a controlled test environment, and to serve as a proof of concept for the development of responsive training for government operators on uncrewed EVTOL aircraft.

Women and Drones Names Hall of Fame Inductees: DRONELIFE Editor Miriam McNabb Honored

Women and Drones has announced the list of inductees being named to the Women in Emerging Aviation Technologies Hall of Fame. The awards will be given at the live event, Women in Emerging Aviation Technologies Awards at CES 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada on Friday, January 6^th.

Miriam McNabb is the Editor-in-Chief of DRONELIFE and CEO of JobForDrones, a professional drone services marketplace, and a fascinated observer of the emerging drone industry and the regulatory environment for drones. Miriam has penned over 3,000 articles focused on the commercial drone space and is an international speaker and recognized figure in the industry.  Miriam has a degree from the University of Chicago and over 20 years of experience in high tech sales and marketing for new technologies.
For drone industry consulting or writing, Email Miriam.

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