MilitaryUS Army Orders $40M in Personal Reconnaissance Nano-Drones The U.S. Army has given FLIR Systems a $39.6 million contract for Black Hornet tactical nano-UAVs. Purchased under the Army's Soldier Borne Sensor program, FLIR will deliver an undisclosed number of its…
ProfilesDiscussing the Evolution of Autonomy with General Atomics' Chief Engineer Chen Li makes military drones easier and more efficient to control as chief engineer for automation and autonomy for General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI). A Chinese immigrant who came to America…
UnmannedHydrogen Cells Best Batteries in Hour-Long Drone Test Flight An under-development drone powered by a hydrogen fuel cell beat its hour-long flying time target in recent testing, staying aloft for over 70 minutes with a 5 kg payload. Dubbed Project Rachel,…
MilitaryBelgium Ready to Negotiate for MQ-9B Purchase Belgium's government has approved the start of negotiations for the purchase of the General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) MQ-9B SkyGaurdian. As it is a foreign military sale from California-based General Atomics, the…
CommercialAurora's Solar-Powered UAS Can 'Fly Indefinitely' Boeing-owned Aurora Flight Sciences’ new Odysseus unmanned aircraft system (UAS) “can effectively fly indefinitely,” according to the company, capable of months-long flights as it gathers data for climate research. The Odysseus is…
CommercialGE-Owned Avitas Granted First Large Commercial BVLOS Waiver Avitas Systems, a GE venture, received the first FAA approval to fly a 55-plus-pound UAS beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) with no spotter for commercial purposes. Operating on Shell oil facilities…
MilitaryControl Six MQ-9 Reapers From Your Laptop With GA-ASI's Heresy Software General Atomics wants it to be so easy to manage drones that, using the company's Heresy multi-mission control (MMC) software, one operator can oversee a half-dozen large UAS, assigning tasks and monitoring…
UnmannedCyPhy's Tethered Drones Provide Limitless Uptime The U.S. Army and Navy Special Ops use drones from CyPhy Works to get around one of the big hindrances with most unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), a lack of persistence engendered by…
RegulationFAA: How You Can Fly Drones in Crowded Areas The FAA is wary of providing waivers to its rule preventing drone flight over people — Part 107.39 — because such operations significantly increase the risks of injury. But it’s not impossible…
RegulationLAANC Now Available Around Entire US Low altitude authorization and notification capability (LAANC) for drone pilots has gone live at the sixth and final wave of airports, comprising the Central North region of the United States. As of Sept.…