End-Sector Uses

Airbus Zephyr just misses record for world’s longest flight

The high-altitude drone Zephyr came down in Arizona, USA, just hours before it would have broken all records for the longest-ever continuous flight (manned or unmanned). It had already previously beaten the 2018 record for unmanned flight. The flight started mid-June and had lasted 64 days, losing contact with ground control on August 19th. It…

Smith Myers to take part in ARCSAR ‘catastrophe exercise’

Smith Myers to take part in Arctic ‘catastrophe exercise’ with international partners to demonstrate ARTEMIS airborne Search and Rescue technologies Showcasing a range of SAR platforms including crewed and uncrewed aircraft, the disaster and resilience planning exercise LIVEX led by the innovation network ARCSAR (Arctic Security and Emergency Preparedness Network) will take place 28th August…

Advancing airborne autonomy: use of commercial drones in the UK

Ambition statement and vision for commercial drones, created jointly by government and the sector, outlining the 2030 potential, current use cases and support and enablers for the future. From:Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy and Department for Transport Documents Advancing airborne autonomy: commercial drones saving money and saving lives in the UK PDF, 7.26 MB, 52 pages Details…

Skies without Limits v2.0: PwC

PwC have launched their updated reported on the impact drones will have on the UK’s economy, productivity, jobs and quality of life. The original report was published in 2018. Drones offer public and private organisations an opportunity to carry out tasks faster, safer, cheaper and with less impact on the environment than traditional methods. This…

BVLOS Operations Forum Press Release

BVLOS Operations Forum unites innovators to unlock the next generation of aviation Pioneering companies in the emerging uncrewed aviation industry have joined forces in a forum established by air traffic control leader NATS, to break through the barriers to the UK industry’s development.    The BVLOS Operations Forum, which includes the UK’s leading beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS)…

Ministry of Defence

MOD seeks UAS innovation ideas to support Ukraine

“Since Russia’s brutal invasion UK defence suppliers with active support from MOD and DE&S have taken equipment from desktop ideas to deployment. This £25m plus fund is designed to capture ongoing work and support innovative ideas to meet defence requirements. “Recent months have shown the ingenuity and innovation of the UK defence sector, coming up…

Joby Receives Part 135 Certificate From the FAA

Part 135 Air Carrier Certificate received ahead of schedule, initially targeted for second half of 2022; Certification allows Joby to operate aircraft commercially; Joby will use conventional aircraft to refine systems and procedures in advance of launching eVTOL service targeted for 2024 Joby Aviation, Inc. (NYSE:JOBY), a California-based company developing all-electric aircraft for commercial passenger…

First Flights of Dragon Drone at Snowdonia Aerospace Centre

Snowdonia Aerospace is pleased to announce the successful first flights of their new Dragon drone at the Snowdonia Aerospace Centre, Llanbedr, last week. Working in partnership with SwiftFlight Avionics and supported by Innovate UK Future Flight Challenge grant funding, the Dragon drone will be a major research, development, test and evaluation (RDT&E) platform for demonstrating the safe integration of drones into…

GeoBusiness 18-19 May 2022

We’re much looking forward to seeing Members, Prospective Members and those wanting to know more about how the drone industry operates in the Geospatial world at GeoBusiness 2022. The event will be at ExCel, London, co-located with Digital Construction Week. Come along and see both shows! The show will be of particular interest to anyone…