FLY SMART, FLY SAFE
The World Wildlife Fund has released Conservation Technology Series 5 – and it’s all about drones.
What they are, how they have evolved, and how to use them safely for conservation science and research.
The report is compiled by researchers from the UK, Germany and Brazil, bringing you case studies as well as best practices.
As a partner to the Drone Pathfinder Catalyst Programme of Catapult, ARPAS-UK engaged widely across UK sector verticals to drive the safe adoption of drones via awareness and education. This included running CPD seminar sessions, hosting presentations at large trade shows, and releasing a series of educational ‘case studies’ about how drones can be used to improve safety, productivity and decisions-making in different applications.
Drones are transforming the way that buildings and infrastructure assets are inspected. Owners of place and property portfolios can harness drone services to drive safety, productivity and efficiency whilst also improving resident and service user satisfaction.
The British Insurance Brokers’ Association (BIBA) has launched a new member drone scheme with specialist broker and ARPAS-UK Member Flock, offering easy to access and flexible cover for commercial drones such as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft.
The new scheme is underwritten by leading aviation underwriters who bring A+ rated capacity and covers the UK, Europe and worldwide, allowing BIBA members to easily access cover for small businesses, global operators and large fleets.
Goldman Sachs estimates the commercial drone industry is now worth around £78billion and Flock has rapidly established itself as the leading insurance specialist in the space. It has issued over one million quotes and now insures some of the world’s largest fleets including Skyports, Terra Drone and Sky Futures.
Cover includes hull, equipment and cargo up to £1.5m, up to £50m public liability and beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) cover. Flock also has the ability to create custom insurance policies for specific use cases including drone deliveries, drone swarm shows and offshore operations.
Mike Hallam, BIBA’s Head of Technical Services, said: “We are delighted to offer this new scheme to members. Flock has proven expertise in this area that will greatly benefit members who need access to this specialist class of insurance, whether that be on a regular or one-off basis. Flock will simplify the process for members to bind risks and offer comprehensive and competitive cover.”
Ed Leon Klinger, CEO of Flock, said: “The commercial drone industry is growing at a remarkable rate, and it’s critical that drone operators of all sizes have access to fair, flexible, and transparent insurance policies.
“We are excited to bring Flock’s market-leading products to thousands of brokers across the country through the new BIBA drone scheme. Working with Flock, brokers can now take advantage of automated binding, end to end claims support and insights from a UAV specialist.”
Brokers can also benefit from Flock’s UAV specialists who will provide insights on client requirements. They will also receive end to end claims support and advocacy as well as their own branded portal to simplify and streamline the quote and bind process.
The scheme is fully compliant with EU Regulation EC785/2004.
21st October 20202
Police drones – from fighting crime to saving lives, Nottinghamshire new police drone unit has had a busy first six months in operation.
The team, established to give a readily-available and cost-effective “eye in the sky” to officers on the ground, has helped to detain 39 suspects and find six vulnerable missing people.
Since going live on 1 January the team’s three drones, each equipped with thermal imaging cameras, have attended more than 300 incidents across the county.
PC Vince Saunders, chief pilot and one of 15 officers trained to operate the drones in addition to their core duties, explained: “In a very short space of time the drone unit has become an invaluable policing resource. Having that three-dimensional perspective can help officers out in nearly every conceivable police incident – from arrests and searches to crowd control and drugs raids.
“We can even use a police drone to quickly and accurately map the scenes of road traffic accidents. At first, they may have been a novelty, but our drones are now a central part of our response to so many incidents.”
Drone footage shows the warrant on The Storage Yard being executed by Nottinghamshire Police and Rushcliffe Borough Council Police air support, first provided in the UK by an airship at the 1921 Epsom Derby, has traditionally been provided by helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft – both of which are capable of flying further than faster than drones.
However, whilst police drones will not replace these more traditional eyes in the sky, PC Saunders believes they will become an ever more common part of everyday policing. He added: “The real advantage of our drones is in their versatility, cost-effectiveness and the speed in which they can be deployed. That means we’re now using them to help in situations where helicopter support just wouldn’t have been a viable or cost-effective option in the past.
“A good recent example is the arrest of a burglary suspect in Aspley. Arresting officers suspected he’d flee so requested support from one of our drones. As we suspected he did run away, hurdling hedges and fences in the process, but he couldn’t escape our eye in the sky. We’ve also been able to locate missing people very quickly – and in one case I am certain we saved somebody’s life in the process.”
The team, based at Hucknall Police Station, currently operate three police drones: two smaller units worth around £2,500 each and one larger, heavier drone with more powerful magnification and a thermal radiometric camera capable of accurately reading temperatures form hundreds of metres away. Consequently, the larger drone is also used to support Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service assess the scenes of fires.
PC Saunders added: “Obviously our drones are not cheap, but they are a one-off cost and they are providing fantastic value for money. They are keeping people safe, helping us to apprehend suspected offenders, and generally helping us to fight and investigate all manner of crime. That’s why I believe we’ll be using them a lot more in the future.”
A drone was deployed as part of the operation
Nottinghamshire Police’s drone team supported response officers on the ground, guiding them as a man weaved through properties’ gardens and hopped over fences.In the footage, officers can be seen moving to intercept a man thanks to guidance from the drone team in the sky.
A man eventually stops and is safely detained by police in Woodfield Road. He is now being questioned in connection with reports of a burglary in Woodfield Road on 2 May 2020, Woolsington Close on 12 May 2020 and Cramwell Road on 18 May 2020.
Detective Inspector Kayne Rukas, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “A fantastic combined effort from our response officers, drone team and intelligence unit led to us locating and detaining a man who we are now questioning in connection with a report of burglary.
“A 30-year-old woman was also arrested on suspicion of obstructing a police officer, she remains in police custody for questioning.
“Nottinghamshire Police is committed to tackling burglary and will investigate all reports thoroughly. We work hard to establish the circumstances in each case and we always look to take appropriate action against offenders.”
28th May 2020
Staff and students at Cranfield University and its Airport have completed a remote pilot course for flying unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) as part of long-term planning for integrated airspace use by manned and unmanned aircraft.
The commercial UAV remote pilot course incorporated a ground school element for flight planning – covering principles of flight, rules and regulations of the air, using aviation charts, risk assessment and meteorology – and a flight assessment to check demonstration of basic pilot competence, including how to respond in an emergency and being able to operate safety features.
Rob Abbot, Director of Aviation Operations at Cranfield Airport, who completed the training with some of his team, said: “Integrating UAV operations with airport activities and manned aircraft operations is going to be key in the future as we look to unleash the potential of a modernised UK airspace. This training has given myself and my team a solid understanding of UAV operations and the issues around using unmanned aircraft.
“UAVs could potentially benefit manned aircraft operations in a number of ways, ranging from monitoring, maintenance and repair tasks to de-icing the wings of aircraft in cold weather conditions. At Cranfield, we are already looking at how we may be able to use them for runway and airfield perimeter inspections.”
The course was provided by Consortiq, who have permission from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to provide approved UAV training, and was scheduled to help prepare students for the BAE UAV Swarm Challenge running again at Cranfield in March this year.
Students who complete the course will receive CAA-approved certificates for the ground school and flight assessment elements.
Alex Williamson, Experimental Research Fellow in UAV Operations in the Centre for Autonomous and Cyber-Physical Systems, Cranfield University, said: “Providing this kind of hands-on training is invaluable in giving staff and students an insight into the operational considerations of flying unmanned aircraft, together with a working appreciation of regulations affecting their use. This experience has further grown Cranfield’s competency in this area. It also ensures staff and students can maximise their research potential with respect to UAVs.”
Around 40 students from the Autonomous Vehicle Dynamics and Control MSc and Applied Artificial Intelligence MSc courses took the training along with Airport and academic staff.
Regulations currently require UAVs to be operated within visual line of sight of the remote pilot at all times. Through the ongoing creation of the National Beyond visual line of sight Experimentation Corridor (NBEC), Cranfield University is also working with partners Blue Bear Systems Research, Thales and Vodafone to provide a safe, managed environment for UAV experimentation, ultimately working towards their unsegregated operation with manned aircraft in both controlled and uncontrolled airspace.