Industry News

08Nov

FAA Targets UAS Violators for Enforcement

Pilots of unmanned aircraft who interfere with first responder efforts are now more likely to face serious civil penalties...even for first time offenses. Recently, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) released guidance (PDF) for agency personnel who handle possible drone violations. Now, all cases involving interference with first responder operations are referred to the FAA Chief Counsel’s office for possible enforcement action.  

Fines increase

In July 2016, Congress authorized the FAA to impose a civil penalty of not more than $20,000 for drone operators who deliberately or recklessly interfere with emergency response efforts. Under FAA guidance, inspectors generally use non-enforcement methods. For example, educating the operator can correct unintentional violations that arise from flawed systems, simple mistakes, or lack of understanding. However, given the potential for direct and immediate interference with potentially life-saving operations where minutes matter, offenders are now immediately considered for enforcement actions. Possible enforcement actions include: revocation or suspension of a pilot certificate and up to a $20,000 civil penalty per violation.  

The need for deterrence

Deterring interference with first responders is critical, particularly as drone use expands exponentially. When a drone enters an area, firefighting aircraft are required to suspend flights to avoid a possible mid-air collision. A drone flying over a crime scene or accident site can hamper police or medical aircraft operations. Ultimately, interference by a drone can cost lives. The FAA’s rules for flying unmanned aircraft are clear. Pilots can save themselves and others serious problems by following them to the letter. Don’t let your decision to fly cause someone else to die.
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01Nov

Alpha 800 UAV to Support NATO’s Trident Juncture 2018 Exercise

The Spanish UAV manufacturer, Alpha Unmanned Systems will present the Alpha 800, gasoline-powered helicopter UAV, at NATO’s Trident Juncture exercise in Trondheim, Norway. From October 25th to November 7th, a live field exercise will take place, spanning air, sea and land areas of Norway. 45,000 participants from 31 nations are deployed for the event. During the exercise Alpha Unmanned will take part in the Enhanced Logistical Base demonstration, where leading players will show the future of military logistics. Alpha Unmanned Systems will exhibit its Alpha 800 helicopter UAV. The Alpha 800 is a tactical 14 kg gasoline powered helicopter that provides 2.5 hours of continuous flight with a 3 kg payload and 30 km of operating range. It is equipped with the lightest and strongest airframe in its class and a military-grade autopilot with high precision GPS and sensors. It is well suited for surveillance and for the delivery of urgently needed supplies. The Trident Juncture 2018 is an excellent event to carry out complex air operations, and it’s a great chance to highlight the Alpha 800, a reliable UAV platform “Made in Spain” and designed for hard work in challenging and complex environments. Find out more about the Alpha 800 at Unmanned Systems Source.
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01Oct

FAA Approves Nine New LAANC Service Providers

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced nine new partners to its Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability (LAANC) initiative. LAANC is an innovative collaboration between the FAA and the drone industry. The initiative provides near real-time processing of airspace authorizations for Part 107 drone operators nationwide who fly in controlled airspace.  

LAANC Expands

Following the FAA’s successful prototype, the initiative was simultaneously opened to additional air traffic control facilities and to new industry partners. The five-month on-boarding process that began in April resulted in nine new LAANC partners. Those partners include: Aeronyde, Airbus, AiRXOS, Altitude Angel, Converge, DJI, KittyHawk, UASidekick and Unifly. The nine joined five companies – AirMap, Harris Corp., Project Wing, Skyward and Thales Group. All met the technical and legal requirements to provide LAANC Services.  

How it Works

LAANC uses airspace data, including UAS facility maps, which shows the maximum altitude around airports where the FAA may authorize operations under Part 107 in controlled airspace. Drone operators can interact with industry developed applications and obtain near real-time authorization from the FAA. LAANC, a foundation for developing the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Traffic Management System (UTM),is now available at nearly 300 FAA air traffic facilities across the country, covering approximately 500 airports. Next year, from January 7 to February 8 and from July 8 to August 9, the FAA will accept applications from parties interested in becoming LAANC service providers. This is not a standard government acquisition; there is no Screening Information Request (SIR) or Request for Proposal (RFP) related to this effort. Interested parties can find information on the application process here.
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18Sep

Reliable Operation in a Multi-Drone Environment

From their military origins a few decades ago -- carrying sophisticated systems and running remote, cross-boarder missions -- drones are now commercial and industrial platforms. Today, drones play a significant role in the next generation of automated and autonomous vehicles. The vision of multiple drones filling in the public sky, running various missions smoothly is slowly becoming a reality.  

Operational Reality

In fact, drone operation in such an environment is so challenging that stable and reliable communication is crucial. The communication infrastructure must provide carrier-class availability, ensuring control and telemetry signals are available in real-time. And, that critical data flows between the drone and operation control centers. In addition, automated airspace management systems must guarantee full coordination between different vehicles using the same air space. These systems are called UTM (Unmanned Traffic Management) systems. The dynamic nature of the drone’s operation should have a ‘network’ planning perspective rather than a ‘link’ based perspective. All drones utilize RF (radio frequencies) to communicate with their respective ground stations and, eventually, with each other. As frequency bands and channels are scarce and are also used by other platforms such as Wi-Fi systems, interference is the major obstacle for reliable communication. The more drones in a given area, the more fragile each link becomes due to other system interference. This poses a significant challenge for inter-operability of multi-drones in a given environment.

Communication Challenges in a Multi-Drone Environment

For example, the delivery market is one of the most complex drone applications. It requires running multiple drones in parallel, by different service providers. Some of the related communication challenges include:
  • Near-End Interference – generated by other drones launched from the same or nearby network operating centers.
  • Far-End Interference – generated closer to the landing area, from Home Routers such as WIFI or other systems operating nearby such as agriculture drone systems.
  • In-Flight interference – from other drones flying nearby, Radio Control (RC) recreational vehicles.
  • BVLOS operation – flying in an urban area can generate signal loss and fading due to high-rise buildings and other obstacles.
  • Terrain Obstacles – rural operation may introduce signal fading due to Fresnel zone blocking by a hilly terrain.
  • Interoperability with mobile networks – utilizing dual combined communication can increase reliability but must include a smooth switch-over mechanism when the public network is congested or out of reach.
Each challenge is complex and requires a different solution. However, the overall requirements from a drone communication system operating in a crowded sky must include dynamic configuration, fast response to changes and transparency to the user. Eventually, the entire operation will be fully automated from takeoff to landing.

Solutions for Reliable Operation in a Multi-Drone Environment

There are different solutions for overcoming these and other challenges. Some relate to the core technology utilized by the communication systems themselves, such as features that can guarantee higher reliability due to diversity and redundancy. Others relate to switch-over mechanisms between different technologies, utilizing the LTE/5G networks for long range urban operation for example. Minimizing interference on one hand, and greater immunity to interference by switching frequencies in-flight on the other hand, are also crucial for a secured safe operation. By integrating and adopting such capabilities as a standard by the drone operator’s community, alongside with administrative and airspace usage coordination systems, we can overcome many of above challenges and guarantee a reliable and safe operation in a multi drone environment.  

Shop Mobilicom's complete line of data link solutions at Unmanned Systems Source.

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21Aug

FAA Warns Drone Flyers: Save a Life, Stay Away from Wildfires

If you fly your drone anywhere near a wildfire, you could get someone killed. That’s the stern warning the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and U.S. wildland fire agencies have for pilots of unmanned aircraft who interfere with fighting wildfires. Unauthorized drone flights are a serious risk to first responders and anyone in the fire’s path.  

Authorized missions only

Authorized drone missions by the proper authorities can yield valuable information to firefighters. Such missions help detect hotspots, chart a fire’s spread and the progress in controlling a blaze. But when an unauthorized drone is spotted, it may force all authorized helicopter and airplane operations to cease. Unauthorized drone flights create collision hazards to firefighting aircraft. They also distract pilots who are already operating in stressful and challenging conditions. Wildland fire agency reports give a sense of how a single errant drone can disrupt operations: “Drone spotted by pilot at eye level during [helicopter] bucket work… spotted a drone over fire. All helicopter operations shut down…UAS incursion stopped aerial firefighting assets… UAS intrusion into TFR (Temporary Flight Restriction). Helicopters disengaged from fire….” A disruption to any efforts to fight wildfires is incredibly dangerous...and simply not worth it.  

Disruptions can cost a life

“If you own a drone, DO NOT fly near or over a wildfire,” said Dan Elwell, FAA Acting Administrator. “It’s against the law, and firefighting aircraft could be grounded, disrupting time-critical firefighting efforts. Your hobby is not worth another person’s life.” “Most members of the public would never dream of standing in front of a fire engine to stop it from getting to a wildfire, but that’s essentially what they’re doing to aerial firefighting aircraft when they fly a drone over or near a wildfire,” said Jennifer Jones, spokesperson with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho. If unauthorized drone operations interfere with wildfire suppression, law enforcement, or emergency response efforts, those drone operators could face civil penalties that exceed $20,000 and potential criminal prosecution. Anyone who witnesses or has information about an unauthorized drone flight over or near a wildfire should immediately contact local law enforcement. Deterring interference with first responders, as well as giving way to other aircraft in the sky, becomes more important as drone use expands exponentially. The FAA’s rules for flying unmanned aircraft are clear: Keep your drone away from other aircraft operations, including aerial firefighting missions. You just might save someone’s life.
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24Jul

US Army Selects Raytheon for Near-Term Counter-UAS Mission

The U.S. Army recently announced the selection of Raytheon's Coyote unmanned aircraft system and the Ku-band Radio Frequency System (KRFS) radar, to counter the escalating threat of enemy UAVs in the skies above the battlefield. Equipped with an advanced seeker and warhead, the Coyote-enabled system can successfully identify and eliminate threat UAVs when paired with an advanced electronically scanned array KRFS radar, which acquires and accurately tracks all sizes of UAS threats. “Enemy unmanned aircraft are among the biggest threats facing our ground troops today,” said Dr. Thomas Bussing, Raytheon Advanced Missile Systems vice president. “Our small, expendable Coyote provides the Army with an affordable and highly effective solution for countering the growing UAS threat.”  

Coyote UAS

The most capable UAS in its class, Coyote is small, expendable and tube-launched. It can deploy from the ground, air or a ship. Coyotes can fly individually or netted together in swarms. They are adaptable for a variety of missions including surveillance, electronic warfare and strike. The versatile Coyote is also used by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for hurricane tracking and modeling. Raytheon is finalizing development of advanced Coyote variants that will fly faster and farther. Because of urgent operational need, the Army plans to use Coyote as a counter-UAS solution before years' end.  

KRFS Radar

The KRFS radar in use today is a multi-mission radar providing rocket, artillery and mortar, sense and warn, and counter-UAS mission capabilities. Its accuracy enables significant UAS mission performance including precision fire control and UAS swarm scenarios at tactically significant distances. “The warfighter needs a complete mission solution to successfully counter UAS threats,” said Dave Gulla, Raytheon Mission Systems and Sensors vice president. “Our quickly transportable system that tracks low-swarming threats with KRFS and eliminates those threats with Coyote, is a game changer for the U.S. Army.” To date, Raytheon has delivered 40 KRFS radars with more than 32 deployed by the Army. Furthermore, it is upgrading the systems for extending capability and ensuring support of the soldier beyond 2025.
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