Police in New York City have added an another use case to their expanding deployment of drones: dissuading people from recurring rooftop “subway surfing” activity that has resulted in deaths and serious injuries this year.
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When New York Mayor Eric Adams announced the liberalization of permitting rules for drone operation in the city last July, he predicted it would lead to a growth of aerial services improving residents’ daily lives. One application he didn’t mention is one many New Yorkers are least enamored with: UAV surveillance by the police, which has increased exponentially over the past year.
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Electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) plane company Joby revealed it staged an exhibition flight in New York, establishing its air taxi as the first ever to take to the skies of Manhattan, and opening the way for future next generation aircraft activities.
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New York City’s iconic Central Park is set to host its first-ever drone show this weekend. One thousand drones will light up the Manhattan sky with swirling vortices and amorphous shapes during three scheduled performances. Here are the complete details…
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New York has recently taken considerable steps toward facilitating and increasing the use of long-banished drones within the city – and also overcoming lively resident opposition to those rooted in personal privacy concerns. But it’s precisely the enduring strength of that resistance that now risks making a decision by NY police to deploy UAVs for outdoor and backyard party surveillance this long holiday weekend a “too much, too soon” decision officials may wind up regretting.
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Despite the recent moves toward liberalizing drone flights in New York, police officials have made it abundantly clear that any unauthorized UAV spotted around this year’s US Open Tennis Tournament in Queens will be subjected to the city’s traditional bum’s rush treatment of aerial reprobates.
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In the wake of recent moves to facilitate drone operations in the formerly closed skies of New York City, officials are now reportedly examining the further expansion of already increasing police use of UAVs to include emergency responder activities – provoking immediate, albeit suspiciously motivated alarm.
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New York City has taken the first major step toward softening its reputation as among the world’s most hostile places for drone use with the unveiling of a new permitting process aimed at liberalizing what has until now been a near blanket ban on UAV operation.
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If drones are being deployed to keep people safe from sharks at the city’s beaches, the New York Police Department (NYPD) figures they may prove just as useful in broadcasting audio messages to residents of areas facing emergency situations.
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New York state officials are providing funding for additional drones to monitor downstate beaches following a series of shark attacks off NYC and Long Island weekend and vacation spots, and the frenzy of news coverage those produced.
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Officials in New York are proposing changes to rules that strictly regulate drone activity within NYC, but UAV businesses and other operators hoping to see the end of the city’s quasi-blanket ban on flights aren’t likely to be singing the praises of liberalization just yet.
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Aviation services company Blade Air Mobility has teamed up with next generation sustainable ALIA-250 aircraft developer BETA Technologies to undertake the first test flight of an electric takeoff and landing (eVTOL) plane in the greater NYC area.
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California-based air taxi plane developer Archer Aviation has announced the first airport-to-city-center route it intends to operate beginning in 2025, connecting Manhattan and the Newark Liberty International Airport hub of the company’s shareholder and strategic partner United Airlines.
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The Candy Crush craze continues to reach new heights. This time, quite literally.
Candy Crush Saga – one of the longest-lasting, hugely successful mobile games to date – is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a drone show in New York City. As many as 500 drones are expected to take over the NYC skyline on the evening of November 3.
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A US district judge has ruled that Brooklyn-based media production company Xizmo can proceed with its lawsuit challenging New York City’s local “Avigation Law,” which effectively bans the use of drones in the city. Interestingly, this avigation rule was originally adopted into New York City’s Administrative Code in 1948, way before small civilian drones even existed.
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As the US Open, a Grand Slam event, begins Monday in New York City with 100% spectator capacity, it marks a return to normalcy for the global tennis community. And so the New York City Police Department (NYPD) is taking zero chances with anyone who may be interested in getting a “unique view” of the tournament. This means no drones.
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Here’s a new way to use drones during the coronavirus lockdown. Instead of yelling at people why not ask a girl for a date using your drone? Yes, drone dating during the coronavirus lockdown with a DJI Mavic drone.
Only days after Erica Tishman, a well-known architect, was killed by pieces of building facade that fell in midtown Manhattan, some New York City officials are now pushing for inspections by drone to prevent such accidents from happening in the future. Currently, an outdated law prohibits the use of drones in New York City.
Last year we reported on how an outdated law prohibits drone flying in New York City. Today, the Wall Street Journal writes about how drone “technology’s hand is being tied behind its back” by this decade-old law. While other cities such as Los Angeles and Chicago are embracing drone technology, New York City is falling further behind. For instance, the use of drones could save tremendous amounts of time during the five-year inspections of building facades that are currently done manually. Not having to set up scaffolding around New York high-rises also eliminates the risks involved when people have to ascend these structures to perform the mandatory inspections. Drones from companies such as Automodaility and PrecisionHawk could do that work faster, safer, and more cheaply. The article also points out the safety concerns that industry insiders have for New York’s residents and the general public. See below for some quotes and highlights from this Wall Street Journal article [paywall].
In fact, two NYPD officers working crowd control during a well-known rabbi’s funeral were injured today. One NYPD officer was hit on the head by an illegally-flown drone, while the other was injured when the hearse ran over his leg in Brooklyn, NY.
The New York Police Department wants the authority to take down drones if they are deemed to be a threat. Officials from the NYPD are concerned about weaponized drones such as the ones we have seen used in the Middle East to drop explosives. Federal law-enforcement officials are authorized to disable or shoot down a drone since 2018, however, local law enforcement agencies are not. The NYPD now seeks to change this, but it would take additional federal legislation to do so.
You’d like to fly your drone in NYC? Well, it is probably best to watch this video first. Griffin Hammond does a great job explaining why it’s mostly illegal to fly your drone in NYC. He lists four main reasons as to why he, even as an FAA-certified pilot, can’t fly drones in New York City. There’s a fifth reason, not mentioned in the video, that should also warn you against flying your unmanned aircraft in the big apple. Luckily there are a few places where you can still legally fly and you will not be hunted down by the NYPD.
As we reported last year, the NYPD had planned to use a tethered drone to help keep everybody safe during the famous ball drop at Times Square in New York during the New Year’s Eve celebrations. However, the rain, unfortunately, put a halt to those plans and no NYPD drone was deployed.
Today the New York Police or NYPD announced that they will start using 14 DJI drones. The aircraft are to be used for reconstructing traffic crashes, crime scenes, securing large events and search-and-rescue operations. Some people fear however that ‘mission creep’ may set in and worry that the drones might be used to spy on law-abiding citizens. During a demonstration today, the NYPD denied the drones would be used for that purpose.
