A UK consortium has revealed its blueprint to build the world’s largest and longest “drone superhighway,” connecting towns and cities across the nation. The 165-mile (265 km) Project Skyway is being hailed as “the most ambitious transport project proposed for the UK since the advent of the railway network in the 18th century.”
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Ordnance Survey (OS), the national mapping agency for Great Britain, has decided to incorporate Altitude Angel’s aeronautical data into its in-house survey planning software. The information will help the geospatial experts at OS determine whether it’s better to carry out a survey using a drone, or if it’s more appropriate for one of the agency’s 230 surveyors to get their boots on the ground.
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The Bondgate Tower in Northumberland, UK, is a 15th-century monument that is in danger of collapse, and as such, sits on the “Historic England’s Heritage At Risk” register. As part of conservation efforts, the historic gatehouse was recently mapped using a drone, and the results are so incredible, you need to see them for yourself.
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During a search operation in the Oxfordshire countryside, a UK police drone lost connection with the controller and was found miles away in a children’s playground the next day, a report by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) has found.
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Drones are saving lives and transforming the way we live and work on an almost daily basis. This is why more than two-thirds (68%) of the British public believes drones will have a positive impact on their lives in the future, and almost half (49%) say they’re excited about the potential drone technology holds.
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A drone video that shows raw sewage being dumped into a UK river for 49 hours straight has shocked Britain and tapped into a national debate about the environment ahead of the COP26 climate summit.
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The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has announced a new photography competition, #ShotOnMyDrone, to both highlight the incredible images that drones can capture across the United Kingdom and educate people around using drones safely and responsibly.
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A police drone has captured the dramatic rescue of four men who had become cragfast (stuck on a rock face and unable to ascend or descend) on dangerous ground on Snowdon, the highest mountain in Wales.
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The British Royal Navy has been conducting experimental drills to test the efficacy of heavy-lift drones in helping rescue a sailor who’s fallen overboard. The trials are being undertaken by the naval warfare force’s innovation experts, the NavyX team.
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A drone survey funded by McDonald’s has revealed the sordid scale of Britain’s trash problem. When rubbish-mapping drones scanned the coastal resort towns of Bournemouth, Christchurch, and Poole (BCP Council) in the month of May, it was discovered that littering had increased by 454% compared to the volumes found during the March lockdown.
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Operation Foreverwing, a new initiative launched to tackle irresponsible or illegal drone flying in the United Kingdom, is taking off. This month, a drone pilot accused of flying illegally over the headquarters of UK’s foreign intelligence service, MI6, in central London was slapped with a fine of £5,000 or $6,900.
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The United Kingdom is inching closer toward making drone delivery a reality. And it’s counting on location data from Ordnance Survey to do that.
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The Nottinghamshire Police force in the UK, along with the Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue, is adding a 24/7 drone team as a new way to improve security as well as for use in emergencies. The team will also have a dedicated drone car used for fast responses and as a mobile ground station.
UK Ministry of Defense has announced that teams of officers in hazmat suits could be replaced by drones and robots to investigate crime scenes where chemicals were used, such as the novichok poisonings in Salisbury.
According to a report by accountants from PwC, drones may boost the UK economy by £42 billion ($56bn) by 2030, creating hundreds of thousands of jobs in the process and lifting the GDP by almost 2%. The report predicts that billions will be saved by working more efficiently with drones than with traditional means such as helicopters for instance. Industries that will be impacted by drones are agriculture, mapping and surveying, construction, inspection, stock management and more.
We already reported on a new law coming into effect in the UK, that would grant police officers more powers to ground drones and to increase the criminal penalties associated with flying drones in an unsafe or illegal manner. Well, today we are one step closer to that new reality for hobbyist and commercial drone pilots in the United Kingdom, as the Department for Transport has announced a raft of new police powers as part of a crackdown on the civilian use of drones.
According to a transport minister, there have been more than 50 near-misses between drones and manned aircraft, including this one at Gatwick Airport, during the last twelve months in the United Kingdom. Drone users will face new restrictions starting in 2018. A new proposed law will likely give the police new powers to land drones suspected of involvement in criminal activity and will restrict drone use near airports.
