Drone News for Week of

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Reported Drone Sighting Above Teterboro Grounds Newark Flights: Fact Or Fiction? - Although some experts called it highly unlikely – primarily because of the weather – the FAA said a pair of drones were spotted flying 3,500 feet over Teterboro Airport, bumping flight times there and at Newark Liberty International Airport.“Two drones at once. In the dark. At 3500 feet altitude,” wrote Brendan Schulman , the vice-president of policy and legal affairs at DJI, which makes flying and camera stabilization systems. “It’s very cold outside, below freezing; not the kind of weather for flying drones. This is just not credible.”

FAA digs deeper into drone traffic management - The Unmanned Aircraft Systems Traffic Management pilot will focus on flight planning, communications, aircraft separation and weather services for these drones flying under 400 feet.

Drone mapping expert weighs in on Phantom 4 RTK firmware - We checked in with Paul Aitken, a drone mapping expert, and co-founder of DroneU to get his take on the latest firmware update for the DJI Phantom 4 RTK.

Drone spotted flying during racing at Leicester - Devices are being used to give in-running punters an unfair advantage

New drone laws mean CHILDREN could be fined £2,500 for using toys at home - The government is planning to introduce new drone laws that could penalise even toy drone users

Drone Maker DJI Says Employee Accounting Scheme Cost It Nearly $150 Million - DJI is the latest tech company to fall victim to vendor corruption in China. On Monday, it acknowledged that a group of employees had managed to inflate the costs of parts in order to funnel away profits for their own benefit. The privately-owned drone maker estimated that the scheme cost it an astonishing $147 million.

Drone Keyboard for Tello - A new way to control your Tello Drone - Control your Tello Drone with a keyboard effortlessly.

JD.com Launches First Government Approved Drone Flight in Indonesia - JD.com, China’s largest retailer, today announced the completion of Indonesia’s first government approved drone flight – a breakthrough for drone delivery in Southeast Asia. The successful pilot opens the door for future commercial drone use in Indonesia and the Southeast Asia region, subject to further regulatory approvals. Representatives from Indonesia’s Ministry of Transportation, Civil Aviation and Air Navigation were present for the flight.

Gatwick's December Drone Closure Cost Airlines $64.5 million - The 33-hour closure caused 1,000 flight cancellations and affected 140,000 people.

Package Delivery By Drone Still Faces Practical Challenges - Some may have been led to believe that package delivery by drone is just around the corner. If we look at some of the everyday obstacles that still need to be overcome, there are many corners beyond the first one.

Facebook Taps Airbus for Help to Relaunch Its Internet Drone - Facebook's efforts to provide internet connectivity from the skies using solar-powered drones suffered a blow last year when the company abandoned its “Aquila” drone project. But it clearly hasn't given up on the idea as it's now working with Airbus to attach internet technology to its Zephyr drone.

Indra's Anti-Drone Shield, Tested In The Most Complex Environments - The presence of drones recently forced the closure of Gatwick airport for three days, suspending 1,000 flights and disrupting the plans of about 140,000 passengers during Christmas, and Heathrow for one hour. Indra is one of the few companies in the world that has a comprehensive solution specifically prepared and tested to protect an airport or any other space against drones flying without authorization.

Digging - New Drone Ability - Built by UNL’s NIMBUS Lab, the quadcopter is equipped with a big drill that, once the drone has landed, can be used to burrow into the dirt, sand, or clay beneath it, primarily for scientific purposes.

Indian Government asks drone company to install safety chip to avoid accidents - The Union civil aviation ministry of India has asked drone companies to install safety chip which can switch off the drone remotely in order to avoid mishaps.

Hi-tech buildings fitted with lasers and fog bombs to defend against spy drones - Drones are being used by some companies to spy on rival firms

Pictures show enormous task facing teams trying to rescue trapped boy - Extraordinary pictures have emerged showing the magnitude of the massive ongoing search and rescue operation to reach trapped two-year-old Julen Rosello in southern Spain. A bird’s eye view from the drone, shows the hustle and bustle of the rescue teams and vehicles further down the hillside near the tented village forming the field response unit.

Pictured: Model plane pilot who caused chaos days after Gatwick drone scare - George Rusu was branded 'reckless' by a judge after admitting flying the Tundra model aircraft 500 metres from the perimeter fence of Britain's busiest airport.

Scientists planning to land drone on Saturn's moon Titan - A team of scientists at the Johns Hopkins University's Applied Physics Laboratory is apparently planning to explore Saturn's moon Titan completely by landing a drone on the hazy space body's surface.The mission has been named Dragonfly, and it aims to explore the potentially habitable sites on Titan. The team involved in this mission believes that the moon's low gravity and a thick atmosphere will help to explore multiple locations using the drone.

Ukraine soldiers shoot down drone equipped with fragmentation explosives - The terrorists tried to drop fragmentation ammunition on the Ukrainian positions from a small height.

NYPA to Integrate Lidar Technology With Its Drone Program - The New York Power Authority (NYPA) has received a $125,000 grant from the American Public Power Association (APPA) Demonstration of Energy & Efficiency Development (DEED) program to research and integrate light detection and ranging (LiDAR) technology into its existing in?house Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) program for vegetation management inspections along NYPA’s transmission lines. UAS, more commonly referred to as drones, have the potential to increase safety, lower cost, improve responsiveness and reduce the time to perform such inspections.

There’s a drone for that: DroneWorks Studios can launch a flight for any project - <span style=“color:#000000;font-family:Arial, sans-serif;font-size:13px;”>Justin Oakes, co-founder of Droneworks Studios, talks about the custom drones the company builds and flies custom drones for a wide variety of commercial and creative clients based out of their office in Houston</span>

Drones with Flamethrowers are Now a Thing - A drone developed in the Chinese city of Chongqing spits huge flames to clear obstacles from trees and telephone wires. Nothing to be worried about here

UI researchers use drone cameras to map harmful algae in Iowa - Researchers in the University of Iowa College of Engineering are using drone-imaging technology to map harmful algae in Iowa’s water. The project, led by Assistant Professors Corey Markfort and Gregory LeFevre, was inspired by the desire to use remote-sensing approaches to monitor water safety and quality.

This Bird-like Drone Has Wings and Legs, and Jumps to Take off - Generally speaking, drones have either vertical takeoff capabilities or they need a runway. However, a South African startup has a better way.

Australia Drone News

Shark spotting: how a drone app is helping to keep Sydney's surfers safe in the water - A new 'first in the world' app called Drone Shark simultaneously films surfers while monitoring for predators

Australian Open tennis superstar Stefanos Tsitsipas caught in YouTube scandal - Tennis ace Stefanos Tsitsipa was forced to take down the YouTube video of drone footage he'd taken at the recent Sydney International tournament.

Police remind drone users of risk to emergency operations aircraft - Tasmania Police have issued a reminder to drone users as emergency operations aircraft are in use firefighting across the state.

Australian Open umpire is almost flattened by a low-flying Spidercam camera - Shocking footage has revealed the terrifying moment umpire Alison Hughes had to duck for cover after Ash Barty defeated v Maria Sharapova.