French Drone Company Covers Democratic Debates

Last month’s Democratic presidential debate may have been divisive to many American voters, but one issue without debate is the crystal-clear aerial footage provided by drone company Elistair.

During the Jan. 14 televised debate, the company’s tethered drone system provided 13 hours of live footage on CNN at Drake University in Iowa. With the support of Vector Solutions, the French UAV firm provided video “essential for these media organizations who want to offer aerial images to complement ground shots,” according to a company statement.

“The benefits of Elistair Ligh-T tethered station lie in the unlimited flight time it provides to UAVs, and its compatibility with most drones on the market. Users of the tether can now broadcast a continuous stream of aerial images to their viewers, without the need to land to change the batteries.”

During the debate event – from Jan. 14-15 — CNN Air flew its DJI M210 tethered to Elistair’s Ligh-T at a height of 60 meters for eight hours on the first day and five hours the second day.

“This solution provides excellent results for any venue that requires constant, uninterrupted over- watch,” Vector Solutions pilot Howe Hildebrand said. “It allows for constant, coverage of the subject area. There’s no need to continually land and change batteries, therefore you never lose contact with the subject area.”

Other Elistair clients include the United Nations, the French Defence Procurement Agency, the UK Ministry of Defence, the U.S. Army, the New York State Police, the Paris Police Department, Vodafone, Thales and Petronas.

Lyon-based Elistair has also launched the ORION UAS, a fully automated tethered drone system the company says will offer ease of use and flexibility for clients.

Created for “semi-persistent” aerial surveillance and telecommunications functions, the ORION is taking aim at the public-safety, defense and law-enforcement sectors for security and crisis management missions.

The ORION offers a 10-hour mission endurance with a “patented micro-tether system Safe-T [that] ensures a secured and continuous power supply from the ground.”

Vector Solutions is an aerospace and defense company, specializing in technology integration and robust mission support with manned and unmanned vehicles.