Drone News of the Week, April 14: DRONELIFE Headlines, All in One Place to Read or Listen

Read or listen to all of the headlines in one place: excerpts from the DRONELIFE drone news of the week ending April 14, 2023.  Click on the titles below for the full story.

Continue reading below, or listen:

Czech Primoco UAV to Supply Navigational Calibration System for Airports

Czech UAV manufacturer Primoco UAVhas signed a contract to supply Malaysian company GIAAN GROUP with a new NAVAID calibration system. This calibration solution is utilized by the Primoco UAV One 150 UAVs, and has applications in the inspection, calibration and evaluation of a range of airport navigation equipment including ILS/VOR/DME/TACAN/COM, as well as visual tools such as PAPI/VASI. GIAAN seeks to leverage the system to conduct calibration missions at airports within the Southeast Asia region. The EUR 3.7 million contract also includes the purchase of two One 150 UAVs

Mapping Paradise: Event 38 and PLACE Partner to Map Turks and Caicos

Mapping drone manufacturer Event 38 Unmanned Systems has announced the successful deployment of its E400 fixed-wing mapping drone for the collection of aerial imagery and mapping data in Turks and Caicos, which had not been mapped in at least ten years. In only a number of days, the drone gathered sufficient data to produce orthomosaics of the entirety of both islands, totaling 238 square kilometers. The project was conducted by PLACE, a global non-profit organization granting access to mapping data by providing hyperlocal and precise optical imagery.

Gremsy Launches the Lightweight Pixy S Gimbal for the Sony A7R IV Camera

The new Gremsy Pixy S, an innovative industrial gimbal designed for the Sony A7R IV, will be available this month from Gremsy’s online store and through the company’s worldwide network of dealers.  The new Pixy S is precision designed for mapping and inspection missions, and is highly optimized for flight time, stability, and accuracy.

Skydio Partners with gNext for Drone Infrastructure Inspection

Infrastructure inspection platform gNext Labs has announced the release of the gNext-Skydio cloud integration, granting customers improved access to their drone data in gNext’s platform. “We are excited to partner with Skydio to support our mutual enterprise customers with this cloud-to-cloud integration,” said gNext President Russ Ellis. “With this connectivity, we are creating seamless integration to allow field collected data to be uploaded for automatic processing in our leading infrastructure inspection platform to deliver improved workflows.”

Flytrex on the Drone Radio Show Podcast! 135 Certification, and Scaling Drone Delivery

Don’t miss Yariv Bash, CEO and Co-Founder of Flytrex on the Drone Radio Show Podcast this week!  Flytrex and host Randy Goers talk about the Chapter 135 certification process, how it differs from a Part 107 certification, and how Flytrex and Causey Aviation Unmanned are now positioned to delivery restaurant orders to homes throughout the country.

Commercial UAV Expo is Stacking Up to Be Big! More than 135 Exhibitors Already Committed

There are very few drone shows in the U.S., and Commercial UAV Expo is the award-winning, vertical-based show you won’t want to miss.  In 2022, the show won a Fastest 50 industry award – demonstrating the explosive growth that the show and the industry are experiencing.  This year, with over 135 exhibitors already committed, the show is stacking up to be bigger than ever.

U.S. Department of Defense to Purchase Unmanned Helicopters from Spain’s Alpha Unmanned

The U.S. Department of Defense has awarded system integrator Rapid Expeditionary Concepts with a prime contract for the purchase of Alpha 900 unmanned helicopter systems manufactured by Alpha Unmanned Systems, SL for integration, test, evaluation, and deployment. The Prime, a provider of end-to-end Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Cyber, Intelligence, Surveillance & Reconnaissance (C5ISR) solutions, will oversee the integration of a specialized electro-optical sensor for use in counter-unmanned aerial system (CUAS) operations.

More Drones with Sony Cameras? Sony SDK Updated, Enabling Remote Operation and Setting Changes

Sony is a world leader in cameras, and drones equipped with Sony cameras have advantages for engineering and industrial applications.  Sony’s own Airpeak hit the market last year.   Now, Sony’s latest SDK version further eases integration of drones with Sony products.

DJI Releases Inspire 3: Fully Redesigned, Cinema-Grade Drone (Check out the Images and Video)

Today, drone and camera technology leader DJI announced the DJI Inspire 3, a full-frame 8K cinema drone designed for top-level movie productions. Its integrated design features a 161° ultra-wide FOV night-vision FPV and the O3 Pro transmission and control system. DJI’s first and only cinema-grade drone, the Inspire 3 supports both RTK-powered Waypoint Pro and omnidirectional sensing to conduct safer and more accurate flight missions.