Search Results for: drones

Cary, North Carolina, last week became ground zero for the first successful commercial test of a drone delivery service when an M2 drone operated by UPS and its partner drone systems developer Matternet delivered a prescription from a CVS pharmacy to a nearby residence and another later to a customer at a retirement community. The […]

An airborne human-factors experiment conducted by researchers from Oklahoma State University and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University concluded in a recent published study that certificated pilots failed to see a common type of quadcopter during approach to a runway, and in most cases, could never detect motionless drones. In the testing, skilled pilots usually could see small […]

To paraphrase a line from The Lone Ranger radio series, “Return with me now to those thrilling days of yesteryear! From out of the past comes the thundering sound of a Cessna 150…Barney flies again.” This goes way back to the olden days—before radio and TV stations employed drones and live traffic cams to report […]

Most of my articles for this journal focus on managing the risk of flying piston-powered general aviation aircraft, with examples of good and poor risk management. But risk management is at least equally critical in the world of operating airliners and turbine-powered transport category aircraft. Recent air carrier accidents provide illustration and lessons relevant to operating small general aviation aircraft, especially when designing and certifying them. In fact, and just as during flight operations, the job of managing risk in the design and certification is to identify, assess and mitigate that risk. These procedures apply even more objectively when using rigid design criteria, especially when they involve transport category aircraft.

No matter your perspective about the integration of drones into the national airspace system (NAS), Skyfront’s recent flight of its Perimeter 4 hybrid gas-electric drone beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) of the operator looks like nothing other than a complete success. Conducted over a rugged, four-mile stretch of mountainous terrain along the Trans-Alaska pipeline, the unmanned aerial vehicle […]

The Experimental Aircraft Association celebrates 50 consecutive years of its famous convention this summer—now known as EAA AirVenture, but referred to by most as “Oshkosh”. We’ve scoured the significant conference schedule, and picked out these highlights for you to consider as you plan your week at the show this year—which runs from Monday, July 22, […]

Hobbyist drone pilots in the United States face new restrictions after the FAA adopted stricter rules and regulations aimed at keeping the national airspace system safe and available for both manned and unmanned aircraft. Under the new rules, which took effect this month, hobbyist drone pilots are no longer exempt under Section 336, which has […]

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Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao announced that the FAA has provided certification for commercial drone service operations to Wing Aviation, a Gooogle X project. The certification allows the service to start delivering packages via UAS in Blacksburg, Virginia. Wing Aviation’s success has come through a collaboration with Virginia Tech’s Mid-Atlantic […]

The threat from Axis submarines prowling the East Coast of the United States was scary and very real. Onshore shelling terrorized civilians, but the real low-hanging fruit for the submarines was on the seas. By as early as August 1942, Axis subs had caused the loss of thousands of lives, mainly merchant mariners, and sunk […]