The rising cost of providing navigation equipment for airline pilots, and the parallel demand for cheaper air fares, will inevitably lead to piloted flight being obsolete in 40 years’ time, a defence consultant has argued. Although pilotless commercial flight is arguably some years away, given technological and airspace restrictions, the demand to carry more passengers at lower costs will...
The Korean Air Aerospace Division (KAL-ASD) has won a $333.5 million contract to produce its KUS-7 UAV for the South Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA). In a statement, KAL-ASD gave no details about the number of aircraft it will produce, but the contract runs from 2016 to 2020. According to its website, the KUS-7 has an operational radius of 50km and c...
An unmanned air ambulance has been filmed taking off, untethered, for the first time. The AirMule, developed by Tactical Robotics and long proposed as a means of extracting soldiers from a battlefield without risking further loss of life, has been in development for close to a decade. In theory the robotic craft would be able to take off and land vertically, in terrain where helicopters are...
Israel's Flying Production has unveiled an upgraded version of its Da Vinci vertical take-off and landing unmanned air vehicle. Dubbed the "Gen B", the development features a Controp electro-optical/infrared sensor and a micro data link. "The result is a game-changer – we have the only true multi-rotor system that can conduct a real mission in long ranges of 5...
It was a nearly perfect day at Children's Pool Beach in La Jolla: seals at rest in the sand, tourists gathered along the cliffs, sea gulls wheeling above. And in the middle of it all, a hovering drone. "Wouldn't it be great if the gulls attacked?" one bystander asked. "Who is flying that drone?!" demanded another, voicing worries that the drone could endanger...
Report by Kaleyesus Bekele, Addis Ababa: The US Air force has shut down its drone base in southern part of Ethiopia, Arbaminch town that it has been using to fight the islamist militant group in Somalia, Al Shabab, for the past four years. In 2009-2010 the US Air Force invested millions of dollars to upgraded the Arbaminch Airport runway and built a small annex to house a fleet of drones call...
FAA administrator Michael Huerta said the mandatory registration process for recreational unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) has proceeded smoothly, with 181,000 registrations completed so far. The number of registrations represents owners of UAVs weighing between .55 lbs. and 55 lbs.; an owner can register multiple vehicles using the same number. FAA launched a registration website Dec. 21. &l...
Chinese drone maker Ehang Inc. on Wednesday unveiled what it calls the world's first drone capable of carrying a human passenger. The Guangzhou, China-based company pulled the cloth off the Ehang 184 at the Las Vegas Convention Center during the CES gadget show. In a company video showing it flying, it looks like a small helicopter but with four doubled propellers spinning parallel to the g...
For every cheap flying robot, there is an elaborate, expensive system to counter it. The latest anti-drone tool comes from European aerospace and defense giant Airbus, and promises a high-tech solution to small flying robots. They’re showing off the system at the Consumer Electronics Exposition in Las Vegas, though no word yet on if they’ve caused any nearby drones to crash. From Ai...
Boeing and Air China announced an order for six additional 777-300ER (Extended Range) jetliners. The order is valued at more than $2 billion at current list prices and bolsters Air China’s long-haul widebody fleet as it looks to expand its international network. “The 777-300ER has consistently proved its value as a long-haul flagship for our customers around the world, making it the...
On 30 December 2015, Urban Aeronautics’ AirMule completed its first autonomous, untethered flight at Megiddo airfield in northern Israel. UrbanAero Rafi Yoeli – chief executive of UrbanAero, the parent company of Tactical Robotics, which developed the vertical take-off and landing aircraft – says the test schedule in Megiddo includes plans to demonstrate the AirMule&rsq...
US aerospace giant Boeing has announced a $14 billion share buyback and 20 percent increase in its regular quarterly dividend starting 2016 to $1.09 per share. Boeing said the new buyback plan will replace the $12 billion plan that was previously in place of which $5.25 billion remained. "Once again, we are demonstrating our commitment to a balanced cash deployment strategy that fuels i...
