Delair-Tech, based in both France and California, announced it has used 3G cell phone connectivity to allow its DT18 drone to fly beyond line of sight to inspect power lines in France.   In early June, the company flew the aircraft for more than 50 kilometers (31 miles) for the company RTE, inspecting power lines between the towns of Samur and Poitiers, using only 3G connections to navigate.   “That’s a major step forward for beyond line of sight flight,” says Benjamin Benharrosh, the company’s cofounder.   French airspace regulators were present for the flight, and Benharrosh said the company would like to present the results to the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration as well.  

Canadian UAVs and Lockheed Martin CDL Systems have conducted the first beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) inspections using UAS in Canada, at the Foremost Centre for Unmanned Systems in Alberta.  Using Lockheed Martin’s Indago 2 UAS, which was compliant with Transport Canada, several pipelines, well sites and power lines were inspected during the flights.  “Canadian UAVs has been focused on creating an end-to-end paradigm in coordination with Transport Canada to conduct these operations outside of Restricted Military Airspace where our customers have a substantial regulatory and logistical needs to acquire actionable data,” says Canadian UAVs Inc. President Sean Greenwood in a press release. 

About 60 students and staff from Oklahoma State University (OSU), and the universities of Kentucky, Oklahoma and Nebraska, are spending the week of June 26 flying UAS at OSU’s Unmanned Aircraft Flight Station, to collect data on weather.  This is the second year that the universities have come together to test UAS and their ability to improve weather forecasting, and the students seem to enjoy the collaborative environment as they work with students from different universities on a shared challenge.

Kespry has formally entered into the insurance sector, which will allow the company to “extend its end-to-end and easy-to-use enterprise drone platform by offering insurance specific functionality such as inspection-quality imagery for roofing and automated analysis to assist claim adjusters.” The Kespry UAS captures data that delivers high-resolution imagery with 1 mm per pixel resolution, which can detect physical damage and granule loss. Rooftop imagery is available onsite in less than 10 minutes, giving field and desk adjusters access to comprehensive roof dimensions and automated damage detection.