DEALS
Rafael Suárez

Rafael Suárez

Rafael Suárez is a drone journalist and content creator with more than 20 years behind the lens. He began in film photography in 1998, moved to digital in 2005, and has been flying and filming with drones since 2016. As a commercial videographer he has produced work for premium brands including BMW, Porsche, and MINI, and his documentary work champions a #flysafe mentality across the industry. Based in Quito, Ecuador, he covers drone news, hardware, and the policy and business shaping the industry for DroneXL, and shares reviews and cinematic flight on his YouTube channel. A dad and a lifelong aviation nerd, he's happiest when something is in the air.

1,178
Articles
144
Beats covered
2025
Writing since
Aug 13
Latest story
Sort
Unknown Drone Crashes Into Key Polish Helicopter Base
Drone Incidents

Unknown Drone Crashes Into Key Polish Helicopter Base

Poland just had two unexpected visitors drop out of the sky, and neither knocked before landing. In early February, an unidentified drone fell onto the grounds of the 1st Air Cavalry Battalion in Leźnica Wielka, central Poland. This is not just any military site. The base serves as a key helicopter hub for Poland’s land…

LAPD Expands Drone Program With $2.1M Boost
Skydio

LAPD Expands Drone Program With $2.1M Boost

The Los Angeles Police Department is preparing to significantly expand its Drone as First Responder program after receiving approval for a $2.1 million donation from the Los Angeles Police Foundation, according to CBS News. The Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners voted unanimously to accept the funding, although final approval now rests with the LA…

Army Launches Drone and Robotics Leader Course at Fort Benning
United States

Army Launches Drone and Robotics Leader Course at Fort Benning

The U.S. Army has quietly opened a new front in its modernization push, not on a distant battlefield, but inside a classroom at Fort Benning, Georgia. This week marked the debut of the Robotic Autonomous Systems Leader Tactics course, known as RASLT. The goal is simple but ambitious: teach combat leaders how to actually use…

Drone Finds Injured Man in Iowa Ravine
DJI

Drone Finds Injured Man in Iowa Ravine

A drone became the difference between panic and precision in Story County, Iowa, after an elderly man fell into a ravine near the Greenbelt Trail south of Story City, as WHO13 reports. The man called 911 over the weekend, reporting that he had fallen, believed he had broken ribs, and could not stand. He was…

US Army Orders Mossberg 590A1 Shotguns for Drone Defense
US Army

US Army Orders Mossberg 590A1 Shotguns for Drone Defense

The US Army is reaching back to a very old tool to deal with a very new problem. Mossberg & Sons has confirmed a fresh Pentagon contract worth about $11.6 million for additional Mossberg 590A1 pump action shotguns, a weapon the US military has relied on since 1987. This time, however, the mission is not…

Fiber optic drone webs are reshaping Ukraine’s battlefields
Ukraine

Fiber optic drone webs are reshaping Ukraine’s battlefields

Russia’s full scale invasion of Ukraine is often called the world’s first true drone war, and not without reason. FPV drones buzz across the frontlines every day, striking targets, scouting positions, and doing jobs that once required far more people and far more risk, as UWEC Work Group reports. Recently, another layer has been added…

Nordic Investment Bank backs Estonian drone research hub
Denmark

Nordic Investment Bank backs Estonian drone research hub

The Nordic Investment Bank is putting serious money behind Estonia’s growing drone ambitions, signing a EUR 11.4 million loan agreement with Metrosert AS to help build a new Drone Technology Unit at the country’s Applied Research Centre in Tallinn, as reported by Defence Industry. The financing runs over ten years and supports laboratories dedicated to…

Chinese Drone Assembly Lines Headed to North Korea
Ukraine

Chinese Drone Assembly Lines Headed to North Korea

A Chinese automation company is openly promoting a drone assembly line reportedly bound for North Korea, raising serious questions about export controls and compliance with United Nations sanctions. According to NK News, a video posted on Douyin shows an employee of Jiangsu Nengtai Automation Equipment presenting a fully built drone production line inside its factory…

— The DroneXL Briefing · Free

The drone industry moves fast. Stay ahead of it.

One email with the drone news that matters — DJI, FAA, public safety, and everything in between, straight from the newsroom. No spam, no fluff.

8,400+
Articles published
340+
Beats & desks
2020
Covering drones since
100%
Independent