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Redmond, Oregon, is replacing its DJI police drones with six Skydio aircraft, and paying for them the way a city buys a fleet of patrol cars: on a five-year financed contract. The city council approved the $410,762 deal with Axon on June 23. The department calls its old fleet obsolete, but the bigger force behind…
Amazon has confirmed that its next drone-delivery market is the Omaha area, with Prime Air aircraft set to fly out of the company’s warehouse in Papillion, Nebraska. The service will carry items under five pounds (2.3 kg) that fit in a shoebox, to homes within a 7 to 8 mile (11 to 13 km) radius…
Santa Maria’s police department is getting its drone-as-first-responder program off the ground with money raised at a charity gala, not a line in the city budget. The Santa Maria Police Council, a nonprofit booster group, pulled in about $95,000 at its annual fundraiser and is handing the department a $97,869 donation to buy the aircraft.…
Two California cities moved to put police drones in the air the same week, and both ran straight into residents who don’t want them there. West Hollywood launches a sheriff-run drone program by the end of July. Berkeley opens bidding on a public safety package that bundles drones with license plate readers and cameras. DroneXL…
Luke Maximo Bell flew a rebuilt quadcopter for 4 hours, 21 minutes and 39 seconds on a single battery charge, breaking the Guinness World Record for longest flight of a small electric multirotor drone. Independent witnesses observed the attempt on a farm outside Cape Town, South Africa. The result beat the previous certified mark of…
DJI will announce a new enterprise drone on July 8, 2026, at 8 AM EDT. The teaser, published by DJI Enterprise on July 2 under the tagline “For the Priceless Below,” shows a darkened silhouette of a quadcopter with extended landing gear, a gimbal payload slung under the body, and what appears to be a…
Ukrainian Defense Drones (UDD), the U.S. company representing Ukraine’s F-Drones, has chosen the Village of Holland in Northwest Ohio for its first American assembly and manufacturing center. The company plans to invest $18.4 million and create at least 300 jobs in Lucas County by the end of 2029, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and Congresswoman Marcy…
The DJI Mini 4K Protection Bundle dropped to $251.99 on Amazon, 26% off its $341.99 list price and, per Amazon’s badge, the lowest price in 30 days. The deal landed right before the July 4th weekend, is Prime-eligible with free delivery by Sunday, July 5, and was in stock when I pulled up the listing…
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