Aloft

News, deep dives, and analysis — every Aloft story, newest first.

Articles

Beats covered

Reporters on beat

Oct 16

Last updated

Pilot Institute host presenting the weekly drone news update for week 387, covering Chinese test labs, LAANC in DroneSense and the DJI Dock 4 and Matrice 5TD

Aloft · Pilot Institute

FCC Moves to Shut Out Chinese Labs, DroneSense Adds LAANC, DJI Dock 4

Greg Reverdiau: the FCC votes Oct. 29 to cut off Chinese test labs, DroneSense adds LAANC through Aloft, and DJI's Dock 4 swaps batteries in 25 seconds.

Greg ReverdiauOct 163 min read

Potensic Atom 3 First Flight: New Sub-249 Gram Drone Flies Like A DJI Mini For A Lot Less Money

Aloft

JetBlue Pilot Reports Striking Drone at 3,000 Feet Over JFK, but No Damage and No Debris Yet

A JetBlue pilot told air traffic controllers his Airbus A321 collided with a drone at roughly 3,000 feet on final approach to John F. Kennedy International Airport around 7:15 a.m. EDT on Monday, June 29. Flight 948 had flown overnight from Las Vegas and landed safely six minutes later at 7:21 a.m. A post-flight inspection…

Haye KestelooJun 29

Aloft

Marines Fly V-BAT Spy Drone From Warship in South China Sea

The U.S. Marines just launched a ship-based spy drone into the airspace China considers its backyard. Operating from the USS Portland with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, troops put a V-BAT vertical takeoff intelligence drone over the South China Sea, flying surveillance missions in a stretch of ocean where Beijing has spent more than a…

Rafael SuárezJun 23

Olathe Drone Ordinance Pulled, and the ICE NOTAM Shows Why Pilots Have to Fight at Every Level - FAA research: DJI accounts for 96% of detected US drone platforms. The FCC banned it in December. - FEMA & Massachusetts: $21.2 Million in C-UAS Grants Reveals the Real World Cup Security Playbook - DJI Air 3S vs Mavic 3 Pro Drone Comparison

Aloft

OCFA Tracks Rogue Drone Pilots By Remote ID At Garden Grove Chemical Tank Crisis

The Orange County Fire Authority says it can find the private drone operators buzzing the Garden Grove chemical tank emergency, and it is reading their Remote ID to do it. OCFA Capt. Brian Yau said the agency has counter-UAS gear that detects a drone in flight, pulls its registration, and traces the operator through that…

Haye KestelooMay 26

Aloft

China’s “Land Aircraft Carrier” Powers Drones Mid-Flight

The US approach has leaned toward laser because the precision suits long-range, single-drone missions. China's microwave approach suits

Rafael SuárezApr 21

Aloft

Petrel AERO Sky Logs Six Hour Hybrid Test

Florida based Petrel Technologies confirmed that its AERO Sky hybrid VTOL aircraft completed a six hour endurance test, covering hundreds

Rafael SuárezFeb 23

Aloft

Terra Drone’s Unifly Demonstrates Advanced Collision Avoidance At European U-Space Project In Romania

Terra Drone subsidiary Unifly has successfully demonstrated collision avoidance and flight separation management technologies at the SPATIO Project Open Day in Romania, showcasing systems that enable drones to share airspace safely through automated traffic management. The October 29 demonstrations at INCAS Strejnicu Flight Base validated technologies designed to prevent mid-air collisions during

Haye KestelooNov 5

Aloft

Unifly Joins European Defence Agency Project To Standardize Military Drone Risk Assessment

Unifly, a Terra Drone subsidiary and global leader in UAS Traffic Management solutions, has joined a European Defence Agency (EDA)-led initiative to harmonize pre-flight drone risk assessment standards across Europe’s defense and security operations. The MIL-UAS-SPECIFIC 3 project aims to streamline the currently fragmented approval processes that drone operators face when conducting high-risk mis

Haye KestelooOct 2

Aloft

The drone industry moves fast. Stay ahead of it.