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Old 16th Sep 2020, 07:50
  #31 (permalink)  
TCAS FAN
 
Join Date: Apr 2005
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Originally Posted by msbbarratt
If the basis of the detect and avoid tech is going to include ADS-B, isn’t that just going to give the more dedicated criminals an advantage? For a start it’s surpassingly easy to hop onto Flight Radar 24 (or whatever) and see where it is. But it would also be very easy for a more professional criminal to have an ADS-B receiver, to get an instant warning of the presence of a police UAV free of any internet delays (and no internet trace either). Such a thing is well within the scope of the technical ability of organised crime gangs.

If that became a regular problem they might try using a random ADS-B id. But that mustn’t match another aircraft’s number and it would be trivial to spot new ADS-B ids in comparison with the entries in public databases.

Basically it’d be a tech arms race between cops and robbers, but the advantage would always be with the robbers. The UAV cameras wouldn’t ever find a single professional criminal because they’d be able to know it was coming into their area long before it could see them.

I don’t know if police helicopters emit ADS-B, but they’d probably have the option of switching it off if this ever became an issue.

ADS-B was used in the recent trial but is not part of the detect and avoid system that requires certification. In the operational environment ADS-B could be disabled. Operation within CAS can be acheived by use of the onboard Mode S SSR.

The Starliner variant of Hermes 900 is the model aimed at operation in Class G airspace. Using the link I provided on post 23 compare pictures of the Starliner and other Hermes 900 variants. The piggy backed radome houses a radar based detect and avoid system which is what requires certification, completely independant of other EC devices.

For the benefit of thread readers, please do not confuse current SUA (drones) used by emergency services with the Hermes 900. The current SUA/drones are not in the same league when it comes to search and detection capabilities, quite apart from the fact that Hermes900 has around 30 hours flight endurance if fully fuelled, not the endurance of minutes as is currently the case with SUA/drones.


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