Drones in Australia (UAV/UAS)
 

Pick yer preferred name - Drones, Unmanned Air Vehicles (UAV), or Unmanned Air Systems (UAS). Even Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS)

CASA calls them UAVs

Development continues apace.

Yamaha has a heavy hauler UAV available for hire. Why caint i buy one...

Good question- and there are several reasons why not.

Firstly international trade in arms agreements place huge restrictions on export, import and ownership of high capability unmanned vehicles.

We have a responsibility to ensure these vehicles stay in responsible hands, that their exact location and usage is always known.

Secondly it allows us to ensure that maintainance, responsible usage and environmental standards are met.



Frequently Asked Questions | Yamaha RMAX







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The Yamaha RMAX has its roots in the '90s so Japan has been at this for longer than many people. Apparently it was developed in response to a government initiative to improve rice growing productivity in the face of an ageing farmer demographic.

Imagine that! A government being foresighted - at least in one area! It's a pity they can't be consistent about it!

I reckon it would be easy enough to stick a few servos and remote control an r22 or one of those home built jobbies if you want to do some damage...

Without any crew and stripped down the payload would be rocking!

USA news...

FEDERAL regulators in the United States have certified two types of unmanned aircraft for civilian use, a milestone expected to lead to the first approved commercial drone operations later this year.
The Federal Aviation Administration said on Friday the drones are Insitu's Scan Eagle X200 and AeroVironment's PUMA.


Insitu does a lot of Government related Drone operator training in Oz.

Drones approved for civilian use in US | News.com.au








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Crikey, next a terrorist will be using one to drop a GPS-guided bomb on Bhinghi's house! :}

Where did yer get that idea from..:)

Real world events perhaps...

Police in Germany have raided dozens of addresses to foil an Islamist terror plot intending to use remote controlled model aircraft filled with explosives to be flown into targets.
Armed officers of the specialist G9G units raided homes in Stuttgart, Munich and Dachau after receiving information that at least one assassination attempt was being planned using the model planes as guided missiles...



German police foil Islamist terror plot to use remote controlled aircraft filled with explosives as guided missiles | Mail Online











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All for $900...:cool:

Drone GPS system gives positions that are accurate down to single centimetres.


Piksi : The RTK GPS Receiver by Swift Navigation Inc. ? Kickstarter









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Much as we hate to admit it - this technology is going to change the face of aerial work. Industry is looking to cheaper, more efficient, and probably safer, ways to undertake aerial photography of several types, remote sensing of various kinds for agriculture, fire surveillance, traffic surveillance, animal tracking and counting, and others. Not everyone will become licenced for very small UAV's. I'd expect more and more of them to be imported, regardless of any government efforts to prevent it.
happy days,

The FAA has just provided type certification for the ScanEagle UAV in the Restricted category. The operating limitations are still pretty onerous, but over time they will reduce.

There is a huge groundswell of 'recreational' UAVs around the world.. just take a look at DIY Drones lots of pretty neat innovation going on there.

D.

Expanding operations...

Franchisees required for unmanned helicopters.

“We’re proud to be releasing this new technology to the Australian agricultural industry,”

“RMAX gives franchisees the opportunity to work closely with Yamaha Motor Australia to build a local business that is both sustainable and profitable.”

To become a franchisee, candidates are required to meet a number of stringent CASA and Chemical Handling qualifications.


Franchisees required for unmanned helicopters - Agriculture - Machinery - General News - Queensland Country Life








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but the CASA licensing is $$$$ for UAS Operator Certificate :}

CASA wil kill this industry stone dead if it can.

The reason? If it frees up UAVs, then there will be a push to free manned aircraft (although not passenger carrying)

Heh heh, lots of unlicensed drones hanging about over the ACT, blimps, gasbags even the odd Zeplin.......http://images.ibsrv.net/ibsrv/res/sr...lies/wink2.gif

will every UAV pilot require an ASIC?

Watching the Andy-RR vid i see there is yet another name for them drones... RPAS - Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems

In the vid one crew uses the term UAV, another uses UAS.








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WW1 UAV's...
 

Some UAV trivia.

In 1915, nearly two decades after patenting the world’s first radio-controlled boat, famed Serbian-America inventor Nicola Tesla imagined fleets of unmanned aerial combat vehicles being sent to war instead of pilots. Little did he know, the US Navy was already hard at work on that very same vision...

Monster Machines: This Failed Flying Bomb Could Have Been A WWI Cruise Missile | Gizmodo Australia








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model helicopter kills 19year old
 

A 19 year old model aircraft enthusiast was killed in Calvert Vaux Park in Gravesend, Brooklyn when the blade of a fair size model helicopter inflicted a horrendous injury to his head.

Apparently he was performing stunts at the time in front of his father who ran the model aero club.

Joy turned into horror in a heart beat.



http://s.wsj.net/public/resources/im...0905182030.jpg





Mickjoebill

This sadly is not an uncommon event, well maybe resulting in a death is but these toy heli's are lethal weapons. Much like an unguarded circular saw blade.
I've broken the tips of 3 fingers on one hand destroying the finger nails when my toy heli drifted into me whilst I was briefly looking down at the TX, I took my eyes off the machine for a nano second & the wind did the rest.
These UAV's or whatever the latest craze name is are now everywhere, R/C outlets are stocked to the roof with toy quad copters etc some with amazing features.

Gravity, as soon as they neutralize that then heaven 'elp us!:)

Wmk2

On the lighter side...
 

"Back in July, everybody chuckled a little over Deer Trail, Colorado’s half-baked plan to issue drone hunting licences and pay a bounty to any sharp shooter who bagged a flying robot. Some took the opportunity pretty seriously though, leading to over a thousand applications and..."...
Demand For Drone-Hunting Licences Overwhelms Tiny Town | Gizmodo Australia

Yamaha is certainly looking to establish their market lead...

"...They have been in Australia two years and there are four units in commercial operation,...

...We believe there is enough work in Australia for 50 of these units just with noxious weeds..."


Unmanned aircraft create show buzz - Agriculture - Agribusiness - General News - Queensland Country Life










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UC Davis Research

UC Davis investigates using helicopter drones for crop dusting

Whoops...

"A mystery drone has crashed into the Sydney Harbour Bridge, causing counter terrorism officers to be alerted and an investigation by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority. The incident occurred on Wednesday...

...It follows an incident in New York this week where a man was almost hit by a remotely piloted drone when it crash landed in Midtown Manhattan during peak hour..."


Mystery drone collides with Sydney Harbour Bridge










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Had to happen sooner or later? Although it is a very very clever idea, I am mortally concerned about how many of these things are going to be flying around in the very near future and the potential safety risks they are going to cause? As reported in this thread they have already been spotted around LAX, one was found smashed below the Sydney Harbor bridge, what next, one embedded in the skull of a 3 year old riding her bike near a park?
Proper controls need to be put in place.

Yahoo! Finance

"I think CASA's smart,"

Lets hope so :) Like any new tech there will be a few wrong directions taken...

"Australia may soon be the first country in the world to see commercial courier deliveries by drone, if a launch by a textbook rental service and an Australian tech start-up goes according to plan.
From March next year and pending regulatory approval..."


Push for lift-off on drone deliveries in Australia










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How does one diferentiate between a hobbyist's sophisticated radio controlled model and a drone/UAV requiring CASA or FAA approval/licensing?

Is this an RC model or an advertising UAV/Drone?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v315/Woomera/A380.jpg

The differentiation applies when you fly a model aircraft for reward. In Oz you can fly a R/C model up to 150kg now, so long as it has approval from the controlling body, in that case the MAAA. It must stay within the pilots line of sight.

Now if you take a 1kg model and attach a camera and fly it either line of sight or using downlink video, and you sell film or photos from that flight, you are doing it commercially and must be licensed to do so by CAsA.

Incidentally, the A380 above is an RC model:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...mera/A3803.jpg

I can't imagine the Jihardists worrying about CASA licensing as they build their 150 kg RC Airfix model attack drone/model/UAV, from parts bought on the internet.

That question is about to be decided in the US shortly...

The FAA complaint

The motion to dismiss

By the way, there was some pretty in-depth inspection and sign-off required to get that baby airborne, as show in this video.

Radio 2BG (SY) this morning reporting the use of Photographic Drones /UAV's over the fires at in the Springwood area, the pics received being HD and 'quite remarkable'....

I guess that's a whole lot better than some guys risking life & limb in the turb / crap vis. of bushfire smoke / wind etc, and 'more economical too'.

I can't see much wrong with that....

Cheers:ok:

Of relevance to Oz drone ops...

via http://www.pprune.org/military-aircr...rone-down.html

"A U.S. Air National Guard MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aircraft dropped out of the sky while conducting training operations at altitudes greater than 18,000 feet above Lake Ontario, service officials said. "The satellite control link failed and the aircraft descended into the lake"..."

From the thread, poster Stuff notes...

"I'm not in the know but doesn't the loss of the vehicle imply 2 failures?

First the loss of satellite link and second the failure of the return to base feature?..."









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We need drone aircraft, says police chief
 

Calls from the U.K.

We need drone aircraft, says police chief - Telegraph

There's a store in one of my local shopping centres selling R/C Choppers, complete with 'HD' camera....for $49.95....

Christmas 'Special'...
All made in China......

:}

Most of us have heard of the sign over the door of the SR71 base. Perhaps it's time it was updated to reflect modern times.
"Yea though I fly through the valley of the shadow of death I shall fear no evil for I am unshaven, wearing only a pair of jocks at my computer under my mothers house, flying a drone ".

The debate escalates...

"Can an unhappy pig farmer shoot down a drone operated by animal rights activists ?..."

Amazon's eyes in the sky and pig farmers might fly

'Taily' rules & regs are there only for the honest thieves much like locks:-)

That A380 toy plane has been around a little while now, there's also a B52 toy plane that's just as big kicking around on YouTube.

The Quads are coming, they are now like Mob Ph's every man & his dog has a toy quad!:-0


Wmk2

Shark Spotting
 

Seems drones cain't do every thing...

"Surf Life Saving had done it, also the Australia Professional Ocean Life Guard Association has spent some time and effort in Queensland, using the Gold Coast as a trial area."

"It didn't quite take off because of the cost factor," he said."







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Took em a while. The Oz villain has found a use for UAV's...

"A man has been charged after a drone was found hovering over a Melbourne prison..."

Drone allegedly used in attempt to smuggle drugs into Melbourne prison - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)









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Am sure Quads have bin used for a lot more than spying on yr neighbors daughters for some time now.

I've been playing with vid/film camera's etc in toy planes/heli's for years now & with 2day's FPV gear it's bloody scary what can be achieved nowadays.
When you think about it a Quad loaded with C4 & sent out on a kamikazi mission using GPS could be very lethal to an exact spot!.

Wmk2