Despite growing interest and investment, countering unmanned aircraft remains a significant challenge given the nature of the threat, the rapid evolution of drone technology, and the dynamic nature of modern warfare. This PolicyWatch is adapted from the author’s February 2018 monograph “Counter-Drone Systems.” The full report can be accessed here. Drones are operated by numerous state… Keep reading →
The natural gas and oil industry’s use of drones to inspect facilities and operations is getting a boost from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Shell’s partner Avitas Systems received an FAA waiver to fly drones for civil use beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) with the assistance of a radar in Loving County, Texas (USA).… Keep reading →
The energy industry continues to see a marked growth in the use of drones as they provide cost efficient and time-saving services.
SunPower engineers are testing the use of drones to survey wide regions and help design a solar power farm that can fit more solar panels on a piece of land, more quickly, and for lower costs than it previously could.
Strong ground support for moderate rebels would be needed to keep any buffer zone in the northwest from falling under the control of al-Qaeda’s Syrian affiliate. Read more articles from the TWI series on Syrian safe zones. In theory, Syria’s Idlib province and the eastern part of Aleppo province could serve as safe zones with… Keep reading →
On May 11, 2015, Xcel Energy became the latest electric utility to obtain an exemption under Section 333 of the 2012 FAA Modernization and Reform Act authorizing the company to conduct commercial small unmanned aircraft system (sUAS) operations. The exemption was issued exactly 90 days after the utility’s original petition which reflects the FAA’s continued efforts to streamline the issuance of such exemptions.
With a little over one month to go in the comment period on the FAA’s proposed rules for the Operation and Certification of Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems, and facing the prospect of at least another year before those rules become final, many energy and infrastructure companies are moving forward with their small unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) plans under the FAA’s existing rules.
The energy industry is a seemingly nonstop engine (or drill) of innovation, extracting oil and natural gas in specific locations – and by all manner of ways – once deemed impossible. But these advances below ground, no doubt a triumph of engineering and technology, may soon pale before the strides above ground: The aerial mastery of the… Keep reading →
With an almost eagle-eye-view of the Rocky Mountains from his office in Denver, Robert Attai advises clients on the emerging field of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), otherwise known as drones. A partner in the law firm of Husch Blackwell, his clients sometime seek advice after acquiring a smaller firm that is using UAS in their… Keep reading →
