Drone News Roundup: Aerial Tour of Iconic Water Town with the Air 3, Major Releases from Commercial UAV Expo, and More!
BY Zacc Dukowitz
12 September 2024This week we’re covering a cinematic aerial tour of Wuzhen, China’s iconic “water town,” which was shot on the DJI Air 3.
We’re also covering major releases from Commercial UAV Expo last week, a reminder from DJI that it will soon stop allowing U.S. users to save their flight records, a court case that involves a major company using a drone to spy on a competitor, and the FAA’s fines of over $340,000 for reckless drone pilots.
Now on to the links!
DJI Air 3 Cinematic Video of Chinese Water Town
This video from YouTuber @Genki takes us on an aerial tour of Wuzhen, a town in China famous for its picturesque canals. Nicknamed the “Venice of the East,” the town is over 1,300 years old. This video does a good job capturing its unique water ways, ancient stone bridges, and well-preserved traditional architecture. The video was shot on the DJI Air 3 and the Osmo Pocket 3. Genki first came across our radar for a beautiful cinematic video they made entirely with the Mavic 3 Pro, which we covered in a roundup last month.
LEARN MORE
Major Releases from Commercial UAV Expo
The UAV Coach team at its booth at Commercial UAV Expo 2024
The UAV Coach team had a great time attending Commercial UAV Expo last week. The event was jam packed with releases, major industry news, and some of the highest quality sessions on commercial drone operations you’ll find anywhere. Here are the highlights from the conference:
- ACSL released a new thermal camera. Japanese drone maker ACSL unveiled a new thermal camera designed for its SOTEN drone, compatible with other models, featuring a Boson sensor on a 3-axis gimbal with 640×512 resolution. The camera is part of ACSL’s latest innovations since its U.S. launch in early 2024, with availability expected later this year.
- BVLOS rule. The FAA’s upcoming Part 108 (or BVLOS rule) could introduce new regulations for drone operations in controlled airspace, potentially affecting security protocols and operational permissions, especially for BVLOS activities like drone deliveries. Details of the rule were discussed at the conference—the FAA will release the actual rule on Monday, September 16.
- Detect and avoid technology. uAvionix, which acquired Iris Automation in October 2023, made its first appearance at the Expo this year under its new structure. This merger represented a major step towards integrating crewed and uncrewed aviation technologies, particularly in the area of detect and avoid systems.
- Nokia and Flying Lion partnership. A notable innovation showcase at the conference came from the partnership between Nokia and Flying Lion. The two companies demonstrated a remote drone operation over 80 miles away, highlighting advancements in BLVOS, 5G-enabled drones-in-a-box solutions for public safety.
LEARN MORE
DJI to U.S. Users: Download Your Data Now
Credit: DJI
DJI is reminding U.S. customers: download your flight data if you don’t want to lose it. A few months back, DJI announced that it would stop allowing U.S. users to sync flight records with DJI servers. This applies to both consumer and enterprise users. Now it’s reminding people that this change is coming, and encouraging them to download their flight records if they don’t want to lose them. Here are the upcoming dates to keep in mind:
- Mid-October. Access to flight data will end for DJI Fly app users.
- November 7. Access to flight data will end for users of the DJI Pilot app.
After these dates all stored flight log data will be deleted. Although DJI hasn’t explicitly stated its reasons for removing syncing, it’s likely the company is trying to further distance itself from accusations that it’s spying on the U.S. by storing data that could be accessed by the Chinese government.
LEARN MORE
Court Case Takes on Corporate Spying by Drone
More and more, we’re hearing stories of organizations using drones to spy on their competitors. During the recent Olympics, the Canadian women’s soccer team was caught spying on a closed New Zealand practice with a drone (and apparently it wasn’t the first time). And now we’re reporting on a case of corporate spying by drone.
In October of last year, an employee of a company called Clean Harbors was spotted flying a drone over a chemical storage facility in Arkansas owned by competitor Veolia. According to Veolia, the unauthorized flight violated Arkansas law against using a drone “to conduct surveillance of . . . critical infrastructure without the prior written consent of the owner.” Clean Harbors has been held in contempt of court twice for refusing to let the employee flying the drone be deposed. Apparently it doesn’t want to admit to what it was doing—which, let’s face it, sure looks like using a drone to spy on a competitor.
LEARN MORE
FAA Issues Over $341,000 in Fines to Reckless Drone Pilots
Credit: FAA
Some in the drone industry have long bemoaned the FAA’s lack of enforcement for bad actors. But naysayers may soon change their tune. According to the FAA, between October 2022 and June 2024 it proposed civil penalties for 27 drone pilots, issuing fines that totaled $341,413. These fines went to pilots flying their drones in places they weren’t supposed to be, in ways they weren’t supposed to fly. Incidents ranged from a pilot who flew dangerously close to a Pasco County Sheriff’s Office helicopter, almost bringing it down (that one got a hefty fine of $32,700), to a pilot flying an unregistered drone during the weekend of the Miami Grand Prix (that one got an $18,200 fine). Read the full statement from the FAA below to learn more.
LEARN MORE
Make sure to sign up for our free weekly newsletter using the button below so you can get our weekly newsletter every Saturday, with this roundup and our other featured stories from the week.
