Drone News Roundup: Red Bull’s Extreme Aerial Obstacle Course, A Light Show Delivery Hack, and More!

This week we’re covering drones being used in an extreme aerial obstacle course as part of a two-year Red Bull project.

We’re also covering a homeowner using drone light shows to guide deliveries, new AI features for the Antigravity A1 360 drone, a rise in wildfire drone incursions, and a new FAA enforcement program.

Now let’s get to those links!

Red Bull Builds an Extreme Aerial Obstacle Course for Drones

Red Bull’s Ultimate Aerial Obstacle Course brings drones into a massive extreme-flight project, linking 15 airborne obstacles across open skies, mountain ranges, and city skylines. The two-year effort involved 34 athletes and crews working across disciplines, including wingsuiters, skydivers, paramotor pilots, jet aircraft, and drone engineers. One of the drone-specific highlights comes over Dubai, where athletes flew through a giant Red Bull can made from a drone formation hovering more than 300 m above the city skyline. Watch the video to see what these aerial daredevils pulled off, and how drones helped.

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Using Light Show Drones to Help Delivery Drivers

Here’s a new drone use case: helping lost drivers. In this short clip, a homeowner who lives in a remote area in California uses light show drones to make his house easier for delivery drivers to find. The setup is simple but effective, with a small formation hovering overhead as an aerial “you are here” marker. The creator, TomBetGeorge, is known for large-scale holiday light displays. His YouTube channel features full Christmas and Halloween productions, and his work has even been featured on Good Morning America.

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Antigravity Adds Voice Control and AI Editing to A1 360 Drone

Antigravity is adding new software features to its A1 360 drone, including voice control and automated editing tools powered by AI. With the updates, pilots can now use voice commands to control basic flight functions. And the new editing system can automatically turn captured footage into short, shareable clips. That matters more with 360 footage, where you have to choose framing and camera angles after the fact—something AI can speed up significantly. The goal is to simplify both flying and post-production, especially for users who want quick results without spending a lot of time on manual edits.

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Wildfire Drone Incursions Hit Record Levels in 2025

The U.S. Forest Service says 2025 saw the highest number of drone incursions near wildfires on record, with 218 unauthorized flights. These interruptions can delay water drops and other aerial support at critical moments, increasing risk for crews on the ground and potentially prolonging the fire. Officials continue to warn drone pilots to stay clear of wildfire zones, noting that temporary flight restrictions (TFRs) are typically in place around active fires.

It’s important to note that the Eaton and Palisades fires in Southern California drove the majority of these drone incursions. Of the 218 incidents, 184 were tied to those two fires. During large, active wildfires like these, it’s crucial that drone pilots stay grounded: flying over active wildfires can directly endanger the lives of firefighters.

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FAA Launches DETER Program to Speed Up Drone Violation Enforcement

The FAA has launched a new initiative called DETER (Detect, Evaluate, Track, and Enforce Remotely) aimed at accelerating enforcement for drone violations. The program is designed to use remote identification data and other tools to identify potential violations and move cases forward more quickly. In practice, this could mean a flight tied to Remote ID data is flagged and investigated much faster, rather than sitting in a backlog for months. Pilots can choose to resolve cases through a faster process under the program, but doing so generally means acknowledging the violation—trading speed and reduced friction for less room to contest the outcome.

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