Drone News Roundup: Epic Snowy Mountain FPV Dive, Influencer Illegally Sends $7 Million in Drones to Russia, and More
BY Zacc Dukowitz
22 February 2024This week we’re covering a video from the Drone Racing League featuring an incredible FPV dive down a snowy mountain in Norway.
We’re also covering a story about an influencer who has admitted to illegally sending millions in drone technology to Russia, the Avata being discounted by 30% and other President’s Day deals from DJI, Wingtra’s new LiDAR drone, and drones dropping bombs in Alaska to control avalanches.
Now let’s get to those links!
Cinematic FPV Dive Down Huge Snowy Mountain
This short FPV dive down a snowy mountain in Henningsvær, Norway is so epic that several commenters thought it might be from a video game. To get a shot like this, you need a long-range FPV drone so you can fly that far away and still maintain your signal. Henningsvær is a small fishing village located along several small islands, which are connected by bridges like the one you see toward the end of the shot.
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Influencer Admits to Sending $7 Million in Drone Parts to Russia
View this post on Instagram
It sounds like a story straight out of a spy novel. Using the cover of globetrotting to capture shots for her Instagram account, social media influencer Kristina Puzyreva was secretly sending millions of dollars worth of U.S. electronics—including drone and missile components—to Russia. Puzyreva, who has both Russian and Canadian citizenship, recently admitted to the scheme in federal court. In total, she made 298 shipments of “restricted technology,” including U.S.-made semiconductors, which Russia was unable to purchase directly due to sanctions imposed on it by the U.S. for its role in the war in Ukraine. One thing that may have tipped investigators off is that, despite her Instagram account featuring photos from around the world, Puzyreva only has about 700 followers.
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30% Off on the Avata and Other President’s Day Deals from DJI
Credit: DJI
DJI is offering a few discounts and a few gifts for President’s Day. The biggest deals are for the Avata—both the Avata Explorer Combo and the Avata Pro-View Combo are on sale for steep discounts (see details below). The Pro-View Combo is a new offering from DJI, which includes the DJI Goggles 2 and the DJI RC Motion 2, a controller that lets you fly by tilting it with your hand. (As a side note, the deals on the Avata could add some legitimacy to the rumors that DJI is working on an Avata 2.)
In addition to the Avata deals, there’s a good discount on the Mini SE 2 and some add-ons for a few popular DJI drones—check out all the deals below.
Here are the deals:
- 30% off DJI Avata Explorer Combo—$899 (reduced from $1,278)
- 24% off DJI Avata Pro-View Combo—$999 (reduced from $1,317)
- 12% off DJI Mini SE 2—$299 (reduced from $339 + free water bottle)
- Free water bottle with DJI Air 3 Fly More Combo with RC2—$1,549 (no price drop, just free gift)
- Free water bottle with DJI Mavic 3 Pro with DJI RC—$2,999 (no price drop, just free gift)
Note: DJI is offering these deals until February 26.
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Wingtra Unveils the Wingtra LiDAR
Wingtra, the company known for making some of the best mapping platforms available, has rolled out a new drone called the Wingtra LiDAR. The new drone was designed to make it easy to produce high-accuracy terrain maps and sells for about $20,000. It comes with a user-friendly app and the ability to swap in other payloads, including RGB cameras and multispectral sensors. Just a few years ago, it was expensive and complicated to start using drone LiDAR. Drones like the Wingtra LiDAR, which are relatively easy to use and priced in a range companies can actually consider spending, show how far the technology has come.
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Alaska DOT Expands Use of Drones to Control Avalanches
The Alaska DOT has been testing the use of drones in remote locations for a while now. Some of these tests have involved the DJI Dock and Matrice 30, DJI’s first drone-in-a-box solution, which has allowed the agency to continuously collect aerial data on avalanche hazards without a pilot present. But drones aren’t just identifying potential avalanches—they’re also helping mitigate them. This is being done through a partnership between the ADOT and the Alaska Railroad Corporation. Using U.S.-made drones designed to carry and drop payloads, a team dedicated to reducing avalanches has been dropping explosives on hazard areas. Two tests have been carried out so far, with the explosives intentionally triggering avalanches, helping avoid potential disasters in the future.
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