Drone News Roundup: Volcanoes of Sicily by Drone, NYPD Uses Drones to Stop People from Riding on Top of Subway Cars, and More!

This week we’re covering an epic cinematic drone tour of the volcanoes of Sicily.

We’re also covering the NYPD using drones to stop teens from standing on top of subway cars, DJI’s move off iOS and Windows for third party apps, the latest DJI drone models to receive Remote ID firmware updates, and Percepto’s waiver to let one pilot fly 30 drones at once.

Now on to the links!

Volcanoes of Sicily

Mount Etna is one of the most active volcanoes in Europe, and has been constantly active for the last decade. In this drone tour of Sicily we get up-close FPV footage of Mount Etna and the surrounding Aeolian Islands, with beautiful flyovers as magma shoots into the air, sweeping shots of a massive volcanic crater, and dramatic dives along rocky coastal promontories. In addition to Mount Etna, this video includes footage from the islands of Vulcano, Lipari, Salina, and Stromboli. For gear, the video was shot with the GoPro 10 Black using the Iflight Nazgul Evoque, the BOB57, and the Chimera 7 Pro. About making the video YouTuber Joshua Turner said: “My goal with this video was to juxtapose the raw power of Sicily’s active volcanoes with the serenity of the coastal towns and the Mediterranean sea.”

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NYPD Uses Drones to Curb Dangerous Subway Surfing

Ever heard of subway surfing? It’s exactly what it sounds like. Teenagers are climbing on top of elevated subway cars and riding—or surfing—them. And yes, it’s just as dangerous as it sounds. To stop this behavior, the NYPD is using drones to spot teens standing on top of subway trains, enabling officers on the ground to catch those doing it. The footage has been used for some arrests but the main goal is deterrence. According to the NYPD, they’re not putting most teens caught subway surfing into the system. Instead, they’re showing the footage to their parents or guardians in the hopes of preventing future incidents.

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DJI Urges Developers to Drop iOS and Microsoft, and Move to Android

Credit: DJI

DJI recently put out a note in its developer support forum stating that it “will now stop updating certain SDKs.” DJI’s SDK is a kit for software developers that makes it easier to create apps for DJI drones. Now, DJI says it will no longer be supporting the SDK for Apple or Windows, effectively dropping support for any third party apps that use either. Instead, DJI encourages developers to move to Android: “We recommend developing mobile applications based on the Android SDK.” DJI’s announcement came out on November 29. The effective date for support to stop for Apple and Windows was five days earlier—November 24.

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Mavic 2 and Phantom 4 Pro V2 Drones Get Remote ID Firmware Update

The DJI Mavic Air 2 | Credit: DJI

Several DJI drones recently received firmware updates to make them compliant with the Remote ID rule. The drones are the Mavic 2 Pro, the Mavic 2 Zoom, the Phantom 4 Pro V2, and the Phantom 4 Pro+ V2.

• Mavic 2 Pro and Mavic 2 Zoom. The firmware update for the aircraft is v01.00.0797; for the DJI GO 4 App for both iOS and Android is v4.3.60; and for the remote controller is v01.00.0770. Here are the release notes from DJI.
• Phantom 4 Pro V2 and Phantom 4 Pro+ V2. The firmware update for the aircraft is v01.00.70.17; for the DJI Go 4 App is v4.3.60 (same as above); and for the remote controller is v01.00.0770 (also same as above). Here are the release notes from DJI.

A few notes:

• Don’t do the firmware update for any of the drones listed above if you’re using the GS Pro app. It’s not supported and will cause the drone to fail.
• After making the update, turn your drone and remote controller off and back on. Try this a few times if it’s not working the first time.
• Double check your remote controller settings after the update—they may get reset to default settings.

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Percepto Gets Waiver to Let One Pilot Fly 30 Drones Autonomously

Credit: Percepto

Percepto has received a waiver from the FAA to fly up to 30 drones with a single pilot. The waiver is quite broad, allowing for nationwide operations. Before obtaining the waiver, the company had to have each of its autonomous drones flown by a single pilot. The new approval will be a force multiplier for those using the company’s platforms, providing a leap from overseeing just one drone at a time to overseeing dozens. Percepto makes one of the few drone-in-a-box solutions on the market with the waivers to allow (at least some) customers to actually use it. The company is seeing growing adoption for inspections and monitoring in industries like Oil & Gas, Energy, and Utilities, and this new waiver will only help fuel that growth.

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