#DroneZone – Vol 3

Welcome to the 3rd edition of?#DroneZone, a weekly newsletter dedicated to all things drones! Each week we’ll bring you the latest developments, trends, and insights in the world of drones and UAS. From the newest models and accessories to the most innovative uses of drone technology, we've got you covered.

Over the coming weeks we will cover news on a wide range of applications including –

Delivery & Logistics - Medical - Disaster Relief and Search & Rescue - Agriculture - Surveying & Mapping - Inspection - Photography and Videography - Defence

Whether you're an industry professional, thought leader, drone pilot, a hobbyist, or just interested in the possibilities of this exciting technology, our newsletter will keep you informed and inspired. So sit back, relax, and let us take you on a journey into the exciting world of drones!

Company of the Week

Guardian Agriculture

This week's Company of the Week goes to autonomous agricultural drone business, Guardian Agriculture , who this week became the first eVTOL authorized by the FAA to operate nationwide.

The Woburn, MA (US) based business offer a solution for large-scale agricultural owners and developers, with clear benefits to traditional farming methods and crop dusting including reduced chemical spray, full autonomy, significant productivity improvements and the ability to operate at night - ultimately improving crop growth, freeing up capacity, reducing costs and increasing profitability.

The Guardian SC1 has four six-foot propellers and a 15-foot aircraft width and covers 40 acres per hour of full-field crop protection to the grower, with the SC1 platform already having over $100m in customer orders.

Having already raised $16.5m in previous seed funding rounds in 2019 and 2021, the business are now part way through a further funding round which would expect to propel their growth even further.

Adam Bercu , Founder and CEO of Guardian Agriculture , is quoted as saying "eVTOL powered crop protection is better for crops, better for the environment, and better for growers' bottom line. We designed our system to meet the needs of commercial agriculture. Solving this real-world pain point is the right first step for eVTOL adoption at large. FAA approval represents an important turning point for American leadership in this fast-growing market."

Socials -?LinkedIn,?Website

Hot Topic

Following on from our coverage of Guardian Agriculture , we have seen significant developments in the Ag markets through drone, UAS and data / mapping organizations.

Only recently, Hylio CEO Arthur Erickson spoke about the benefits of drone deployment in Agriculture (click for full interview), 微软 developed their data platform FarmVibes and growth of players such as GreenSight and Sentera .

So my question is -

?? “How do you see the development of drones and UAS changing the Ag landscape over the next 10 years? And which companies emerging in this space do you believe will be most impactful?”

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this!?

The Latest in Drones News

???On Friday Bell Flight Textron were awarded $279m after taking DJI to court for patent infringement. In this landmark case, DJI were deemed to have infringed on a number of patents including those relating to "a control system for causing a vehicle to have a selected position or selected velocity relative to a reference vehicle” and "a system for achieving and maintaining a circular flight path around a selected fixed or moving point.”

??? Skyfarer? LTD , the Coventry based Drones Logistics business, are hoping to 'open up the skies' by delivering medicine and other medical supplies across the UK to relieve pressure on the NHS. Despite hurdles to ensure compliance to safety rules set out by the Civil Aviation Authority, Founder & Managing Director Elliot Parnham is hopeful they "will have final sign-off for this by 2024". "This would mean we can use drones to deliver medicines in a same-day fashion but also other healthcare products such as hip replacements, blood units and chemotherapy drugs”.

???New South Wales (AUS) based Propeller , last week raised $15.35 million of venture funding in a deal led by Blackbird Ventures and Costanoa Ventures . Saniel Ventures , Cliff Obrecht and Aware Super also participated in the round. Congratulations to Rory San Miguel and the team! Propeller , who also have a base in Denver, CO (US), develop a drone data analytics platform designed to measure and manage worksites. This enables construction companies, mines, quarries, and landfills to improve worksite management efficiency and collaboration while reducing costs and risks.

???Last week, Incheon (South Korea) based PABLO AIR joined Sahlgrenska Science Park as a part of its Superstart Lab program on April 19, 2023 and received KRW 14 billion ($10.4m) in funding. The long-distance drone delivery services business, lead by CEO YOUNGJOON KIM , plan to innovate unmanned delivery and logistics systems with services including swarm and acrobatic formation flight, integrated ground control and intelligent information acquisition. Earlier in 2022 PABLO AIR became the first business to launch a convenience store delivery station in South Korea.

???Brazilian headquartered drone delivery company? Speedbird Aero ?and Israeli uncrewed traffic management (UTM) developer? High Lander ?have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that will increase the safety and efficiency of drone-based deliveries and enable future partnerships and collaborations globally.?Congratulations to High Lander Co-Founder & CEO Alon Abelson , Speedbird Aero Co-Founder & CEO Manoel R. Coelho and teams on this exciting partnership!

?? Fortune 500 tech leader Leidos , were recently awarded a new contract to develop a uncrewed aircraft system (UAS) for the Marine Corp, that can autonomously resupply forward-deployed ground forces. The multiple-award contract has a period of performance of 18 months to build a single prototype for the Marine Corps.

That's all for this week's edition?#DroneZone! We hope you enjoyed reading about the latest trends, news, and insights from the world of drones. Don't forget to subscribe to our newsletter and follow the hashtag?#DroneZone?to receive all the latest updates.

Do you have any feedback, suggestions, or ideas for topics you'd like us to cover?

If you're interested in contributing to our next edition or highlighting the work of a business we haven’t covered, please get in touch!

Until next time, happy flying! ??