With recent sensational documentaries and news stories in the press, we thought it was time to point out just some of the positive impacts drones have had in the UK and the rest of the world!
1. When a man used his drone to save his children from a shark
A Father taking aerial drone shots of his children swimming at a beach in Florida, captured a terrifying and unexpected shark heading straight toward them! Luckily he was able to alert his children with enough time for them to escape onto dry land.
Credit: Daniel Watson
2. When drones helped battle the Notre Dame fire
On 15 April 2019, two drones were deployed by the Parisian Fire Brigade, thought to be a DJI Mavic Pro and a DJI Matrice 210 to deliver video footage in real-time to those on the ground to help. Heroic firefighters were then able to coordinate their efforts more effectively and apply the right tactics to contain and eventually put out the fire.
Read our blog post to find out how the drones were used to stop the fire at Notre Dame more detail.
Credit: abc News
3. When a Police drone located a car crash victim in a 6′ ditch in Lincolnshire
A man who crashed his car in freezing night-time temperatures was saved from hypothermia when he was found by a police thermal-imaging drone. Sgt Templeman said: “We conducted extensive searches in the [police] vehicles, obviously we are very rural and it was very dark so you’re limited in what you can see.” It was eventually the drone that located the man and officers were then able to retrieve him from the ditch and take him to hospital for treatment.
The moment our #thermal #drone found a hypothermic man in a 6’ deep ditch 160m from his crashed car in the pitch dark tonight. Casualty conveyed to hospital. Thanks to @WoldsSgt for the request that may well have saved his life. pic.twitter.com/LwrPnBVj6H
— Lincolnshire Police Drones (@lincsCOPter) February 25, 2018
4. When drones helped build a suspension bridge in China
In southwest China architects used drones to help construct the Chishuihe Bridge. The suspension bridge, with a main span of 1,200 metres, will form a connection between the provinces of Guizhou and Sichuan when it completes later this year. Drones were used to carry the first cable between the bridge’s two support towers. Engineers have claimed that this method is up to 100 times more efficient and 80% cheaper than carrying the cables by a boat, helicopter or mini-rocket.
Credit: New China TV
5. When drones were deployed to explore dangerous mines in Africa
Worldwide, drones are becoming a necessity in the mining industry due to enhanced safety for the workforce. In Africa drones are deployed for various tasks such as exploration, inspection, security, surveillance and mapping. The drones are also used for surveying; helping to provide rapid visual access and multiple views from a position of safety for the workforce.
Credit: Rocketmine
6. When drones battled wildfires in Yosemite National Park
Military drones were used to aid the 4,000 firefighters in battling the Ferguson Fire at Yosemite National Park. Situation Unit Leader Damian Guilliana who was part of the mammoth operation said, ‘”The fire was so big and so fast-moving that it was impossible to have people on the ground to bring that data in.”
Through state of the art infrared technology, the drones could show the fire and what it was doing with absolute precision. Deputy Incident Commander, Rocky Opliger added “It’s an incredible tool. We’ve been asking for it for a long time. We’ve always had infrared technology, but this gives us real-time visual information that can be shared with those responsible on the line for tactical impletion,”.
Credit: abc 7 News
7. When drones delivered emergency blood to doctors in Rwanda
Doctors in rural Rwanda are now able to order blood and medical supplies by text message and have them delivered by a drone. Zipline have developed a zip wire system that catapults drones into the air. The drones then travel at 80mph, releasing their delivery when they reach their destination.
Credit: BBC
8. When drones collected whale DNA
In Frederick Sound, a specialist drone affectionately named as the “snot-bot” is busy capturing DNA from humpback whales. This new method of DNA collection aims to be non-invasive for the whale and improve the safety and efficiency of the collection. The drones assist the scientists by waiting until the humpback is about to breach the surface, then the drone flies directly through the blowhole spray, collecting phlegm on its attached petri dishes.
9. When a police drone located a missing Norfolk man
Peter Pugh, 75, became separated from friends during a walk and found himself stuck in thick marsh with water up to his armpits. Norfolk Police, a long-standing partner of COPTRZ, found him 21 hours later using a police drone. Peter cannot remember the rescue but his wife commented “The emergency services and technology saved his life”. Sgt Alex Bucher of Norfolk police added “There is no doubt that without the police drone we would not have been able to locate him in the time we did.”
10. Drones now used to plant trees in the US
Droneseed is a Seattle-based startup whose mission is a future where technology is solving our planet’s deforestation problems. DroneSeed works in post-fire environments to plant native trees and vegetation using drone swarms and spray to protect them. Droneseed claims that one person operating 15 drones could do the equivalent of 360 manual labour hours of tree planting or spray in a day (That’s a lot of trees!). They are currently working with three of the largest foresters in the US and aim to expand this significantly in 2019.
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Let us know what you think about the future of drones or the positive impact they are already having on the world.
