I just came across this Wired.com article and it made me wonder if there are any projects out there in the DIY community that have a radio/audio broadcast or recording theme?
http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2011/03/secret-libya-psyops/

Although the article focuses on people who scan radio frequencies my thoughts jumped to a having the actual vehicle broadcast music or some message over a radio frequency (think pirate radio a la Pump Up the Volume except mobile and less powerful).  I'm not sure of the distance but I was kind of thinking of a modified iPod FM transmitter that is used to broadcast your iPod music through your car speakers.

I'm also actually interested in knowing if it's technically possible (and financially possible from a DIY'ers budget) to record audio on the ground from the flying/hovering uav? Tons of challenges e.g. size/weight of antenna and microphone, noise from the vehicle itself etc...

Anyway, interesting article that immediately made me think of both 'Pump Up the Volume' and Coppola's 'The Conversion' and if anyone has thoughts or comments regarding the broadcast or recording of audio via UAV systems please comment. It's an angle I hadn't really thought about until I read this article.

- Stan

PS I can't think of any practical reason to have a flying pirate radio but the ability to do it still seems cool for some reason.

Hello everyone!  This is my first post to the site though I've been following for over a year.  I'm finally to the point where I would like to begin purchasing equipment for my first Easy Star Drone.  

Background: I have successfully built and flew my Blimpduido kit.  I've also been flying around for a a couple months the Hobby Zone Champ (RTF).  This has been the extent of my RC/Drone background though I have been playing around with Arduino on other projects for over a year.

I would like to purchase the Easy Star Kit and buy all the components separately due to my lack of knowledge in RC plane hardware.  This is where I would like to get suggestions for mid-range servos, controlers, recievers/transmitters, batteries, motors, etc... I'm not familiar enough with rc brands or quality.

I'm pretty sure I'm going to stick with the Easy Star due to the overwhelming positive reviews I've been seeing over the past couple months, however, any and all suggestions for the actual plane kit are welcome.  I'm mostly interested in areal photography and possibly video.  

As this is going to be my first UAV/Drone other than my Blimpduino I will happily take suggestions for the best way to approach the build, rc hardware, photo/video hardware, etc... I plan on purchasing the plane first and getting familiar with it then after about two weeks (aka payday) I'm planning on purchasing the "drone" hardware.

Thanks for your suggestions and I look forward to hearing from you.  Thanks!

Stan