Schiebel kindly sent me this morning a link with this video on it. Its pretty amazing and certainly to my mind points at how Europe really is pulling ahead of the USA. (starting a flame war there) Imagine how difficult it would have been test flying the system in the USA.
I think there will be a rush towards large helicopter based systems now. This will become the minimum expected standard from movie UAS. It will cost a bit that's for sure.
It excited me enough yesterday to add it to our UAS Got Talent tab, if you have an entry then please suggest away.
Its on show in Las Vegas this week.
Comments
It currently costs around 3,000 usd per hour to put an AS350 with Cineflex in the air. I doubt that this will be much cheaper unless it is used on an everyday basis.
Ho ho as if to prove that Europe is a little more free thinking when it comes to UA
http://www.suasnews.com/2012/04/14761/blue-peter-gets-its-own-drone/
If it's good enough for Blue Peter it's good enough for me!
Well that worked ;-)
Ron as a civilian, with no COA try and test a UAS legally in the USA and see what happens.
Yep Europe is pulling ahead of South Africa, so are many many other countries l don't have a problem with that, this is after all Africa.
You can legally operate UAS commercially with a licence that is simple to get in the UK (sort of) and you can even pay to test fly it here if you like http://www.flyuav.co.uk/ there are many other places like that up and down Europe, in fact the ones very far north allow almost 24 hour daylight operation during long summer nights. I think there are currently just shy of 100 licenced operators in the UK. Australia is even further down the road with proposed Commercial Pilots Licence (UA) on the table. The UK will follow soon.
The relaxed attitude in the UK allowed me to fly a simple wing at Farnborough 2010, the next aircraft on display was an Airbus A380. I think you will find UA have never been shown to a public audience of 75k in the USA anywhere. Ok all right most people would never have seen it but you know what I mean. (I could be wrong there, did'nt a Predator go into Oshkosh once)
Thanks for the kind words Jason, 15/7/1986 and 26/9/1990
Ron, you need to review airspace classifications. There is no airspace in the US that begins or ends at 500AGL. Have a look at 14 CFR Part 71. Even if you are referring to AC 91-57, that guidance is 400AGL, and it is for amateur and hobbyist operation only.
You should also reference Interim Operational Approval Guidance 08-01, and the Unmanned Aircraft Program Office FAQ for information on the commercial operation on unmanned aircraft. The only airspace in which you can operate UAS commercially is special use airspace, and access to restricted areas is not easy, or cheap, to come by.
While the barriers to entry for aviation are lower here in the US, and we do not yet have user fees, to say that you "can fly ANYTHING in uncontrolled airspace" is grossly inaccurate.
Further, you don't likely know anything about the South African aerospace industry.
Even if a manned helo doesnt have the endurance, if the costs per hour of footage is less then a manned helo will still be the most attractive option, even if it takes multiple flights. This is assuming the customer doesnt require 6 hours of non stop coverage.
I think the new technology is fascinating but just like electric cars, it wont replace established technology until it gaves a clear advantage at a competitive price.
Alright challenge accepted.
Tony White slapped me on the wrist reminding me that he had flown a Cineflex under a blimp some time ago.
http://www.suasnews.com/2012/04/14724/galaxy-airships-flying-a-cine...
@John show me a manned heli that can fly for 6 hours on the trot with a film crew....
Thats impressive but it has to be cheaper than a manned helicopter to work.
That's sort of what I was thinking. I don't really see a studio buying it. It would be bought by a boutique A/V place and rented out as a service (complete with trained operators).
Yes, the Schiebel's are very nice helicopters. They are a very professional helicopter and work very well operationally. But the cost is going to keep them from entering the private sector (even the movie industry, a film services company, and some military contracts for that matter) for a while. The S-100 cost about $2 million (that is a helicopter and a ground station) and there is a mandatory $750,000 training coarse. That is all before you start adding the price of the sensor to the mix!
It will be nice when the airspace is opened for commercial use UAVs and the movie industry can start taking advantage of the technology that is out there to help them get the job done.
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