Firecracker for disaster response

UAS manufacturer YellowPlane began flight testing their new rapid mapping wing for disaster response teams Monday, 16 Aug 2010. The electrically powered 1.45 metre wingspan flying wing is capable of lifting lightweight sensors for 15 minutes over  incident scenes. The brief is to quickly map areas that have been affected by natural disasters and increase the situational awareness of teams moving on the ground.  Earlier this year ISAR (International Search and Rescue) teams in Haiti initially struggled to navigate with so much structural damage and changes to the landscape.

The airframe is integrated with a powerful AttoPilot autopilot that allows autonomous take off and landings, this means less training is required for the aircraft operator than might traditionally occur.  A set and forget platform.

YellowPlane were the first to fly a fixed wing UAS at Farnborough International Airshow 2010 and have offices in the UK, South Africa and Australia