By James Drew
Australian firm Heliwest has employed a Lockheed Martin Indago quadrotor in damage assessment operations in Vanuatu – the South Pacific island nation that recently suffered an earthquake, volcano and cyclone within the span of a few weeks.
The company was contracted by the Vanuatu government and the World Bank to provide images of the disaster zone from about 50 sites on nine remote islands.
Heliwest special operations manager Luke Aspinall says his team deployed with one Indago and three backpacks of gear and were able to operate the small unmanned aircraft system in rain and with wind speeds of more than 39kt. Battery life averaged 45min, he says.
Aspinall says the team successfully integrated with manned aircraft, operating within agreed flight rules.
“The Vanuatu civil aviation authority was very, very flexible in allowing UAV operations,” he said in a 4 May briefing. “We restricted flying to below 400ft, and at the most extended line of sight.
“All the UAV operators were required to carry a handheld VHF radio so we could communicate with other aircraft or at least listen to traffic in the area.”
The team was in Vanuatu from 28 March to 13 April. Heliwest normally flies the Indago in Australia, supporting law enforcement operations as well as the mining, oil and gas industries.
Aspinall says the Australian government is taking great strides in the regulation of UAVs flights, and there are plenty of lessons that can be shared with the United States as the Federal Aviation Administration establishes its own rules for small UAS.
Source: Flight Daily News
