Drones

The Portland City Council voted to expand a police drone program, enabling its use for all precincts and divisions despite pushback from some community members over surveillance concerns.

Crime continues to drop this year in unincorporated Jefferson Parish, part of the greater New Orleans area. The sheriff’s office already fields roughly 30 drones, but is considering adding first responder drones.

Drone as First Responder programs have been adopted across the country, and in them, police place drones across their coverage areas and send them to determine if a ground response is needed.

The Federal Aviation Administration, which has checked drone use for years, recently granted Amazon’s Prime Air program approval to fly drones beyond the visual line of sight from its pilots in parts of Texas.

Law enforcement agencies across the country are buzzing about drones, but what’s the real impact? Government Technology got an exclusive video look at how one rural sheriff’s department is using UAVs to change the game.

Two tech firms are adding updated radar to unmanned aircraft, hoping to give police and firefighters better eyes in the sky and options for longer automated flights. The deal could help agencies with staffing woes.

North Carolina high school students will be able to qualify for job interviews with the drone delivery company Zipline as part of a new partnership with the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.

The department bought six drones this year after voters approved Proposition E, which lets police use surveillance cameras and drones to pursue felony and violent misdemeanor suspects. The drones facilitated three arrests in July.

The local government will soon offer automated external defibrillators (AEDs) by air. The program was paid for with a $4 million grant from the American Heart Association and is in addition to existing AEDs in public places.

The drone program would, officials hope, enable law enforcement to respond more rapidly to ongoing crime scenes, and potentially help track suspects. The project has been in talks since June 2023.

Built with about $150,000 in strategic investment funds and opened in June 2023, the University of Texas at San Antonio's outdoor drone enclosure is growing in popularity for research across several departments.

The Elk Grove Police Department plans to add three aerial drones to assist in the line of duty, a trend that many law enforcement agencies have recently adopted to contribute to service.

Although the exact date has yet to be finalized, the Silicon Valley drone technology company Matternet will launch its pilot program in its Northern California home city later this year.

Amid a shortage of human lifeguards, drones equipped with flotation devices will be helping New York City lifeguards rescue swimmers in distress this summer season, city officials said Saturday.

Recreational drone flights are, generally, legal in the Pacific Northwest city. However, hobbyists looking to fly in city parks must secure permission from the city parks director. Much the same is true in Pierce County, which includes Tacoma.

The technology is intended to do a better job of scrutinizing lines — and to save money. It is believed to be the first such use of the combination in the state of Michigan, the Macomb County Public Works commissioner said.

In coming months, drones will supplant police emergency response in the Central Park precinct, in three precincts in Brooklyn and one in the Bronx. It’s not yet clear the types of calls on which the drones will be used.

The bill would have also created a study of current Internet neutrality with the goal of providing consistent consumer rates and mandatory fee disclosures, including total prices.