Press Releases

 

AVISIGHT ADDS TWO ENERGY INDUSTRY TITANS TO ITS BOARD OF DIRECTORS 
 

AviSight, the leader in unmanned industrial inspection and advanced data solutions, announces two additions to their Board of Directors who cumulatively have over 60 years of experience in innovation, leadership, and success across the Oil and Gas industries.

Joining the AviSight Board of Directors are:

Gary L. Thomas, former President & CEO of EOG Resources, Inc.
Marvin E. Odum, former Chairman and CEO of Shell Oil Company

“To have just one of these titans join our board would have been an amazing honor. To have both of them join really sends a signal to the industry about what AviSight is accomplishing in the market, and what we will accomplish in the very near future.” said J.B. Bernstein AviSight CEO and Chairman. “I know I speak for everyone at AviSight when I say we are honored and proud to welcome them.”

Gary L. Thomas has been an innovative and trendsetting leader in the gas industry for quite some time. As the President of EOG Resources, Inc. (NYSE: EOG), an oil and natural gas exploration and production company, he continually led his organization and the industry, until Dec. 31, 2018, when he retired.

Originally joining the predecessor of EOG in 1978, Mr. Thomas held positions as the COO, Senior Executive Vice President of Operations and Executive Vice President, North America Operations. Mr. Thomas brings over 30 years in pioneering oil and gas engineering, development and executive leadership in the industry.

He sits on the board of Nine Energy Service, is a Member of Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners Association, and a Member of Society of Petroleum Engineers, Inc.

“UAS application is proving to be a fast, low cost method of infrastructure inspection and surveillance. With the addition of Artificial Intelligence to the drone platform, future progress and applications have the potential to expand rapidly,” said Thomas.

Thomas holds a Petroleum Engineering degree from The University of Texas at Austin and a master’s degree in Engineering Management from The University of Tulsa.

Marvin E. Odum is a proven global chief executive and transformational energy industry leader. Over his 34 years with Royal Dutch Shell (London: RDSA) Odum rose to become a key member of Shell’s Executive Committee that set Royal Dutch Shell’s global strategy; capital allocation; mergers and acquisitions; succession and diversity planning; safety, security and environmental performance; investor engagement; geopolitical risk assessment and corporate brand reputation.

As Chairman and CEO of Shell Oil Company from 2008-2016, he grew the capital-employed value of the Americas upstream business from $34 billion to $60 billion; reduced structural costs by $1.2 billion (~25%) over a 12- month period; and built the company’s unconventional shale business from zero to $20 billion in assets with 10 billion barrels of oil equivalent of current and future production opportunity.

Post-retirement from Shell, Odum answered the Mayor of Houston’s call to lead the city’s multi-billion-dollar recovery from Hurricane Harvey. Accepting no salary for over 14 months of full-time work, while addressing the immediate problems of safety, food, and housing, he secured disaster relief funds and built the city’s capacity to manage as much as $6 billion in recovery funding over the next 4 to 6 years.

“AviSight has already developed an exceptional and differential set of capabilities in their market and it is my expectation is that they will continue to set the standard for the industry.” Said Odum.

Odum earned an MBA from the University of Houston, and a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Texas.

Put simply, when compared to the historically manual inspection methods for critical infrastructure, AviSight finds more faults before they fail. This allows their clients to immediately start shifting reactive maintenance to preventive maintenance, yielding significant cost savings. Most important, AviSight unmanned data collection work flows increase safety in industrial inspection exponentially.

AviSight operates BVLOS (Beyond Visual Line Of Sight) from our proprietary C3UBE™ employing our Live Look Fault Vision™ which allows remote data viewing and the application of AI fault detection in near-real-time.

AviSight, Inc. Recognized by ABS to use Drones to Support Class Surveys for Offshore Rigs 
 

Best drone company : Drone inspection company

Houston, TX – November 9, 2018

 

AviSight, Inc., the leader in unmanned industrial inspection
and advanced data solutions, added yet another certification to its resume this week. American
Bureau of Shipping (ABS), the leading provider of classification and technical services to the
offshore industry, has awarded AviSight certification to support survey-related inspections on
all types of rigs using drones. AviSight is now certified as an ABS Recognized External Specialist
in Remote Inspection Techniques.

Recognized External Specialists are service suppliers who provide specialized work at the
request of equipment manufacturers, shipyards, vessel owners or other clients. The servicing or
inspection results provide supporting information regarding classification and/or statutory
survey decisions.

“Our goal at AviSight is to lead generational paradigm shifts in the industry,” said AviSight CEO
J.B. Bernstein. “The revolution in safety and data that our inspection services and data
solutions will bring to maritime-based critical infrastructure represents a shift that will feel like
going from the Flintstones to the Jetsons. We are excited to work closely with ABS and its
partners to create a new era of safety and data actionability in rig inspections.”
AviSight underwent a rigorous examination process, including a final inspection of a 250 class
platform rig leg inspection. This inspection was streamed live from Galveston to a conference in
Houston through AviSight’s proprietary Live Look Fault Vision™ using its new C3UBE™
command center.

“We are pleased to certify AviSight as an ABS Recognized External Specialist, helping expand
available inspections options to enhance the class survey experience,” said ABS Business
Development Director Demetri Stroubakis.

REVOLUTIONIZING UNMANNED INDUSTRIAL INSPECTIONS
AND ADVANCED DATA SOLUTIONS

This certification can be added to the many that AviSight has garnered while working closely
with the FAA for safe drone integration within the national airspace. AviSight’s work operating
as a node of the Nevada Institute of Autonomous Systems (NIAS), one of seven national FAA
test sites located in Nevada, has allowed AviSight to support critical national emergency
operations, fly safely in some of the most congested and critical airport traffic areas throughout
the nation, all in an effort to provide customers the most comprehensive, efficient and next
generation inspections for critical infrastructure.

“The use of drones has drawn instant industry attention and support,” said Bernstein. “AviSight
is already working with our industry partners to support operations in the North Atlantic,
Singapore, Galveston, and the Gulf of Mexico.”

CLICK HERE TO SEE FULL ARTICLE

The future of unmanned inspections with revolutionary C3UBE™ 
 

July 30, 2018 – Houston, Texas. The Petroleum Club

AviSight, Inc. unveils the future of unmanned inspections with their revolutionary C3UBE™.

This proprietary mobile command center, allows AviSight to provide unmanned BVLOS data collection AND near real time data streaming from almost any point within any critical infrastructure network.

This represents a true generational paradigm shift in industrial inspections, for both data and safety.

AviSight will launch THREE C3UBEs in 2018.

NV Energy & AviSight collaborated on the power line inspection 
 

KTVN Channel 2 – Reno Tahoe Sparks News, Weather, Video

NV Energy, showing the potential for use of drones in dangerous work in the inspection industry, announced on Tuesday that it conducted its first power line inspection using drones from June 29-July 1.

“With continued technological advancements, drones could potentially fulfill a large portion of utility inspection needs in the future,” Mary Simmons, vice president of business development and community strategy for NV Energy, said in a statement.

NV Energy, Desert Research Institute, Drone America, AviSight and the Nevada Institute for Autonomous Systems collaborated on the drone power line inspection.

Chris Walach, the director of operations for unmanned aviation for NIAS, said the inspection found problems along “40 plus” miles in rural Nevada.

“We weren’t just demonstrating for the purpose of demonstrating,” Walach said. “This was a real-world test where the team actually went out and found the problems that plagued NV Energy over the last several months that traditional inspections weren’t able to find.”

Autoplay: On | Off

Some drone-industry officials see drones being

Drone fleets flock to assist in hurricane disaster recovery 
 


“We were down there [Houston] doing energy restoration work for about eight days and what we were doing is we were going out to areas that folks couldn’t get to where we could easily fly a drone. We had worked with the FAA for permissions, we were flying on emergency certificates of authorization. We’d fly out over areas working with folks in the energy industry to make assessments and then help primarily concentrating on safety”, said James Fleitz, co-founder of drone services company Avisight.

Hurricane Harvey is projected to become the costliest natural disaster in the U.S. Financial analysts have estimated $160 billion dollars in damages, exceeding that of Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Southern Nevada drone companies looking to hire 
 

As Nevada’s drone industry takes shape, companies seek to hire local talent.
“Local employers came to us in 2013 and said, ‘We need students,’” said Art Eggers, an engineering technology lead instructor at the College of Southern Nevada. “The industry is going to exponentially grow and explode.”
Students are on their way.


Eggers developed a full two-year, drone-related degree program, launching at CSN in the fall of 2018.
Twelve students will get a taste of the program Friday, in an eight-week condensed summer course, which Eggers developed at the request of Las Vegas-based JT3, which provides engineering and technical expertise to four Western military ranges.
Dirk Jordan, JT3’s senior vice president, did not respond to multiple requests for comment, but Eggers said most of the students enrolled in the summer course are currently employed by JT3.

Two years in eight weeks
The course will begin by covering the basic Federal Aviation Administration requirements for flying a commercial drone, then cover engineering and information technology, all in preparation for students building and then flying their own drone.


“Each of them will build a quad (quadcopter) from a kit form that we ordered from a company called Parallax,” Eggers said.
Then, it’s fly time at the CSN Henderson campus.
The idea behind this program is to create problem solvers, Eggers said.
“I’m not interested in a flyer, I’m interested in a student that I can provide to (local employer) AviSight and Praxis and DroneAmerica that they can hire and say, ‘This person knows A to Z about the aircraft.’”
Mike Frechette, AviSight co-founder and principal, said this type of interdisciplinary training is “absolutely critical” to supply expected industry demand.
“We are seeing significant growth in all major UAS (unmanned aerial systems) industries including; construction, utility inspections, pipelines, public safety and entertainment,” Frechette said in an email.
Just as in the full program, students will be prepared to fly, test and repair drones as well as work with a variety of drone sensors and perform data collection. In the full degree program, students will also choose elective courses ranging from veideography to law enforcement.

Employment opportunities
The first class of students is slated to graduate with a full degree in 2020.
Bob Potts, research director at the Governor’s Office of Economic Development, said it’s difficult to forecast how many jobs will be available for graduating students since the industry is so new.
“What gives me comfort with this program at CSN is that it’s an emphasis on UAS as part of their engineering technology program. So it has far reaching credentials that are stackable and transferable. Even as the industry starts getting legs under it,” Potts said.
Even though the drone industry is still in its infancy, a full disciplinary program “puts Nevada on the front line” for both growing talent and engaging in policy discussions to shape the industry as it continues to develop, he said.
Contact Nicole Raz at nraz@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4512. Follow @JournalistNikki on Twitter.
Classroom equipment includes:

3 Savant Fixed Wing drones, $172,900

This drone can fly forward, like an airplane, or upward, like a helicopter, Eggers said.

“What we want to use these aircraft for is to teach the people who maybe want to go into, say the power industry to inspect power lines,” Eggers said.

3 mixed-signal oscilloscopes, $14,353

“They’re used universally across our degree program,” Eggers said. “They can use them for repaire, testing and alignment, There are lots of functions.”

Aerospace Company Approved to Fly Drones on Las Vegas Strip 

LAS VEGAS (AP) — A Nevada firm has become the first company in the nation approved to fly drones over the Las Vegas Strip.

Aerospace company AviSight will be able to fly above the resort corridor including the strip, The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported (http://bit.ly/2qw8Fj5 ) Wednesday.

The company plans to perform its first flight this week or early next week.

“We wanted to go out there and fly, but we’ve been swamped with so much other stuff going on we haven’t had the time to go out there and do our maiden voyage,” said William O’Donnell, AviSight vice president of technology.

The approval opens opportunities to contract the drone services, O’Donnell said.

“Here in Las Vegas, 90 percent of the major business is done down in the Strip area,” he said. “You have the movie stuff, that’s going to be huge. Each individual casino that wants marketing pieces to be able to showcase their casinos like never before, now they’re able to with beautiful drone footage.”

O’Donnell also anticipates drone survey capacity to lend a hand to construction-related work.

Several companies are allowed to fly in the same airspace, but AviSight can fly in places adjacent to the strip, Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor said. Other companies are generally limited to one spot, he said.

Each flight will be limited to within a quarter mile of the approved location and below an altitude of 200 feet (61 meters), Gregor said. AviSight’s drones are currently not allowed to fly directly above people. The company must give the Federal Aviation Administration a 24-hour notice and then an immediate notice before flying.

“We can cancel the authorization at any time when we deem it necessary,” Gregor said. “AviSight’s authorization is valid from May 1, 2017 to Nov. 30, 2017. It is quite restrictive to ensure the company’s drones don’t pose hazards to any airplanes or air tour helicopters.”

O’Donnell said he intends to keep renewing the authorization.

Fox News Story: AviSight Using Drones for Cloud Seeding 

 

Drones are used for aerial photography, surveillance, news coverage, and rescue operations. Now a group of scientists and researchers are figuring out if drones can make it rain. The science is called cloud seeding, and it is being tested in Nevada at an FAA site, four hours north of Las Vegas.

Seeding clouds involves releasing flares of silver iodide from a plane’s wing to generate more ice particles in a cloud. This aims to help a cloud’s ability to produce and enhance precipitation. The weather conditions need to be right for this to take place–cloud cover and even the presence of storms are optimal.

The process has been around for decades and usually involves a piloted aircraft flying into a storm. Now, The Nevada Institute of Autonomous Systems in conjunction with the Desert Research Institute has conducted tests with unmanned drones. They hope to have drones conduct cloud seeding flights in the future. The Governor of Nevada’s office has helped fund the project.

READ MORE HERE

AeroJournalism Set to Explode in 2017 

AviSight has been leading the way in AeroJournalism. Watch the video to see a few of our 2016 highlights.

AviSight Works With Nevada Agencies on Historic Beyond Line of Sight Drone Cloud-seeding Flight 

HAWTHORNE, Nev., Feb. 22, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — The Nevada Drone Industry set a new long-distance record for aerial package delivery flying a fixed-wing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) under beyond line of sight conditions.  The backdrop was an urban environment set among the scenic area of Walker Lake with the Nevada-headquartered Drone America flight team flying more than 39 miles to deliver a package to the Hawthorne Industrial Airport in the City of Hawthorne, Nevada, the same town where the Country’s first urban drone delivery was performed in Spring of 2016.

 

This record-setting beyond line of sight (BLOS) mission was flown under the Nevada UAS Test Site’s FAA Certificate of Authorization (COA) and led by the Nevada Institute for Autonomous Systems, which manages the FAA-designated Nevada UAS Test Site on behalf of the Nevada Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED).  The Drone America Savant™ unmanned aircraft reached an altitude of 1,500 feet AGL and completed a one hour flight beyond line of sight for a total distance flown of over 39 miles on February 15, 2017.

“Nevada’s emerging UAV industry has made tremendous strides since first receiving the FAA UAS Test Site designation a few short years ago, and it is with incredible pride that the State can now declare that our drone effort has broken an industry record by successfully completing the longest ever beyond visual line of sight drone delivery,” said Governor Brian Sandoval.  “This achievement is a testament not only to the skill of the team at the Nevada Institute for Autonomous Systems and Drone America, but also the support that has been shown by the entire State of Nevada to support this important initiative.  Nevada is changing the future of transportation, and I congratulate all those Nevadans who share in this milestone – this is one for the record books.”

“Statewide support of the drone industry in Nevada has helped to usher in this historic UAV milestone,” said Steve Hill, Director of the Governor’s Office of Economic Development. “With each flight, NIAS makes history, but this most recent achievement is truly one for the ages, and something that we should all be incredibly proud of.  I thank the teams at NIAS and Drone America for ensuring that Nevada continues to lead one of the most innovative transportation industries into the future.”

“Today we demonstrated an important milestone, one that can make a positive impact upon humanity.  For many years Drone America’s team has been focused upon building turnkey solutions that are both commercially viable yet also have a beneficial effect upon the world in which we live.  Remote critical package delivery can include such items as medical equipment (AED) and supplies such as vaccines, EpiPens, anti-venom, even a Search and Rescue survival package.  These achievements bring us closer to becoming a self-sustaining, Nevada-based, and American-made corporation that gives back,” said Mike Richards, CEO and Founder of Drone America.

The Drone America Savant UAS delivered the package to the Hawthorne Industrial Airport and the cargo consisted of emergency supplies in a simulated lost hiker scenario.  The package was not dropped from the UAV but instead was meant to be recovered from the hold of the fixed-wing platform upon landing.  The UAS operation incorporated multiple ground safety visual observers and an aerial safety observer in a Cessna 206 fixed-wing aircraft flown by AviSight.  “We were thrilled to participate in this historic event.  The ability to fly these systems BLOS will be critical to the commercialization of this technology for multiple industries,” said Michael Frechette, CEO of AviSight.

“The Nevada UAS Test Site is fortunate to have the City of Hawthorne and the Hawthorne Army Depot’s support of our Nevada UAS Industry Growth.  This is a great example of public-private partnership between the U.S. Army, Drone America, the City of Hawthorne, and NIAS,” said Mark Barker, Director of Business Development and Marketing for NIAS.

Following the historic package delivery BLOS flight, Drone America CEO, Mike Richards presented the package flown to the FAA-designated Nevada UAS Test Site Director, Dr. Chris Walach, overseeing the UAS operation.  Walach received this package on behalf of the State of Nevada.  “Today was a new long distance flight record in Nevada and in the National Airspace.  From last year, Nevada holds the FAA record for the first package delivery to an actual customer in a residential neighborhood in Reno, NV and in the National Airspace and now we have demonstrated that commercial UAS technology is capable of flying long distance while safely integrating UAS into the National Airspace with manned aviation traffic.  We are a major step closer to commercial package delivery on a large scale in Nevada and in the National Airspace,” said Dr. Chris Walach.

About the Governor’s Office of Economic Development:Created during the 2011 session of the Nevada Legislature, the Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) is the result of a collaborative effort between the Nevada Legislature and Governor Brian Sandoval to restructure economic development in the state. GOED’s role is to promote a robust, diversified and prosperous economy in Nevada, to stimulate business expansion and retention, encourage entrepreneurial enterprise, attract new businesses and facilitate community development. More information on the Governor’s Office of Economic Development can be viewed atwww.diversifynevada.com.

About the Nevada Institute for Autonomous Systems (NIAS): The Nevada Institute for Autonomous Systems (NIAS) and FAA-designated Nevada Unmanned Aviation Test Site leads the growth of the Nevada Unmanned Aviation Systems (UAS) Industry through business teaming relationships, collaborating with primary research institutions on UAS research and development, and enhancing the Nevada UAS Industry knowledge base to attract new and permanent business and create jobs in the State of Nevada.  Learn more at www.nias-uas.com.

About AviSight: AviSight is an aerospace and remote sensing services company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. Our company employs Aerospace systems, Remote Sensing technology, Analytics, and Data Collection/Distribution systems for commercial and government clients. For more information about AviSight please visit www.avisight.com/.

About Drone America: Drone America strives to be one of the World’s Top Providers of Autonomous Unmanned Vehicles, high tech equipment and services. Our mission is to use UAS technologies as a means to survey, protect, and preserve human life and strategic resources around the Globe. For more information about Drone America please visit  www.droneamerica.com/.

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To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nevada-based-consortium-using-drone-america-uav-completes-first-long-distance-beyond-line-of-sight-urban-package-delivery-300412223.html

AviSight Drone Academy – “Nation’s Best Drone Education” 
 

It really has been long nights and even longer days driving the drone industry and competing to be the best out there as both a service provider and a training entity, so it goes without saying that it really is great to hear that an article was written calling you the Best Drone Training in the nation. http://www.eventsandtradeshows.com/author/n-phillip-jackson/

It really makes you feel like that hard work was all worth it every time you read an article like that, or see that another one of your students has passed their Part 107 test or even gone on to do incredible things in the drone industry.

A lot of people question the cost of the training course, and I don’t disagree that compared to some of the other offerings out there, we are on the higher end of the scale. This is something we definitely took into account when we designed our course as we did not want to be the most expensive (and thankfully we are nowhere close), but we didn’t want to cheapen the brand and the value to the students. We strive to be the best and offer the best and unfortunately that comes with a little premium to make sure you, the student, are taken care of to the highest degree, not just during the class, but moving forward in the future as well. Our instructors always keep in touch with the students, whether through our Alumni Page, or in direct contact as long lasting friendships.

As an instructor, I have kept in contact with all my students, even having dinner with some of them if I have had the fortunate experience to travel through their hometown. The lessons and the learning never stop, not even for us, so as we learn new things, we make sure you learn those things as well. The industry is ever evolving and I believe the networking and personal relationships we form with people are the keystone to our success, while never sacrificing SAFE and LEGAL flying.

I’ll now leave you with some uplifting music, “You Can Make It If You Try”

AviSight Drone Academy Sept 27-30 in Las Vegas 
 

The AviSight Drone Academy is Sept 27-30 at the South Point Casino Las Vegas. There are 1 Day, 2 Day and 4 Day classes. Learn how to fly a drone from the experts. Full course will teach you what you need to know to pass the FAA’s Part 107 test for drone pilots and how to fly a drone.

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP NOW!

Part 107… Part 107 Training… It’s finally here! 
 

So, we’ve all been waiting for years to finally usher in new rules for commercial drone flight and that day finally came! On June 21st, the new rules were passed by the rules committee and published by the FAA. These new Part 107 rules will change the landscape of aviation for everyone, both manned and unmanned flight operations. Part 107 allows non-aviators to take a knowledge test and obtain an unmanned certificate to fly drones commercially. As you know, this opens the skies to potentially millions of new aviators.

AviSight Drone Academy has been working closely with the FAA to prepare ourselves for these new regulations. It has been a whirlwind of fun the past few weeks. We just concluded our first Part 107 focused course last week and it was met with great acclaim. We invited some other organizations to sit in on the course as well to validate our successes in this new focused course and they were wildly amazed; including a 25+ year veteran of the FAA that said if he could would give us “three thumbs up”. A lot of hard work has been put in by our team, especially our course designer Gary Buzel, a very well known name in the industry (holding FAA certs in ATP, CFI, CFI-I, GFI); he really is TOP NOTCH.

We offer two different courses aimed at commercial success, one is a 2-day Part 107 course that covers the basics of the FAA regulations and teaches you what you need to know for the exam in August; while the other is a 4-day drone master course that covers many things outside of just the Part 107 that will aid you in your business creation, such as a course on cinematography (taught by a Hollywood film maker) and an extensive course on Lipo battery hazards, utilization and understanding, among many other things.

Both courses teach airspace, weather updates, pre-flight inspection, all items that will appear on the knowledge test by the FAA. We also compliment our course with actual flying, inside the SouthPoint Arena, learning different moves, practical application and precision flying.

It truly was a great week, and I look forward to future classes with students with huge aspirations. It is our duty to progress this industry in the right direction and make sure people out there are flying both safe and legal. Until next time!
Part 107 Drone Training

FAA Releases Part 107, New Drone Rules 
 

The rule comes into effect in 60 days time…. August 2016

WASHINGTON – Today, the Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration has finalized the first operational rules (PDF) for routine commercial use of small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS or “drones”), opening pathways towards fully integrating UAS into the nation’s airspace. These new regulations work to harness new innovations safely, to spur job growth, advance critical scientific research and save lives.

“We are part of a new era in aviation, and the potential for unmanned aircraft will make it safer and easier to do certain jobs, gather information, and deploy disaster relief,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “We look forward to working with the aviation community to support innovation, while maintaining our standards as the safest and most complex airspace in the world.”

According to industry estimates, the rule could generate more than $82 billion for the U.S. economy and create more than 100,000 new jobs over the next 10 years.

The new rule, which takes effect in late August, offers safety regulations for unmanned aircraft drones weighing less than 55 pounds that are conducting non-hobbyist operations.

The rule’s provisions are designed to minimize risks to other aircraft and people and property on the ground. The regulations require pilots to keep an unmanned aircraft within visual line of sight. Operations are allowed during daylight and during twilight if the drone has anti-collision lights. The new regulations also address height and speed restrictions and other operational limits, such as prohibiting flights over unprotected people on the ground who aren’t directly participating in the UAS operation.

The FAA is offering a process to waive some restrictions if an operator proves the proposed flight will be conducted safely under a waiver. The FAA will make an online portal available to apply for these waivers in the months ahead.

“With this new rule, we are taking a careful and deliberate approach that balances the need to deploy this new technology with the FAA’s mission to protect public safety,” said FAA Administrator Michael Huerta. “But this is just our first step. We’re already working on additional rules that will expand the range of operations.”

Under the final rule, the person actually flying a drone must be at least 16 years old and have a remote pilot certificate with a small UAS rating, or be directly supervised by someone with such a certificate. To qualify for a remote pilot certificate, an individual must either pass an initial aeronautical knowledge test at an FAA-approved knowledge testing center or have an existing non-student Part 61 pilot certificate. If qualifying under the latter provision, a pilot must have completed a flight review in the previous 24 months and must take a UAS online training course provided by the FAA. The TSA will conduct a security background check of all remote pilot applications prior to issuance of a certificate.

READ MORE AT sUAS NEWS

AviSight Drone Academy Announces Summer Schedule 
 

LAS VEGAS, NV (PRWEB) JUNE 09, 2016

AviSight, the nation’s premier drone services company, has announced its upcoming AviSight Drone Academy training class.

The next course will take place June 28-July 1, 2016 at the South Point Hotel Casino, Las Vegas, NV.

The course includes modules on current regulations, airspace requirements, flight operations, maintenance, sensors, power systems, and all other aspects of drone operations. Classes range from 1 to 4 day courses.

The 1-Day Course is for the Beginner/Hobbyist.

The 2-Day Course is for the Professional/Small Business operator.

The 4-Day Course is for those who wish to become a Drone Master. Both the Professional and Drone Master courses focus on the anticipated FAA Part 107 regulations.

“This is a great opportunity for those wanting to learn this exciting new industry from the best in the business, said Lt. Colonel (Ret.) James Fleitz, Co-Founder of AviSight. “Knowing FAA rules is critical and we make sure our students understand those rules, along with the mechanics of flight,” he added.

The expert AviSight Drone Academy staff includes professionals with diverse backgrounds that include Emmy Award winning television/news professionals, film industry experts, public safety experts, and pioneers of military drone operations. When students complete the course they will receive an official AviSight Drone Academy certificate.

Additional Classes will also be held later this summer – July 26-July 29 and August 23-August 26, 2016. You can visit AviSightDroneAcademy.com for more information — or you can CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP.

READ FULL RELEASE ONLINE HERE

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About AviSight: AviSight is an aerospace and remote sensing services company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. Our company employs Aerospace systems, Remote Sensing technology, Analytics, and Data Collection/Distribution systems for commercial and government clients. For more information about AviSight please visit – https://avisight.com/

How Drone Training can help you? 
 

A lot of people ask about drones, the buzzword for today’s technology of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) or unmanned aerial systems (UAS). Each and every day a new use is thought up about an innovative way to incorporate drones and how it can make our lives easier. In today’s world, drones can have a positive impact on a multitude of different industries.

Drones are currently being used in the television and film industry as a more cost effective alternative to helicopters; and even getting shots that helicopters just don’t have the ability to get. In the news industry, they are referred to as “the great equalizer” in markets. In the past, only a select few stations could afford to have a helicopter, and some have even had helicopters, only to get rid of them due to cost cutting and budget reductions. Drones level the playing field for smaller news markets, or even just smaller stations and allows them to compete and get aerial shots they would’ve otherwise not been able to get or afford.

Real Estate agents have had an eye on drones for a while, nothing captures the entire property as well as an aerial shot, being able to highlight the yard layout, or even the view the house may have. Using a drone could be the difference maker between the house selling or sitting.

Construction companies have found ways to use drones to showcase the progress of their projects, conduct advanced data analysis of their piles for volumetric calculations and even safety inspections as needed.

The list can go on and on with almost every industry either already using drones, or wanting to use drones in the near term. The two things that stand in the way is how to do it legally, and how to do it safely.

The FAA has recently passed along their recommendations for the new small UAS rules, called Part 107. This will alleviate some of the restrictions in place for drone operators. One of the most important thing will allow non-pilots to become certified to fly a drone through Part 107 certification. This is very important because right now, in order to fly a drone commercially, a business needs to hold a 333 exemption (approximately 6 months wait time with the FAA) and the individual operating the drone needs to be a qualified pilot on a manned aircraft, a huge requirement for smaller drone businesses or those looking to augment their current business with a drone (like a real estate agent).

This summer should change all that with the release of Part 107 officially, and that’s where AviSight Drone Academy comes in, training specific to Part 107 standards for certification to get you flying legally and safely and ready to pioneer the drone business and take it to new heights (pun intended).

Our drone training course was broken down into a few different offerings, because we know not everyone wants to train for the commercial venture. Our 1-day beginner course is aimed at the recreational pilot; those that haven’t flown a drone in the past or just started flying. The focus of the 1-day course ($499) is recreational use, flying on vacations, flying your local parks, but also with an understanding of where and when you can fly, important for all enthusiasts putting a drone in the sky.

Our 2-day course ($899) is aimed at the professional user, those that want to augment their business with a drone, or those that are looking to begin their own drone service company themselves. This course is aimed at the Part 107 rulings and will offer a certificate of completion along with certification with the FAA as that opens up. Additionally, completing this course will help to tie you into a professional network of drone operators and even insurance companies that can offer cheaper insurance for those that have completed this training course.

Our 4-day course ($1599) is for the true Drone Master, looking to know as much as they can about drones and drone flying, even well beyond the Part 107 requirements, including specific tools of the trade and insider information that is not taught in traditional schools.  Our 4-day class will truly prepare you to start your own drone services based business. While the focus is for those starting their own business, our 4-day class accommodates all personnel looking to be masters within the field.

Our next class is at the end of June, from June 28 to July 1st. Call us at 877-570-5541 or email us info@vegasdroneacademy.com

AviSight Drone Academy – June 28-July 1 
 

AviSight Drone Academy will be holding its next classes June 28-July 1. Expert instruction from aviation and drone specialists. The classes will take place at the South Point Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP ON EVENTBRITE

FAA Administrator Makes Major Drone Announcements 
 

Speaking recently at a conference in New Orleans, FAA Administrator Michael Huerta announced the agency is establishing abroad-based advisory committee that will provide advice on key unmanned aircraft integration issues. He also announced plans to make it easier for students to fly unmanned aircraft (PDF) as part of their coursework.

Huerta said the drone advisory committee is an outgrowth of the successful stakeholder-based UAS registration task force and the MicroUAS aviation rulemaking committee.

Those panels were set up for a single purpose and for limited duration. In contrast, the drone advisory committee is intended to be a long-lasting group. It will help identify and prioritize integration challenges and improvements, and create broad support for an overall integration strategy.

“Input from stakeholders is critical to our ability to achieve that perfect balance between integration and safety,” Huerta said. “We know that our policies and overall regulation of this segment of aviation will be more successful if we have the backing of a strong, diverse coalition.”

Huerta said he has asked Intel CEO Brian Krzanich to chair the group.

Huerta also announced the FAA, in the very near future, will start allowing students to operate UAS for educational and research purposes.

READ MORE HERE FROM sUAS NEWS

Here’s What Drones Will Do For Local TV, AeroJournalism 
 

Soon you’ll be able to livestream from your drone. In January, Periscope started letting people with a GoPro broadcast live footage, and today it opened up support for drones from its iPhone app, too.

Periscope’s app now connects with DJI drone remotes so that users can control broadcasts by switching the feed from their smartphone’s camera to the drone. In a blog post today, Periscope pointed out a recent example, by restaurant review site Zagat, which used a drone to show viewers around Ryder Farm in Brewster, N.Y.

In addition to the support for drones, Periscope is also adding a search feature for looking up specific livestreams by keyword or topics. The search bar recommends searching for hashtags like #music and #food. Users can also tap on hashtags to add them to their own livestreams.

READ MORE HERE FROM TV SPY

AviSight Part of Historic Drone Flight in Nevada 
 

RENO – For the first time in aviation history, a fixed-wing unmanned aircraft has successfully tested a cloud-seeding payload during an experimental flight in Nevada.

Flown at Hawthorne Industrial Airport under the state’s FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Test Site designation, the Drone America Savant™ aircraft reached an altitude of 400 feet and flew for approximately 18 minutes on Friday, April 29, 2016.

The Savant™ aircraft – named the “Sandoval Silver State Seeder” in honor of Governor Brian Sandoval’s dedication to the success of the state’s UAS industry – deployed two silver-iodide flares, successfully testing and demonstrating its ability to perform unmanned aerial cloud seeding operations.

“This is a tremendous accomplishment for the state of Nevada and everyone involved,” said the project’s lead scientist, Adam Watts, Ph.D., an assistant research professor at DRI and an expert in UAS applications for ecological and natural-resources applications.

Led by the Desert Research Institute (DRI), and supported by the Nevada Governor’s Office of Economic Development through the Knowledge Fund, this first-of-its-kind project is helping Nevada address the ongoing impacts of drought and explore innovative solutions for natural-resource challenges such as augmenting regional water supplies. The research team combines more than 30 years of weather modification research and expertise at DRI with the proven experience in aerospace manufacturing and flight operations of Reno-based Drone America, and the industry leading unmanned aerial data services of Las Vegas-based AviSight.
“We have reached another major milestone in our effort to reduce both the risks and the costs in the cloud seeding industry and help mitigate natural disasters caused by drought, hail and extreme fog,” said Mike Richards, President and CEO of Drone America. “With a wingspan of 11-feet, 10-inches and its light weight design (less than 55 pounds) the Savant™ is the perfect vehicle to conduct this type of operation due to its superior flight profile, long flight times and its resistance to wind and adverse weather conditions.”

Drone America performed the test flight under an FAA agreement in partnership with the Nevada Institute for Autonomous Systems (NIAS). This flight was the first use by DRI of the Nevada Test Site’s Certificate of Authorization (COA), which grants authority to operate the Savant™ at altitudes up to 1,200 feet.

“The Nevada-based research and flight teams that produced these trend-setting results are clearly leading the industry with this innovative technology. Conducting this unmanned cloud seeding test flight is a first flying in the National Airspace System and in Nevada,” said Dr. Chris Walach, Director for the FAA-designated Nevada Unmanned Aviation Test Site.

AviSight performed aerial support for the test flight with their manned aircraft, recording both infrared and HD video of the flight to support future system refinements and plans to conduct UAS flights beyond visual line-of-sight

“This is an important step for Nevada and the unmanned aerial industry,” said James Fleitz, co-founder of AviSight. “This collaborative effort highlights the diverse applications of unmanned systems and showcased the ability of this technology to support scientific advancements.”

Together with Drone America and AviSight, DRI researchers plan to create weather forecasts and conduct flight planning for manned and unmanned aircraft; conduct tests of cloud seeding operations using manned and unmanned systems as well as existing ground generators; and estimate the effectiveness of UAS cloud seeding applications across DRI’s current Lake Tahoe Basin operations area.

AviSight is First to Fly FAA Approved Drone At Airshow 

A joint collaboration between AviSight and WDRB-TV in Louisville, KY. The Thunder Over Louisville airshow is the weekend before the Kentucky Derby and was broadcast live on WDRB, titled “Thunder on WDRB.” This multi-hour live broadcast featured many reporters and cameras all along the Ohio River covering the event from many angles. After months of coordination with the Louisville FAA FSDO Office, we were granted authorization to fly our UAS (Drone) under the airshow’s COW (Certificate of Waiver).

These UAS flights gave WDRB-TV an unprecedented aerial view of the crowds coming to Thunder along with the Louisville skyline. In addition, WDRB-TV reporters were able to take live UAS video and cut to it during their live shots in the field. UAS flights were conducted under FAA 333 exemption rules and standards. 2-way radio communication was established to local air traffic control (air show – air boss) through VHF airband radios and with a communications officer in the command center. This facilitated immediate contact to the UAS for take off and landing clearances.

Because this was a successful deployment of UAS inside the congested airspace of an airshow, we hope this will be used by the FAA as a model for future UAS operations at airshows nationwide.

Flying Drone for Fox TV Louisville, KY – AeroJournalism 

WDRB 41 Louisville News

Metro Police Use AviSight for Aerial Surveillance 
By Colton Lochhead
Las Vegas Review-Journal

Rather than try to keep up with the cost of technology on its own, Metro will be outsourcing at least one key operation for big events in Las Vegas.

Metro’s Fiscal Affairs Committee on Monday approved a one-year contract with AviSight, a company based in Las Vegas, worth approximately $60,000.

According to Metro Deputy Chief of Homeland Security Patrick Neville, AviSight will provide the department with aerial video recording on big events, such as New Year’s Eve. For years, Metro’s Air Support Unit has flown helicopters with cameras attached to give police a view of what was happening in a massive crowd.

Typically, Neville said, police departments buy the cameras, train their employees on how to use them and pay for the upkeep on the equipment. But with camera technology constantly and rapidly evolving, Neville said it became cost-prohibitive for Metro to keep up.

Now, AviSight will instead fly a small airplane — a Cessna 206 — for Las Vegas police and provide them with real-time video feedback for those large-scale events.

By outsourcing the work, Neville said, the department should save money in the future simply by not having to upgrade or buy new equipment, as well as by eliminating the need to use the Air Support Unit for those big events.

AviSight’s cameras already far outpace Metro’s current equipment, Neville said, bringing better-quality high-definition cameras with the ability to record in extremely low light as well as infrared sensors that could be utilized in cases of hikers who get lost or stranded during storms on Mount Charleston.

And while Metro will use the company’s small plane for the near future, Neville said, the eventual plan is to use AviSight’s drones to further streamline the process. But that won’t happen until the Federal Aviation Administration releases its regulations on larger drones, such as Predators and Global Hawks, which the company said could take three to five years.

“It’s high technology, high training and high maintenance,” Neville said. “The technology they are able to bring forth is outstanding in my opinion.”

– See more at: http://www.reviewjournal.com/news/las-vegas/metro-outsource-aerial-video-big-events#sthash.88vo4PLb.dpuf

Read full story here

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