Dedrone expands counterdrone testing with FAA

Airspace security company Dedrone and the FAA are expanding their testing of counterdrone detection, tracking, identification and mitigation technologies to clarify regulations around their use at airports. [caption id="attachment_57136282" align="alignleft" width="300"] Airspace security company Dedrone is expanding its testing of counterdrone detection, tracking, identification and mitigation technologies with the Federal Aviation Administration. (Photo/Dedrone)[/caption] The FAA’s testing for the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Detection and Mitigation Program began in January 2022 and will end in September. San Francisco-based Dedrone was part of the first round of the FAA’s counterdrone testing at New Jersey’s Atlantic City International Airport (ACY) and is now testing at a second airport, which it declined to identify. “The threat of drone disruptions to airports and other critical infrastructure is persistent and escalating,” Dedrone Chief Executive Aaditya Devarakonda said in a recent release. The FAA prohibits drone flight over areas it has identified as “no drone zones.” However, there were 1,820 drone sightings in these zones in the United States in 2022, up by 398 from 2021, according to the FAA. The drones ranged from small, store-bought models to larger, commercial models. Detection, tracking, identification, mitigation There are four steps to countering a drone incident: detection, tracking, identification (DTI) and mitigation. “From a safety perspective, you think of it in four ways,” Dedrone Chief Marketing Officer Mary-Lou Smulders told Air Cargo Next . “Detect the drone before the human eyes can see it or the human ears can hear it. Track the drone. Where is the drone? And, under track the drone, it’s always also, where is the pilot? Because then you can actually do something about it. Identify the drone. And that happens on two levels. One is, what kind of drone is it? What kind of payload does it have? What kind of range does it have? How fast can it go? But also [identify it] on the level of friend or foe.” As far as mitigation, DedroneTracker, a sensor-fusion platform that provides DTI and mitigation via artificial intelligence , is being used in testing at both airports. By taking inputs from multiple sensors, including radio frequency, radar, camera and acoustics, DedroneTracker confirms drone presence and determines its precise location. Based on real-time data, the AI engine offers the operator a prioritized queue of targets while simultaneously tracking multiple friendly drones. FAA first tested DTI, and is currently testing mitigation, according to Smulders, who said, “The FAA is now also testing Dedrone’s mitigation capability, which is a precision jammer in that airport environment.” The DedroneDefender precision jammer has narrow-band jamming to minimize disruption to other devices and meets military standard MIL-STD-810H. This use of narrow-band or “comb” jamming reduces the risk of interference with other systems in the area, including Wi-Fi or radar. Airport-friendly drones Not all drones at airports are a problem. In fact, some airports are considering how to incorporate drone technology into their own operations to increase efficiency and reduce staffing, especially as workforces continue to decline. “There are airports in the U.S. today that are using drones for productive means,” Smulders said, and gave the example of a drone more quickly delivering spare parts to a plane on the tarmac than “one of those golf cart things that runs around the airport.”

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