New Spy Drone video

[andresont]

http://blog.wired.com/defense/2007/0...h-polices.html

British Police's New Spy Drone
By David Hambling September 20, 2007 | 7:37:20 AMCategories: Crime, Drones, Gadgets and Gear, Homeland Security, Video Fix
In my 2005 book Weapons Grade I predicted that police would soon be using micro air vehicles developed for the military. I didn’t realize it would happen quite so soon.

British police are now using the Microdrone from German company Microdrones GmbH in trials. According to The Times it was used to police a rock festival this summer, and there has also been interest from "MI5, the Metropolitan police, and Soca, the Serious Organised Crime Agency "

As the video below shows, its something of a contrast to the Honeywell craft we looked at earlier on in the week. It's battery powered, so it's quieter -- apparently at 350 feet it is rarely noticed from the ground -- but more limited in terms of performance (flight time is about twenty minutes compared to an hour). Although it might seem flimsy, the video shows how stable it is in flight. It is said to be quite rugged and can return to base even if it loses two of its four rotor blades. One unusual feature is a speaker so that police can give instructions to those on the ground.