Using Drones for Social Good

Your mission, should you choose to accept it...make a difference in your community! Submitted by Roswell Flight Test Crew and Patrick Sherman

The only thing better than flying your own home-made FPV and semi-autonomous Small Unmanned Aircraft System (sUAS, i.e., “drone”) is flying them to make a difference in your community. To encourage this noble endeavor among hobbyists, the Cascade Chapter of the Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) has launched the 2014 Drone Prize. The contest is now accepting entries from teams across the United States. For full details, visit www.droneprize.com. The top three teams will be flown to Portland, Oregon, the home base of the Roswell Flight Test Crew, to participate in a series of public safety drills using their aircraft. The winning team will receive a $10,000 heavy-lift multirotor courtesy of Aerial Technology International. In addition, public voting on the contest website will determine a “Peoples' Choice” award winner, who will receive a Y6 RTF multirotor from 3D Robotics. All entries are due by midnight, Pacific Daylight Time, on July 27, 2014. Entries shall consist of a three- to five-minute video, uploaded to the contest website. All entries are subject to approval by the contest organizers before being formally accepted into competition. Teams will partner with a local group or organization in their community to demonstrate positive applications of hobby sUAS using technology such as aerial imagery, remote sensing and other capabilities of these aircraft. The contest is limited exclusively to hobbyists. In order to be considered, entrants must demonstrate safe flying techniques by complying with Federal Aviation Administration Advisory Circular 91-57, as well as Academy of Model Aeronautics Document 550 and Academy of Model Aeronautics Document 560. For updates and additional information, visit www.droneprize.com.