Unmanned Systems Technology 004 | Delair-Tech DT18 | Autopilots | Rotron RT600 | Unmanned surface vehicles | AMRC | Motion control | Batteries

18 T he integration of UAVs into civilian airspace is progressing slowly as the emerging technology is forced to prove itself against a wave of scepticism and a tide of understandable caution. In this respect, French company Delair- Tech’s autonomous DT18 craft is a trail-blazer since it has been approved by its country’s national aviation authority for beyond visual line-of-sight (BVLOS) operations. That authorisation came from the Direction Generale de l’Aviation Civile (DGAC), which is of course the French equivalent of the FAA in the US and the CAA in the UK. The DT18 designation indicates its wingspan, which is actually 1774 mm. The wing has an 8:1 aspect ratio and carries two control flaps on each side, while there are a further two control flaps on a vee-tail. In its lightest guise, with Delair-Tech’s basic payload still camera option, the overall take-off weight is just 1.85 kg. It has been specifically designed for a range of civilian surveying applications, and its cost starts at e 29,900 (about £21,400/$33,300) which includes the payload camera, photogrammetry software, antenna, ground station software and operator training. Philosophy Delair-Tech was set up in March 2011 by four oil industry engineers who saw a market opportunity for the right UAV technology at the right price. They had seen a role for UAVs for pipeline monitoring, especially in remote areas, and also for oil spill investigation. Helicopters (and sometimes fixed-wing aircraft) were used in those applications but in theory the right UAV could carry out the necessary task for less cost. To meet this requirement Delair-Tech produced a clean-sheet-of-paper design, the DT18. Flight duration was a key design consideration, while the craft also Ian Bamsey investigates a French UAV at the vanguard of craft approved for autonomous operation in civilian airspace Premier crew Autumn 2015 | Unmanned Systems Technology A DT18 in flight