UK start-up, FlareBright has achieved the significant milestone of 500 test flights of its new drone, SnapShot.
The small drone is designed to capture high-quality aerial images and to be hand-portable and robust. SnapShot launches ballistically to a height of 100m (330ft) then uses proprietary-software to control a glide path home to the user.
According to FlareBright, the guided-glide flight allows it to be used in almost any weather or atmospheric conditions, and means it is not affected by other electromagnetic signals. Customer interest in SnapShot has been shown from law enforcement, the emergency services, industrial inspection companies, urban mapping and the defence sector.
The 500 test flights have taken 18 months. During the test flight program the company said there has been extensive learning of SnapShot’s performance and flight characteristics, culminating in a highly predictable flight path in most weather conditions.
Its development pathway now involves numerous additional flights and further wind tunnel, propulsion and manufacturing development, with a first customer-ready aircraft scheduled for delivery in late 2020.
“The long and challenging journey from our first flight to regular and successful test flights has been exciting to watch. We’re looking forward to showing off SnapShot to our potential customers in the very near future. We’re looking forward to Customer-led prototype demonstrations by the end of this year.” said FlareBright’s CEO, Kelvin Hamilton.
