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Small, unmanned aircraft and GPS tracking are a great team when it comes to investigating and surveying areas where it would be dangerous or cost-prohibitive to do so with regular aircraft. Miniature helicopters have been used to track drug runners and film their covert activities as seen recently on America’s Most Wanted. In the case of natural disasters such as a hurricanes or tornadoes, it may not be possible or safe to search the rubble and debris on foot, but these small aircraft equipped with GPS tracking systems and autopilots can relay much needed information and ensure that the right equipment is sent to help.

The beauty of unmanned aircraft is that they are affordable for small cities and municipalities with limited budgets. Obviously, the cost of a full size plane compared to the cost of a high quality remote control plane is substantial. Add that to no cost for hiring a pilot and no need for a storage facility since the aircraft and you have enormous savings.

Other advantages are that they can be deployed quickly and repeatedly and they fly at a low altitude which results in high resolution imagery, especially crucial for filming crimes such as drug running in remote areas.

A company in the city of Greensburg, Kansas is building unmanned aircraft in response to the city being destroyed by a tornado in 2007. They found searches to be tedious and slow when searching through the aftermath of that disaster, but they will be prepared if ever faced with that again.

The miniature helicopters launch with a button and will fly for six hours and return to its exact starting location. Roger Powers, whose team at Flint Hills Solutions is building the aircraft says, “Small states can not afford to buy a multi million dollar system but they can afford to buy a fraction of that cost that has the same capability.” He makes the point that this is very high tech and advanced and better than that, it works.

Unmanned GPS tracking aircraft could be useful in any number of locales whether a high crime area, remote areas with drug traffic or border issues or even mountainous areas prone to forest fires or avalanches. The use is limited only by the imagination as these aircraft become more widely used. In these lean economic times, this technology could prove very useful as communities try to more with fewer funds.

Article Written by Greg Bartlett