A drone flies in the nature

Digital Platform for Unmanned Aviation

Drone definition

Drones are the new transport mode of the future and are being used more and more frequently in Germany. 

Drones are aircraft and are also known by the abbreviation UAS, which is short for ‘unmanned aircraft system’. A UAS consists of an unmanned aircraft and its equipment. It can be controlled either by a human being or by an integrated or external computer. Thus, a drone can also be a partly or fully autonomous aircraft. Unmanned aircraft systems also include the control unit and the signal transmission path.

The term ‘drone’ was initially used for UAS used for military purposes and, strictly speaking, only refers to the flying part of the ‘system’.

Privately or commercially used drones are usually controlled by a remote-control unit or other mobile device. They frequently have cameras for capturing still and moving images. In some cases, it is even possible to combine the systems with smartphones.

Drones are used in different fields, for example in business and industry or for leisure purposes. The operational scenarios are becoming more and more diverse. The rapid development of the technology constantly leads to new opportunities to simplify or optimize certain activities using drones. More information on drone applications are provided on the use case page.

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