Not just for war: how drones can be used for good

How can UAV or “drone” technology be used for purposes outside combat? NZ Defence Force

Not just for war: how drones can be used for good


It’s becoming rare to see or hear coverage of combat and conflict without the mention of unmanned “drones” and their use in targeted killings.

The subject rated a mention in last year’s US presidential debates between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney - in which Romney supported Obama’s use of drones on terror targets in Afghanistan and Pakistan.


It is an extremely emotive topic.


What’s in a name?


The original term was “pilotless airplane”, which then moved on to “drone”, and then to “remotely piloted vehicles” (RPV) in the 1970s, and “unmanned aircraft” (UMA) in the 1980s.

Currently, the most popular term is “unmanned air vehicle” (UAV); if one wants to consider the whole system (including communication, ground station and supporting human roles) it’s an “unmanned air system” (UAS).


Civilian applications




Aerial video of Sydney captured by a multi-rotor UAV.

Even cheaper platforms with less capability can be obtained for A$40,000. And let’s not forget the latest trend in multi-rotor UAVs that can be bought and flown the next day for A$2,000-A$10,000 (albeit with only a few minutes of flight time and a low sensing capability - but sometimes the sensor can be worth more than the UAV platform).

Arguably, the media’s growing interest in “drone journalism” could be seen as a good thing, although this could be a double-edged sword. In 2011, Nine Network’s 60 Minutes came under fire after screening footage taken by an “unmanned surveillance drone” over a detention camp on Christmas Island. We can expect to see much more of this.


Up close and personal: footage of a UAV intercepting a tornado supercell.

For the applications mentioned above, small UAV systems are used, however sophisticated. But there have been direct purchases of what are “off-the-shelf” military platforms used for combating drug trafficking, and bushfire monitoring.

Australian-specific uses


Our best known example is the Laima UAV – built, tested and flown by the Melbourne-based company Aerosonde. In August 1998, it was the first robotic aircraft to fly across the North Atlantic.



Agriculture UAV work in Australia.








