New drone for Ulverstone Inshore Rescue

UIR provides search and rescue (SAR) services across Morecambe Bay in northwest England. The bay is the UK’s largest expanse of intertidal mudflats and sand, covering a total area of 310km². Consequently, the picturesque region can be life-threatening to unprepared walkers.

The new drone will allow the UIR team to survey a much wider area than they would from ground level, finding missing people much faster.

Owen Collar, a volunteer with the group who has just passed his General Visual Line of Sight Certificate (GVC) remote pilots exam, explained: “With the thermal camera, individuals can be pinpointed in low light and at night and, if covered by foliage, bushes or trees, can be located when ground crew could struggle.”

Saving time locating casualties

He added that the aircraft is capable of operating in high winds and rain, and said that it was equipped with four different cameras, including the aforementioned thermal imaging camera, as well as another with a 200x digital zoom and night vision.

Collar added: “Drones can cover large areas of our bay and the coastline of the Furness Peninsula in a short time, providing real-time visual information back to any ground crew – critical when the tide could be coming in to pinpoint any casualties and save lives.”

“The tide comes in fast around our bay. They can also be used to search areas that are difficult for rescue personnel to reach. With the time saved locating casualties in the air, it will save lives and minimise the dangers to our land-based crew members,” he concluded.

The drone was funded through a donation from a private benefactor. UIR is currently applying to the UK Civil Aviation Authority for authorization to operate the drone.

The town of Burlington, Massachusetts, also plans to purchase a Matrice M30T for use by the town’s police.