Drones for Emergency Management: North Carolina Air Wing expands mission capabilities with 10 new Teal-2 aircraft.
DRONELIFE Staff Writer Ian M. Crosby
of North Carolina Wing has been at the forefront of the Civil Air Patrol’s Small Unmanned Aerial System (sUAS) program, culminating in August 2021 with the first location and storage within the CAP. On May 6, the program introduced increased training and equipment at NCWG Headquarters. . NCWG has partnered with the North Carolina Emergency Management Agency to acquire 10 Teal 2 drones. These were purchased by Emergency Management and he passed on to the NCWG Civil Air Patrol to provide statewide drone support upon request.
“This is an exciting time for NC Wing,” said Capt. Ralph Newcomb, Assistant Director of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Operations. “Today, we have a high quality sUAS/drone in our possession, and the North Carolina State Emergency Management (NCE) has been commissioned to assist residents of North Carolina and neighboring states with all their needs, from search and rescue to post-disaster assessment. We need to work properly with the bureau.”
Designed by a subsidiary of Red Cat Holdings teal drone, The Teal 2 is a rugged drone powered by a Snapdragon 845 processor. It is the first sUAS to feature Teledyne FLIR’s new Hadron 640R sensor, offering end users the highest resolution thermal imaging in a small (Group 1) form factor optimized for night operations. This compact and portable drone weighs 2.75 pounds, has a top speed of 32 miles per hour and 30 minutes of flight time per battery.
Saturday and Sunday training sessions were led by Unmanned Vehicle Technology (UVT) Solutions Specialist Jarrett Reiner. The first day of training consisted of several hours of classrooms to familiarize the pilots with the aircraft, software and mission capabilities. The second day included hands-on flight experience and completing the CAP Form 5U, CAP sUAS Pilot Flight Assessment Form that each pilot must complete to operate the drone on a mission.
“The NC Wing Drone Program has grown exponentially this weekend with the introduction of the Teal 2 drone,” said Capt. Robert Rimmer, NCWG Director of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Operations.
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Ian attended Dominican University in California and graduated with a BA in English in 2019. With her lifelong passion for writing and storytelling and keen interest in technology, she now contributes to her DroneLife as a staff writer.
Miriam McNabb, editor-in-chief of DRONELIFE and CEO of professional drone services marketplace JobForDrones, is a keen observer of the emerging drone industry and drone regulatory environment. Miriam is an international speaker and industry recognized figure, with over 3,000 articles focused on the commercial drone space. Miriam has a degree from the University of Chicago and he has over 20 years of experience in high tech sales and marketing new technologies.
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