RAF could use drones to carry out faster aircraft inspections
The Royal Air Force is looking at whether a drone can carry out some key aircraft inspections before and after flights.
Currently, engineers spend long periods working at height examining every part of a plane's exterior but Project ASURVEY will look at the possibility of a drone inspecting 95% of the plane's surface in just half an hour.
The initial survey will use a Donecle drone to examine the Poseidon MRA1 aircraft at RAF Lossiemouth, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) said.
Engineers at the Moray base have been trained to use the drone safely around the plane in the hangar and are checking the data it can provide.
The next step involves teaching the drone the features of every aircraft, so it can rapidly identify areas of damage.
It can capture more than 1,300 images using a Basler Ace 2 PRO 24MP camera, the MOD added.
Flight Sergeant Andy Fleming is behind the idea and is managing the project.
He said: "There's a real excitement around this technical evaluation and what it can potentially offer to the RAF.
"Now the drone has been delivered, we’ve started training the right people on how to safely operate it around an aircraft in a hangar.
"The next step is to teach it the specifics of each tail number so it can clearly identify even the smallest areas of damage.
"It's great to see the RAF embracing the cutting-edge inspection technology available, to streamline and improve inspection processes".
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