Drones for Good in the Persian Gulf

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) recently held an international competition titled “The Drones for Good Award’ with the winner being awarded $1 million US dollars. Out of over 800 total contest entries which were whittled down to 39 semi-finalists, the winning design was the “Gimball” unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) created by the Swiss firm “Flyability.”

Made with rescue and industrial inspection needs in mind, this aircraft is equipped with a rotating carbon-fiber cage that absorbs impacts to keep it from crashing into obstacles as well as allows it to roll along the ground. Also due to its small size it can navigate collapsed buildings and toxic environments while still being able to safely fly close to humans. The company’s team lead Patrick Thevoz announced that with this new funding, they will be able to commercially develop their project within a year.

According the Minister of Cabinet Affairs in the UAE, “The UAE Drones for Good Award is a tangible outcome of the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum to make optimal use of innovation and technology for the service of humanity.” We at Sky High Images applaud this commitment to setting global benchmarks and demonstrating how UAV’s can be used to benefit our daily lives. We encourage more governments and private organizations to promote similar innovative efforts that demonstrate UAV’s capacity to transform the world, make it a better place to live as well as to inspire new breakthroughs in this burgeoning field.