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Drone Radio Show

The Drone Radio Show is a weekly podcast about drones and the people who use them for business, fun and research. Our guests share how they’re using drones to make a positive impact, build a business, lessons they’ve learned and insights that you can use to take YOUR interest in drones to the next level.
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Now displaying: May, 2023
May 30, 2023

What makes a drone good for tactical use?

 

Jon Becker is CEO and Founder of AARDVARK Tactical, a leading provider of tactical equipment and custom solutions.  AARDVARK Tactical has served leading defense and law enforcement agencies at home and abroad since 1987. 

The company finds, develops, and manufactures exclusively integrated products that excel in a variety of terrains and use-cases – from personal protective equipment to tactical sUAS, breaching technology, robotics, communication systems, and mission-specific kits.  Its singular focus is to enhance operator safety and mission effectiveness.

Jon has spent the past four decades dedicating himself to protecting tactical operators. He at just 17 years old. The company started out as a climbing equipment business, often selling gear to SWAT teams and operators. After attending law school and working in police litigation, Jon realized that the best way he could serve tactical operators was by producing and providing high-quality gear and products that would enhance operator safety on the job. After AARDVARK’s expansion and success, Jon founded PROJECT7, a provider of purpose-built, scalable and configurable tactical platforms.

Jon has had the privilege of working with some of the world’s top law enforcement and military units, including the amazing leaders who guide their teams through some of the most dangerous situations and encounters imaginable.   He has keynoted for many years on the leadership of elite units and what he terms "culture-centric" leadership, and he the host and creator of “The Debrief”, a non-profit podcast that shares stories of leadership under fire with the world. 

In this episode of the Drone Radio Show, Jon talks about AARDVARK Tactical, the release of the new Loki-2 drone for tactical use and the challenges and opportunities in the use of drone for public safety.

May 23, 2023

Can drones deliver the mail?

 

Michael Merritt is Commercial & Growth Manager at Skyports Drone Services.  Skyports Drone Services is a drone logistics company and provider and operator of eVTOL drones for cargo deliveries, survey and surveillance. The company is expert in the operation of long-range and Beyond Visual Line of Sight flight for a multitude of use cases, including ship-to-shore and maritime applications, medical and dangerous goods deliveries, and AI-driven surveys for the agriculture and infrastructure sectors.  Headquartered in London, Skyports Drone Services has projects operating across four continents including Asia, North America, South America, and Europe.

 

At Skyports, Michael leads on strategy & operations, particularly in the area of drone deliveries.  He has also worked as a flight operations engineer and pilot, gaining hundreds of hours of flight time experience and operating flights across many of Skyports Drone Services’ projects.  Michael studied as an Aerospace Engineer at the University of Bristol and holds General Visual Certificates for fixed-wing and rotary drone operation.

 

Recently, Skyports Drone Services announced the launch of the Orkney I-Port project, a fully electric drone logistics project established in partnership with Royal Mail, the Orkney Islands Council Harbour Authority and Loganair.  The project will deliver two new capabilities: daily inter-port delivery of Royal Mail items and the demonstration of shore-to-ship deliveries. The I-Port project is significant as it represents the first UK drone delivery project which can be conducted on a permanent basis under existing regulatory frameworks, a milestone made possible due to the unique landscape of Orkney. 

In this episode of the Drone Radio Show, Michael talks about Skyports Drone Services, the Orkney I-Port project and how Skyports is working to create a permanent daily mail delivery service supported by drones.

May 16, 2023

Which countries are leading in Counter UAS Technology?

 

Mary Beth Long is a member of the board of directors of Red Cat Holdings.  Red Cat Holdings is a military technology company that integrates robotic hardware and software to provide critical situational awareness and actionable intelligence to on-the-ground warfighters and battlefield commanders. Its mission is to enhance the effectiveness and safety of military operations domestically and globally – and to “Dominate the Night.” Red Cat’s suite of solutions includes Teal Drones, developer of the Golden Eagle, a small unmanned system with the highest resolution imaging for nighttime operations, and Skypersonic, a leading provider of unmanned aircraft for interior spaces and other dangerous environments. 

I have published previous podcast interviews with both Red Cat Holdings subsidiaries. Episode 309 features George Matus, CEO of Teal Drones and Episode 386 features Giuseppe Santangelo CEO of Skypersonic.

Mary Beth is founder of M B Long & Associates, an international legal and advisory firm. From 2007-2009, Mary Beth served as the first woman confirmed by the U.S. Senate as Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, and as Chair of NATO’s High Level Group, responsible for NATO’s nuclear policy. In her defense department roles, she also acted as Principal Deputy Secretary of Defense on the Middle East, Africa, the Western Hemisphere, Asia, and Southeast Asia; and was the Deputy Secretary of Defense for Counter Narcoterrorism with a budget of over $1 billion. To those credentials, she adds more than a decade of Central Intelligence Agency operational experience on terrorism and other security issues. 

After leaving government, Mary Beth founded Metis Solutions LLC. Under her tenure as CEO, the company was recognized in Inc. Magazine’s List of America’s Fastest Growing Companies in 2014, 2015, and 2016. She was recently featured in Forbes magazine’s Women Business Leaders. Mary Beth advises several Fortune 500 companies on international defense markets. She has served as a Senior Subject Matter Expert for the Supreme Allied Commander of NATO and as a Senior International Advisor to the Minister of Defense of Colombia. 

Mary Beth has advised several Presidential candidates and appears regularly on Fox News, BBC, CNN, Al Jazeera English and NPR on Middle East issues and the Intelligence Community. She is a licensed lawyer and, from 1999 until 2004, was an associate specializing in civil litigation matters at Williams & Connolly LLP.  She also travels regularly to the Middle East, Europe, Latin America, and Afghanistan and has offices in Abu Dhabi and Kabul. 

In this episode of the Drone Radio Show, Mary Beth talks about Red Cat Holdings, the current challenges and opportunities for counter drone solutions and the future of protecting critical assets from drone incursions. 

May 9, 2023

How is drone delivery progressing in other countries?

 

Manoel Coelho is CEO of Speedbird Aero, a leader in the development of intelligent uncrewed aircraft systems. The company's advanced drone hardware and software solutions are designed to address a range of logistic challenges, from package delivery to emergency response.  Their mission is to enable safer, faster and more efficient logistic operations using autonomous drone technology.  By unlocking the potential of the sky for commercial, industrial, and healthcare use cases, the company is positively impacting businesses and people's lives around the world.

 

Manoel is an Entrepreneur and Business Leader with more than 20 years of successful and progressive experience in leading sales and marketing teams with proven ability to implement innovative business solutions that effectively enhance organizational productivity and profitability levels. He excels in developing business cases that showcase value propositions and influence leadership decisions and strategic direction.  He has led Speedbird Aero as CEO for the past five years.

In this episode of the Drone Radio Show, Manoel talks about Speedbird Aero, the company’s drone delivery operations and logistics and how the company is making a positive impact.

May 2, 2023

Are digital twins about to change the way we see the world?

 

Nilson Kufus is CEO and Co-Founder of Zurich-based Nokomo.  Nomoko creates digital twins that can be implemented for everything from urban planning to music festival security. The company  is on a mission to make the physical world accessible as a digital ecosystem using Digital Twins. With a focus on real estate, Nomoko strives to create virtual copies of individual buildings, larger districts, or even whole municipalities. This helps customers to visualize their projects and to gain informed insights in order to make the right decision at any time.

Nilson has a degree in Liberal Arts & Sciences from the University College Maastricht, where he built his curriculum around business, artificial intelligence, and media. He has been a Digital Shaper of Switzerland 2019, a TedX Salon speaker, and Guest lecturer at ETH Zürich & FH HWZ.

In this episode of the Drone Radio Show, Nilson talks about Nomoko, the company’s quest to build a digital twin of the world and how digital twins will revolutionize the way we see and interact with the world.

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