From: Ad 

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/05/21/black_helicopters_over_merseyside/

"The era of Robocop - and perhaps of the surveillance society - came a
step nearer today with the announcement that Merseyside plods have started
trialling a flying police robot.

The scally sky-patrolman, unlike military kill-bots such as the US Reaper,
isn't intended for any active role. It is purely an observation platform,
mounting CCTV with a range of imaging options.

The Scouse law-enforcers' eye in the sky is the "hicam
microdrone", a German battery-powered quad-rotor helicopter which
weighs less than 1kg and is less than 1 metre in diameter, according to
reports. The diminutive cyber-copter can apparently stay up for 20 minutes
per battery charge and its UK distributors say that it is capable of
"immediate deployment from car/dog van/other." YouTube footage is
available here.

The microdrone apparently has a highly capable autopilot, making it much
easier to fly than a normal remote-control helicopter.

A spokesman for the machine's UK distributor said "it is pretty much
forward, back, left, right and record". Apparently, the microdrone is
exempt from air-traffic restrictions in much the same way toy aircraft are.
The autopilot can navigate GPS waypoints or hover autonomously, and is also
capable of landing itself if the control signal is lost.

The flying robo-constable is also "almost silent" in use, and
"allows entirely covert operation".

The UK distributor spokesman said the aircraft are "military
derived...obviously I can't talk too much about that particular use...they
are essentially reconnaissance tools."

Since the microdrone isn't listed among those used by the regular UK
military, this might indicate that the British special forces have taken an
interest in the diminutive stealth-chopper, perhaps in a counter-terrorism
role. This would fit in with the Merseyside plods' reported plans to test
it in firearms operations, as well as for more mundane tasks such as
monitoring traffic congestion and crowds."


Adam

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