Westar increases use of drones in Kansas – KSN

Posted on January 2, 2017 by Writer

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) – Westar Energy says the increasing use of drones is helping it work faster, save money and improve safety for its employees.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that the company sends drones to inspect equipment, navigate remote areas and manage some emergency situations.

The state’s largest utility worked with Kansas State University’s Polytechnic Campus to offer an unmanned aircraft systems program and now has one of the nation’s largest enclosed drone flight facilities on the Salina campus.

Westar recently began deploying drones commercially.

Jason Klenklen, supervisor of transmission maintenance, says the drones currently are used primarily in rural areas to inspect transmission lines. Drones also will be used to inspect boilers, which will allow employees to see the inside of boilers while being able to stay outside.

Related Posts




Posted in Model Airpanes | Tagged , | Leave a comment

For a full list of events, opportunities and more, visit the Educator and Student Current Opportunity pages on NASA …

Posted on January 1, 2017 by Writer

NASA Education Express Message — Dec. 29, 2016

Status Report
From: NASA Education Office
Posted: Thursday, December 29, 2016

NEW THIS WEEK!
 
Free Education Webinars From NASA Educator Professional Development
Audience: In-service, Pre-service, Home School and Informal Educators
Next Event Date: Jan. 3, 2017, at 6:30 p.m. EST

Free Educator Professional Development Workshops From NASA’s Stennis Space Center Office of Education
Audience: In-service, Pre-service, Home School and Informal Educators
Next Event Date: Jan. 26, 2017, 9 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. CST
Workshop Location: Infinity Science Center in Pearlington, Mississippi

NASA’s DIVER (Diving into Experiment Research) Challenge
Audience: 9-12 Students
Proposal Deadline: Feb. 1, 2017

Call for Proposals — Research Projects on Determinants of Life Expectancy by Income and Geography, and Implications for Social Security Policy
Audience: Higher Education Faculty and Students
Application Deadline: Feb. 1, 2017

Be a Citizen Scientist With the ‘Aurorasaurus’ Project
Audience: All Educators and Students
Project Timeframe: Ongoing

PREVIOUSLY PROMOTED OPPORTUNITIES

Sign Up for NASA Education ‘Science WOW!’ Weekly

Article source: http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewsr.html?pid=49729

Posted in Model Airpanes | Tagged | Leave a comment

RC aircraft take off indoors as temps fall in Billings | Billings News …

Posted on January 1, 2017 by Writer

Whenever Jordon Niedermeier posts new content, you’ll get an email delivered to your inbox with a link.

Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.

Article source: http://billingsgazette.com/news/local/rc-aircraft-take-off-indoors-as-temps-fall-in-billings/article_4d774a8d-3e7b-5560-b3cc-8a30fb1e3718.html

Posted in Model Airpanes | Tagged | Leave a comment

Lawmakers Plan To Rein In Weaponized Drones

Posted on January 1, 2017 by Writer
When Clinton resident Austin Haughwout uploaded YouTube videos of his pistol and flamethrower-equipped drones last year, he triggered a national debate over the use of weaponized drones that is expected to result in new state legislation.

Eight states, including Vermont and Maine, now have laws prohibiting or limiting the weaponization of drones, and Connecticut is expected to take up a similar ban in the next legislative session. A proposal in Connecticut to make it a felony to carry a weapon or an explosive in a drone was approved by the House during the 2016 legislative session, but the Senate failed to take action.

“Hopefully, next year, we will get the legislation across the finish line,” said Rep. Stephen Dargan, D-West Haven, co-chair of the legislature’s Public Safety and Security Committee.

YouTube.

Drones with flamethrowers like this one built by Austin Haughwout would be banned in CT.

Nationally, there were 632,068 drones registered as of December, according to Alison Duquette, a spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). In Connecticut, a C-HIT analysis of the FAA’s most recent state-by-state database reveals that 5,731 drones were registered as of May.

Connecticut has been at the center of the drone controversy since the videos by Haughwout made national news, spurring investigations by the Clinton police and the FAA. No charges were brought against Haughwout and his father, Bret Haughwout, but the two men are expected to disclose information under oath about their use of weaponized drones before the

Article source: http://ctwatchdog.com/govt/lawmakers-plan-to-rein-in-weaponized-drones

Posted in Model Airpanes | Tagged , | Leave a comment

FAA Issues Airworthiness Directives for Boeing Model MD-90-30 Aircrafts

Posted on December 31, 2016 by Writer

Targeted News Service

WASHINGTON, Dec. 30 — The Federal Aviation Administration published the following rule in the Federal Register on airworthiness directives for Boeing Company airplanes:

A Rule by the Fed . . .

Targeted News Service Document Request Form

This document is available to you by e-mail if you complete the form below with relevant information. There may be a fee for this article or ongoing service of similar materials. We will be in touch shortly.

Myron Struck, editor, Targeted News Service, Springfield, Va., 703/304-1897; editor@targetednews.com; http://www.targetednews.com

Article source: http://targetednews.com/display_story.php?s_id=1287135

Posted in Model Airpanes | Tagged | Leave a comment

Why a Defense Analyst Likes Raytheon and General Dynamics

Posted on December 31, 2016 by Writer

Ron Epstein wrote his doctoral dissertation at Duke University on aerospace engineering, and then worked as an applied research scientist at Boeing at a time when early iterations of today’s F-35 fifth-generation stealth fighter were just coming together. He later decided to study the aerospace business, picking up an M.B.A. at Wharton and joining Merrill Lynch as an analyst in 2001.

At Merrill, Epstein, now 49, was dubbed Rocket Ron, for his appreciation of the dynamics driving defense and commercial aerospace shares,…

Article source: http://www.barrons.com/articles/why-a-defense-analyst-likes-raytheon-and-general-dynamics-1483168400

Posted in Model Airpanes | Tagged | Leave a comment

Obama To Meet With Congressional Democrats On How To Save Obamacare

Posted on December 31, 2016 by Writer

Obamacare is in the crosshairs. We have known this for a while. Congressional Republicans have attempted dozens of times to pass legislation to repeal the Affordable Care Act—all of which have been stopped by either Obama’s veto or Harry Reid when he was Senate Majority Leader. Now, the GOP controls Congress and they will soon control the White House, with a man who said he plans to repeal and replace Obamacare. Most of Obama’s legacy is regulatory. It can be rolled back—and he seems to know this because he plans to meet with Congressional Democrats next week to discuss ways they can save the law (via Politico):

President Barack Obama will head to Capitol Hill Wednesday to meet with congressional Democrats about how to shield Obamacare from Republican efforts to dismantle it, a Capitol Hill source told POLITICO.

The meeting is at 9 a.m. in the Congressional Visitors Center auditorium and is for both House and Senate Democrats, according to a notice sent to members Friday morning.

[…]

Incoming Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) has promised to stand firm against repeal efforts and subsequently, Republican efforts to replace the Affordable Care Act with a more conservative framework. And a conference call convened by House Democrats earlier this week focused largely on emphasizing the benefits of Obamacare, with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) noting that she sees parallels between the current situation and the 2005 effort by then-President George W. Bush to privatize Social Security, according to

Article source: http://townhall.com/tipsheet/mattvespa/2016/12/30/obama-to-meet-with-congressional-democrats-on-how-to-save-obamacare-n2265223

Posted in Model Airpanes | Tagged , | Leave a comment