FAA regulations require drone enthusiasts and commercial operators to equip their unmanned aircraft with approved remote identification (RID) capability. Following the FAA’s deadline on March 24, 2024, each registered drone in U.S. airspace is required to transmit its location, operator information, altitude, velocity and registration code. This data can be utilized to identify the drone’s operator. Additionally, most drones will need to include a timestamp for data synchronization and an emergency status indicator if necessary.
<p>As a concession to purely recreational drone flyers, the FAA allows local organizations to designate and register an area as a reserved location for drone flying — an FAA-recognized Identification Area (<a>FRIA</a>) — and drones flown only in such locations are exempt from the RID regulation. As of September 2023, manufacturers are required to only sell drones with RID capability, and owners of older drones can purchase RID devices to add to their equipment. Some come with an internal GPS, but others connect to existing onboard GNSS receivers.</p> <p>Given this RID-equipped population of drones, <a href="https://aerodefense.tech/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">AeroDefense</a> in Oceanport, New Jersey, has come up with an inexpensive way of locating legal drones and providing tracking information by providing an area monitoring system. Drone incursions into controlled airspace are not all malicious in nature— in fact, most have turned out to be accidental. So, a low-cost capability, such as the AirWarden Essential system, can be helpful to many facilities wishing to know what drones are in their airspace. </p> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" width="406" height="356" src="https://coordinates.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/AirWarden_Picture1.png" alt="AirWarden pole-mounted receiver (Photo: AeroDefense)" class="wp-image-109740" srcset="https://coordinates.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/AirWarden_Picture1.png 406w, https://www.gpsworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/AirWarden_Picture1-300x263.png 300w, https://www.gpsworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/AirWarden_Picture1-239x210.png 239w" sizes="(max-width: 406px) 100vw, 406px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">AirWarden pole-mounted receiver (Photo: AeroDefense)</figcaption></figure> <p>An AirWarden receiver mounted on a pole with a clear view of the sky above the monitored area can capture broadcast transmissions from drones flying overhead. the information is transmitted to a display system that highlights RID-equipped drones in the monitored area, showing not only the altitude and direction of the drones but also the operator’s identity and the location from which the drone was launched. The data can be downloaded to the internet, so facility personnel can also receive incursion warnings remotely, if they happen to be away from the facility. Otherwise, the system provides real-time alerts to your chosen display, along with a tracking history and the location of the launch point.</p> <p>AeroDefense identifies several key locations for this system, including correctional facilities, venues such as stadiums and large outdoor gathering spots, airports, military bases, critical infrastructure such as power and water distribution centers, and industrial complexes.</p> <p>What about non-RID drones, which can spy on technology, gather sensitive information, conduct reconnaissance of military facilities, smuggle contraband into correctional facilities, or even damage infrastructure? These drones can operate outside the law and evade FAA regulations. AirWarden indeed offers extensions that facilitate RF detection of both drone control and data transmissions, along with tracking the direction of drone movement. Combined with radar, the system becomes a robust detection solution for both RID and non-RID drones.</p> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/> <p><a href="https://maymanaerospace.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Mayman Aerospace</a> in Long Beach, California, has developed a jet-powered vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) cargo drone. It needs only 10’ x 10’ to take off and land, and in flight, it is claimed to be able to reach 500mph (Mach 0.75) and operate at 20,000 ft.</p> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="600" height="340" src="https://coordinates.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/600x340-lidar-map.jpg" alt="Razor VTOL drone with vectoring jet-powered thrust. (Photo: Mayman)" class="wp-image-109742" srcset="https://coordinates.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/600x340-lidar-map.jpg 600w, https://www.gpsworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/600x340-lidar-map-300x170.jpg 300w, https://www.gpsworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/600x340-lidar-map-245x139.jpg 245w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Razor VTOL drone with vectoring jet-powered thrust. (Photo: Mayman)</figcaption></figure> <p>The Razor VTOL features gimballed, jet-powered thrust for takeoff and landing and a high-speed sprint speed for fast deliveries on the battlefield. The initial application might be for the Department of Defense, but Mayman anticipates that other commercial applications already exist for rapid 50-lb cargo transit.</p> <p>And Mayman describes other capabilities as including artificial GPS-denied navigation and autonomous control for reliability and accuracy in areas where signal jamming is present. The aircraft has an automatic abort/land capability in the event of catastrophic failure.</p> <p>This new intelligent vehicle appears capable of various applications, including fast cargo transit, Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance (ISTAR), disaster recovery, serving as a low-cost maneuverable airborne target for pilot training and even functioning as an attack drone.</p> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/> <p>While recent sky-filled drone incursions have been highly reported and publicized, another means to help detect and locate their operators cannot come at a better time. The AirWarden system appears to have a lot of promise, notwithstanding that radar, RF and acoustic detection systems may also be required for “illegal” drones. Thrust-vectoring, cargo carrying and autonomy in a drone are not just a novel combination, these capabilities do appear to have a great deal of promise for both military and commercial operations.</p> <p><p>The post <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.gpsworld.com/detecting-uavs-thrust-vectoring-drones-and-more/">A look at new FAA-compliant UAV detection software and thrust-vectoring drones</a> first appeared on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.gpsworld.com">GPS World</a>.</p></p>
