MIT drone facilitates emergency communication

Students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed a fixed-wing drone that can act as an emergency telecom system. It is capable of staying in the air for up to 120 hours at a time and could be used in the aftermath of a disaster to help people stay in touch.

Other companies have been toying with the idea of drones as cell towers for a while. Both Verizon and AT&T have been working on this idea. Verizon recently teamed up with American Aerospace Technologies to deploy their emergency drones during an exercise in Cape May County, New Jersey. The exercise used the scenario of a category II hurricane, and first responders were able to make calls and send texts by connecting to the drone.

Large companies have the resources to navigate the murky regulatory waters, something that has caused the MIT students some trouble. NBC News reports that Federal Aviation Administration regulations have already hindered the students' ability to run flight tests.

One MIT aeronautics professor said they are working on allowing the drone to carry a 10-pound payload at 15,000ft, enough for the necessary telecom equipment.

Since test flights are restricted, the drone's expected performance is hypothetical for now. The flight time is based on calculations done by the students. With a weight of 150 pounds and a wingspan of 24ft, it is reportedly smaller than other fixed-wing aircraft being tested for this use. The drone employed by Verizon has a 17ft wingspan but weighs 175 pounds.

Connected drones are becoming more popular for many different reasons. Drones with 4G radios have to use existing cell towers, but this new technology from the likes of MIT and Verizon should help pave the way for more advanced drones in the future.