Startup launches drone towing

The Shenzen-based drone startup Blue Wing recently unveiled details of its unique drone-powered towing operation. Towing has seen all kinds of experimentation and practise over the years, from home-made winches, to having friends pull you on their bikes, boats and trucks, often with mixed results.

Now drone-enabled tow systems have been the pioneered and tested by the Chinese company Blue Wing. The six-propeller SkyTow-201 was recently on show at the Coupe Icare in France, attracting much interest from pilots and the sport.

It has a towing capacity of 160kg, a run time of approximately 22 to 25 minutes and a maximum climb rate of 8m/s, with a recommended climb rate of 3m/s to 5m/s. It can take a pilot to 1,050m in four and a half minutes, Blue Wing claim.

“Our method of takeoff only requires a small area of flat land, say around 50m. No mountains, cliffs, winch cars or helicopters are needed. You can take off from the mountain areas, sand, beach, grass area, even the water,” says spokesman Ted Zhang.

The drone is piloted by someone on the ground and operated via remote control. “It is very easy to operate, as our system is semi-automatic,” he says.  

As for the release, he says it can be done on both the pilot and drone side. “When our drone takes the pilot to a pre-determined altitude, the paraglider pilot must separate with the drone, and then the pilot can start free flying and the drone returns to the ground.  We have a specialised release device on both the pilot side and the drone side. The towing rope is not retracted, after disconnect it hangs down and follows the drone back to the ground.”

The SkyTow-201 has a stated landing accuracy of 0.5m. Each drone is powered with two batteries – enough say the manufacturers for two tandem flights or three if the passenger is a child or especially light. It can also be used to tow hang gliders.

With a price tag of just under $45,000, the SkyTow-201 is clearly aimed at commercial operators and clubs but Ted says he’s received a lot of interest from Europe. However, the big stumbling block is overcoming the legal hurdles.

“We have received hundreds of emails from European countries, they want to buy our drones, or collaborate with us as a distributor. But for now, the biggest problem is from the local authorities or governments. Because our drone is such an advanced innovation in the world, each country needs time to permit our drone. We are in the middle of the process!”

Many will watch this space with interest.

i-uas.com