Just read an interesting article about drones in The Economist magazine. ("Welcome to the Drone Age")

On 2010, the FAA estimated there would be, by 2020, perhaps 15,000 civilian drones in the U.S. Estimates are that there are that many alone being sold every month now in the U.S. - and, of course, the U.S. isn't the only place they're being sold!

Quote from the article - "Some analysts think the number of drones made and sold around the world this year will exceed 1 milion."

A couple of the really interesting ones are: Bio Inspired Technologies of Boise, Idaho, is experimenting with a hard-wired neural network that "learns" its environment to avoid obstacles. And the Sky Prowler from Krossblade, a firm based in Tempe, Arizona. Their craft looks more like a plane, but with VTOL capabilities and significantly larger payloads and longer flight times.

The future may be awash in competition!

Art Burke - N4PJ
Leesburg, FL

I think that there are at lest 15,000 drone owners in Los Angeles alone!

-Dog