As drone sightings multiply, a Virginia Tech team is working on better ways to detect and identify the unmanned fliers

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Politics
As drone sightings multiply, a Virginia Tech team is working on better ways to detect and identify the unmanned fliers

People at the Langley Air Force Base area in Hampton Roads saw drone activity there last year, but the instruments set up to detect them did not, a Virginia Tech drone expert said. Researchers want to change that.

by Tad Dickens
December 24, 2024


Virginia Tech engineering staff members prepare for flight operations to support autonomous aerial vehicle testing. Courtesy of Eleanor Nelsen for Virginia Tech.

A rash of apparent drone sightings in multiple states has fueled questions and some paranoia in recent weeks. Coincidentally, a Virginia Tech team is working to improve technologies for drone identification and mitigation tech.

Tombo Jones, director of Virginia Tech’s Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership, said that his group and the university’s National Security Institute are researching ways to improve drone detection systems. New indoor and outdoor facilities on campus should be complete by the end of 2025, Jones said.

Investigators there will evaluate existing detection systems’ strengths and weaknesses and look for ways to combine them for improvement, in case of actual threats from unmanned aircraft.

“Right now it’s for the [Department of Defense], but we fully expect to expand the information that’s valuable for any entity that has critical infrastructure that it is trying to protect,” Jones said.

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