Unmanned aerial vehicle completes record flight across the Alps

A type md4-1000 drone, from German company microdrones, has completed a complex record flight by taking off from Switzerland and crossing the Saint-Gotthard Massif to Italy.

The drone crossed the Alps via the Saint-Gotthard Massif between Hospental and Airolo in Switzerland.

Lasting for almost 25 minutes, the flight was monitored by a professional stunt and film team.

The aircraft was equipped with HD cameras, and was accompanied by helicopters and cameras on its flight over the Alps.

The md4-1000 flew about 12km in GPS waypoint mode and avoided power and telephone lines, as well as a cable car.

It faced weather conditions such as sun and snow, as well as differences in altitude of more than 1,600m.

microdrones CEO Sven Juerss, who personally accompanied the md4-1000 from a Mercedes-Benz SL 63 AMG, said such a flight was a very complex challenge for a remote-controlled quadrocopter, which requires a long flight time, precision and durability from the drone.

"There are many unpredictable factors," Juerss said. "That’s why nobody has had a go at this experiment yet."

According to the company, drones are usually an ambivalent topic in public debate, but they can be important for civil purposes.

The project was prepared several months earlier; the route was accurately measured and divided into 18 waypoints, and obstacles had to be documented and mapped, the company said.

Many companies participated in the preparation and realisation of the endurance test, including Daimler, which made Mercedes-Benz vehicles available, Sony Deutschland, Carl Zeiss AG and the hardware and software developer u-blox.

Five flight operators for the launch, ground, air, landing and waypoints monitored the pre-programmed flight.

In order to document the record precisely and to generate the best possible pictures, microdrones specially flew in a professional stunt and film crew from the US.

In 2012, microdrones had already set a record when the company used a film to document the fact that the md4-1000 can hover in the air for 88 minutes without external influences.

"It is often forgotten that microdrones are often used to help in catastrophes or to further science," Juerss said. "And in such cases, endurance, durability and reliability are of paramount importance."

microdrones stated that it would publish the film material recorded during the Alpine crossing soon.

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Image: The md4-1000 drone aircraft was equipped with HD cameras, and was accompanied by helicopters and cameras on its flight over the Alps. Photo: courtesy of microdrones GmbH.