Authorities have granted approval for firefighting aerial drones in Dubai. The flying vehicles will provide support for firefighters by tackling hard-to-reach areas such as high-rise buildings, confined spaces, and warehouses containing hazardous materials. Drone systems are also said to improve response time.
Approval for 180 firefighting drones was granted by the United Arab Emirates’ General Civil Aviation Authority. The authority also licensed 870 drones for commercial and government use.
Around 20,000 amateur drone pilots are registered in the UAE, which brought in stricter regulations on the remote-controlled vehicles following an attack by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis in January. The group attacked targets in Abu Dhabi, killing three people and injuring several others, and Abu Dhabi Police said at the time that drone parts were found at the scene.
The innovative emergency response vehicle has been some time in the making. In 2017, Dubai Media Office reported that the emirate was developing the technology. Approval has now been granted by the federal authority so that the drones can go into operation.
They will join a range of other technologies employed by Dubai Police, including its fleet of supercars and artificial intelligence systems used to detect crimes.