The big problem with UAVs is maneuvering them around
in tight spaces ... especially in and around populated
areas. While they could be used to aid searches or even
to drop supplies to stranded persons or emergency
personel, there are issues of buildings, power lines,
cross-winds, trees and homes.

Flying todays UAVs is not as precise as having an actual
pilot in the cockpit. It *could* be ... but that requires
investing in some heavy-duty virtual-reality piloting
stations that really seem to put the UAV pilot "in the
seat", getting as much detailed feedback as if he was
flying a normal plane or chopper. The further the pilot
is removed from the "you are there" aspect, the more
likely the UAV will crash and do damage.

Eventually, electronic intelligences will be able to
do a lot of what you're proposing - and doing a better
job of searching and avoiding hazards than any human
pilot could. But that's "eventually" - 20 to 50 years
down the road.



Melchizedek@USA.com (Psalm 110) wrote:

>http://www.nationalpost.com/national...F-916955AC8719
>
>Unmanned planes could save lives in disasters
>Beyond Afghanistan: Drones can provide photos of scene, pinpoint
>victims
>
>Thursday, July 10, 2003
>Unmanned aircraft like the ones Canadian soldiers will be using in
>Afghanistan could save lives and curb damage during floods,
>earthquakes and a slew of other natural disasters, says a recently
>released government report.
>
>The high-tech drones would be able to find people at risk, provide
>unique and high-resolution pictures of unfolding catastrophes and act
>as secure communication links.
>
>"There is little doubt that the total toll in suffering and loss of
>life could be reduced," says the report for the federal government's
>Office of Infrastructure Protection and Emergency Preparedness.
>
>Neither of the current alternatives -- satellites or manned craft --
>come close to providing the same benefits, it says.
>
>Drones would have helped in the Red River and Saguenay floods and
>might lessen death and injury when and if a major earthquake hits
>British Columbia, said Harry Joyce, the consultant who wrote the
>document.
>
>"These observation platforms could be immensely useful in situations
>like that, where they are completely out of harm's way, no risk to
>human life at all, and they're able to observe the scene with some
>very high-resolution imagery for many hours at a time," he said. "We
>simply don't have the capability to do that any other way."
>
>Satellites do not provide images of the same sharp resolution, and can
>take days to get in position to capture a disaster scene. Piloted
>airplanes are able to stay aloft for only a few hours, and might put
>the crew in danger. Unmanned aircraft such as the U.S.-made Global
>Hawk can hover for as many as 40 hours at a time, feeding back
>pictures, Mr. Joyce said.
>
>It appears Canada is the first country to consider using the planes,
>developed mainly for military tasks, on disaster duty, he said. But to
>date, no one in Canada has actually bought any of the systems,
>although the report was posted on the infrastructure protection Web
>site earlier this year, and published internally well before that.
>
>A spokesman for the agency said it is up to provincial or local
>authorities to acquire the machines, which can cost millions of
>dollars each.
>
>The Canadian army is in the process of buying unmanned aircraft, and
>training up to 25 soldiers to operate them, to help in its upcoming
>mission in Afghanistan.
>
>The armed forces wants the planes to provide a clearer picture of the
>teeming streets and alleyways of Kabul, the Afghan capital, where
>Canadian soldiers will patrol among millions of civilians, some of
>them hostile, said Major Paul Romano, head of the drone project. Where
>it would take as much as two hours to cross the city over ground, the
>unmanned craft could do it in about 15 minutes, he said.
>
>Commanders believe the Kabul theatre "will be as dangerous as any that
>we have been in," and want to make use of technology that can protect
>the troops, Maj. Romano said in an interview.
>
>In disasters, unmanned aerial vehicles could take video pictures with
>regular optical cameras and use radar, which can cut through clouds,
>fog, dust and smoke, Mr. Joyce said. The images would be beamed down
>instantaneously.
>
>During a flood, the drone could map out the disaster, track changing
>water levels, assess where relief efforts were needed, find people in
>danger, identify escape routes and help predict such dangerous
>spin-offs as landslides and pollution, the report said.
>
>Drones could also help assess damage and casualties and support relief
>efforts at major road accidents, derailments and air crashes, the
>report says.
>
>tblackwell@nationalpost.com