Austria’s Red Cross Hopes to Save Lives with a Team of Custom Land Rovers Featuring Drone Launch Pads

Austria’s Red Cross Hopes to Save Lives with a Team of Custom Land Rovers Featuring Drone Launch Pads

Published: March 19, 2017 | By: American Luxury Staff

Drones have been used more and more frequently in search and rescue efforts around the globe; the Gimball, the Sentry, and the Lockheed Martin Indago have all made significant contributions to essential operations.

Now Land Rover has joined forces with the British Red Cross to create a search-and-rescue drone able to launch from the roof of a customized Discovery model.

The specialized drone-carrying Discovery has been dubbed Project Hero and was built especially for use by the Austrian Red Cross. The Project Hero Discovery is fitted with Land Rover’s 3.0-liter TD6 engine, and boasts specialized modifications: a sliding door in the trunk that doubles as a workstation, multiple-frequency radio equipment, and special LED lighting for night-vision purposes.

The Project Hero drone has a range of 0.62 miles and is controlled using a tablet app housed in the vehicle. It can stream live footage back to the tablet in order to help the emergency response team develop a quick and effective course of action. The drone can return to the Discovery autonomously, using what Land Rover has called self-centering and magnetic retention technology.

The Project Hero Discovery and drone made their debut at the Geneva Motor Show, and will be stationed at the Austrian Red Cross training centers in Vienna and Erzeberg this June.

2369 March 19, 2017 Cars, Drones, Tech March 19, 2017