Latest news with #SkyElements
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Popular Oregon Coast town will replace fireworks with drone show for Fourth of July
A drone show will replace the Fourth of July tradition of fireworks in Lincoln City along the Oregon Coast in 2025. Instead of the colorful pops, the Siletz Bay sky will be filled with colorful moving shapes and animations. The move to drones from fireworks is focused on being more environmentally conscious. Here's what to know. Starting at 10 p.m. on July 4, visitors can experience the new light show with 200 LED light synchronized drones that will light up the Siletz Bay sky. The show is expected to finish at 10:30 p.m. The show will be produced by Sky Elements, winner of 13 Guinness World Record titles and the largest drone show provider in the United States. Taft Waterfront Park along Southwest 51st Street is recommended as the best place to view the drone show. Before the drone show, live music from Hecktic Week, Mariachi Cuervo Band and Huckle Buck Highway will be played in the Taft Pavilion starting in the afternoon until the start of the show. The switch to drones from fireworks comes as a way to be more environmentally conscious and to address the concerns city officials and residents have about the impact fireworks have on public safety. 'Replacing fireworks with the Oregon Coast's very first drone show enables us to preserve Lincoln City's natural beauty while supporting public safety and creating a celebration that's more inclusive of everyone," Kim Cooper Findling, director of Explore Lincoln City, said in a news release. "It's a new tradition we can all feel good about.' With the switch to drones, there will be no smoke, debris or chemicals released into the environment. According to the press release, past firework shows have complied with firework regulations; however, plastic, gunpowder and heavy metals all pose a risk to sensitive wildlife areas like Siletz Bay, Salishan Spit and Siletz Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Parking may be limited in certain areas. A shuttle service will be available to make rounds from Taft High School to Taft Waterfront Park until 1 a.m. For more information about Lincoln City Fourth of July celebrations, go to Mariah Johnston is an outdoors journalism intern at the Statesman Journal. Reach her at mjohnston@ This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Lincoln City, Oregon, cuts Fourth of July fireworks for drone show
Yahoo
11-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Universal Orlando drones: FAA authorizes Sky Elements to fly over theme park again
The Brief A new waiver from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) says that Sky Elements can now fly drones over Universal Orlando again. The waiver comes just in time for the park's nighttime show, "CineSational: A Symphonic Spectacular," to return after a season of closure. Universal previously stopped using the Sky Elements drones following a tragic incident at a Christmas drone show over Lake Eola where a 7-year-old boy was seriously injured and sent to the hospital. ORLANDO, Fla. - A new waiver from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) says that Sky Elements can now fly drones over Universal Orlando again. What we know The waiver comes just in time for the park's nighttime show, "CineSational: A Symphonic Spectacular," to return after a season of closure. The show previously used Sky Elements drones. However, Universal stopped using the drones following a tragic incident at a Sky Elements Christmas Drone Show at Lake Eola in downtown Orlando. Although the drones were supposed to stay above the lake and away from the crowd, the drones went off course, crashed into each other and fell into the lake, striking a 7-year-old boy and sending him to the hospital. The waiver states that the operations conducted under it are limited to the location described as the Universal Orlando Backlot. Click to open this PDF in a new window. The backstory The Christmas drone show accident took place on Dec. 21, 2024, at Lake Eola Park in downtown Orlando. Alezander, a 7-year-old boy, was seriously injured after red and green-lit drones collided and plummeted into the crowd at the event. FOX 35 News spoke with the parents of Alezander, who said one of the drones knocked him out on impact, causing a chest injury. He underwent open-heart surgery the following day. Dig deeper A video shared with FOX 35 News captured the drones crashing into the lake and veering close to spectators. Shortly after, the City of Orlando canceled the second show, citing technical difficulties in a statement on X. A spokesperson for the City of Orlando confirmed after that the FAA was leading an investigation into the incident. According to the contract with the City of Orlando, the 500 drones operated by Sky Elements were meant to fly above the lake, staying clear of the crowd in designated areas. However, during the show, several drones collided midair and fell into the lake. The FAA had since suspended the waiver that allowed Sky Elements, the drone company hired to put on the show, to put on other drone shows across the country, pending the outcome of its investigation, as well as the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigation. Typically, during a synchronized drone show, the drones are linked up by GPS. Experts suggested various potential causes for the malfunction. Drone expert, Dr. Vivek Sharma of Florida Institute of Technology, speculated the failure might stem from GPS interference, programming errors or drone collisions. In January, the NTSB released its preliminary report on what happened during the show, citinga few minor issues within minutes of the first show starting: At first, five of the drones were not accepting launch data. Officials troubleshooted some of the Wi-Fi access points and connected all 500 drones to the network. Officials conducted a "soft reboot" to bring the shows into "show ready" mode. All but two – 498 drones – seemed ready for the show. The two that did not connect were pulled, the report said. Shortly after the first show started, the pilot noted that the drones did not launch "uniformly," and when the drones shifted positions, began to crash into one another. The NTSB found that a "launch parameter file" which contained the final flight data for the drones was never sent, and that the "show center was not completely aligned." A review of the logs found that the show's position was rotated by 7 degrees. That change in position also allowed the "geo hard fence" to be too close to the crowds, the report said. What they're saying Sky Elements Drone Shows is a Texas-based entertainment company that puts on professional drone shows across the country, according to its website. At IAAPA Expo 2024, the company reportedly set a new Guinness World Record – its 10th – for the "largest aerial display of a bird formed by multi-rotors/drones." Sky Elements drone show used 2,484 drones. The record to beat was 984, a news release said. In response to the incident, Sky Elements had proposed several measures to the FAA aimed at preventing similar occurrences in the future. These included: Allowing additional on-site preparation time before showtime to alleviate time pressures. Establish an on-call system requiring a chief pilot or second in command "to verify all the necessary steps have been completed before showtime." Providing additional training for all remote pilots in command of the drones. "Sky Elements is fully committed to safety, transparency and continuous improvement," representatives said in the prepared statement. "The NTSB's preliminary report revealed that this was an isolated incident involving actions outside the scope of our established operating procedures, which are specifically designed to prioritize safety and prevent such occurrences. Sky Elements has a proven track record of delivering safe, high-quality performances." To further strengthen its existing safety protocols and incorporate the NTSB's recommendations, Sky Elements said it had introduced the following enhancements: Additional time has been allocated to pre-show procedures to enhance our already thorough safety checks of all systems and environmental conditions before launch. An updated requirement for two licensed pilots to fly each show, who will independently confirm the completion of pre-flight procedures, introducing an additional layer of oversight and accountability. Incorporate advanced safety protocols, additional emergency procedures and evolving best practices in drone show operations into our industry-leading training programs. "These enhancements reflect our commitment to operational excellence and our determination to prevent such events from occurring in the future," Sky Elements said. "We will continue refining our processes in collaboration with relevant authorities and sharing updates as appropriate to maintain the highest standards of safety and innovation in the drone show industry." STAY CONNECTED WITH FOX 35 ORLANDO: Download the FOX Local app for breaking news alerts, the latest news headlines Download the FOX 35 Storm Team Weather app for weather alerts & radar Sign up for FOX 35's daily newsletter for the latest morning headlines FOX Local:Stream FOX 35 newscasts, FOX 35 News+, Central Florida Eats on your smart TV The Source This story was written based on information gathered from previous reporting and a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) waiver.
