Qatar to step up military security with its own drone technology

[Kuwaiti Girl]

Qatar to step up military security with its own drone technology

http://dohanews.co/qatar-to-step-up-military-security-with-its-own-drone-technology/

To help protect its coastal borders, Qatar is planning to further develop its own drone technology, a defense official has said.

According to the Gulf Times, General Khalid bin Ahmad Al Kuwari, director of the Qatar Armed Forces’ Reconnaissance and Surveillance Center (RSC), said the remote-controlled aircraft would help boost the country’s security.

“The use of drones is going to be very important, as it is in any country,” he said.

The official spoke following the signing of a five-year research agreement between RSC and Texas A&M University at Qatar (TAMUQ) in “drone technology in defense, industry and commerce,” interim dean Dr. Ann Kenimer said.

Made in Qatar

The deal follows remarks from Qatar’s defense minister earlier this year, who said that plans to build drones locally were at an “advanced stage” and that the devices could hit the market by next year.

Speaking at the fifth Doha International Maritime Defence Exhibition & Conference (DIMDEX) in March, Dr. Khalid bin Mohammed Al Attiyah said the country has been working on a drone production project with Germany, as part of efforts to extend Qatar’s defenses.

In recent years, Qatar has made several international deals for aerial vehicles, their parts and their technology.

At DIMDEX, the government signed an MOU with Polish firm WKK to manufacture and produce drone parts for Qatar’s armed forces.

The agreement included WKK providing “support in the field of aircraft manufacturing and technology transfer to Qatar,” QNA reported at the time, and followed Qatar’s purchase of a 51 percent stake in the company.

The QR32.58 billion worth of deals signed at the biennial defense expo also included a QR460.5 million agreement with US-based Aurora for drone sensor integration and QR365 million worth of drones from German company Reiner Stemme Utility Air-Systems.

Airspace protection

During yesterday’s signing, Al Kuwari said plans were also underway to draft a “space management concept” for Qatar’s airspace.

The aim is to avoid situations like the closure of Dubai International Airport for more than an hour last weekend due to unauthorized use of a drone.

“It is not a big issue, but we have to take care of it. Drones can sometimes be disturbing,” Al Kuwari reportedly said.

Drone owners who wish to fly their craft must first get government approval, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) announced last month.

The CAA added that the use of drones has always been “prohibited” without the agency’s prior authorization.

The reminder came more than a year after the aviation authority said it was drafting new rules to regulate the use of drones.

Thoughts?

 

[Kuwaiti Girl]

Qatar keen to develop drone technology programme

http://www.gulf-times.com/story/498327/Qatar-keen-to-develop-drone-technology-programme

Qatar is keen on developing its own drone technology programme to further enhance its security capabilities, a senior official of the Qatar Armed Forces’ (QAF) Reconnaissance and Surveillance Centre (RSC) has said.
“We are planning to develop this platform because drones are used in the military for security,” explained RSC director, General Khalid bin Ahmad al-Kuwari.
He was speaking on the sidelines of an agreement signing between RSC and Texas A&M University at Qatar (Tamuq) in Education City on Thursday.
The official stressed the need to have “such kind of security” for infrastructure on the sea where 80% of RSC’s work is being done.
During the Doha International Maritime Defence Exhibition and Conference 2016, the QAF had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Polish company WKK to manufacture and produce parts of drones for RSC.
QAF has bought 51% of the company, which specialises in manufacturing composite materials and producing fuselage, Qatar News Agency had reported then. Under the MoU, WKK will support aircraft manufacturing and technology transfer to Qatar.
“We decided to bring the technology to Qatar because we are trying to build up some structures and it is not really a business case for us,” al-Kuwari said. “The use of drones is going to be very important as it is in any country.”
The RSC is also planning to develop a ‘space management concept’ to prevent any untoward incident similar to what happened at the Dubai International Airport last Saturday, when the authorities had to close Dubai’s airspace for 69 minutes due to unauthorised drone activity.
The centre director said plans on how to manage Doha’s “very small but very active airspace” is already in the pipeline.
“It is not a big issue but we have to take care of it. Drones can be sometimes disturbing,” he added. “But drones are very important, easy to handle, and very cheap.”
Drones can also be used for various researches such as studying the geography of Qatar with less time needed than a manned aircraft, according to al-Kuwari.
Tamuq interim dean Dr Ann L Kenimer echoed General al-Kuwari’s remarks saying that drones and other types of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle systems are used for tasks that are considered dull, and most importantly, too dangerous for humans.
“Use of drones is expanding in commercial, scientific, recreational and other applications including policing and surveillance, aerial photography and mapping, agriculture, and even drone racing,” she said.
Dr Kenimer noted that their partnership with RSC will provide opportunities for various research collaborations “that is finding limitless possibilities for drone technology in defence, industry and commerce.
In addition, she said it will also combine expertise to offer custom-designed training and seminars to support the centre’s operations and workforce.
Under the five-year MoU, Tamuq’s engineering students at the branch campus in Doha will have the opportunity to get scholarships and learn more through the internship programmes.
“Seeds of this partnership were planted a few months ago during the Engineering Heroes drone camp, when General al-Kuwari and other officials spoke to some of Qatar’s future engineering leaders about the importance of engineering and the role engineering will play in driving Qatar towards being a modern, knowledge-based economy,” the interim dean added.

 

[Kuwaiti Girl]

Qatar to ramp up homeland security using drones

http://www.arabianbusiness.com/qatar-ramp-up-homeland-security-using-drones-635790.html#.V2gXF2h96Uk