The University of Texas at Austin celebrated the Longhorns joining the Southeastern Conference in style on Sunday, with a campus event that included children's activities, merch sales, and the first public pyrodrone show in the Americas.
Buda, Texas-based Verge Aero stepped up the festivities with a groundbreaking display of drones flying pyrotechnics.
Verge Aero CEO, Nils Thorjussen, gave Live Design the scoop on this spectacular first.
Live Design: What additional planning went into this?
Nils Thorjussen: The hardest part was gaining permission from the FAA. We’ve previously flown some really interesting shows with pyrodrones in other countries, but only recently did we receive permission from the FAA to do this in the USA. They consider the addition of a pyrotechnic device to be weaponizing a drone. We’ve been working with them for well over a year to demonstrate the safety of our system and gain approval. Obviously, pyro on drones in the wrong hands can be a really bad idea, and we’re very thankful for the support we’ve received from the FAA. It was a long process, but they came through in the end.
LD: What additional precautions did you have to take?
NT: In some ways, this becomes two shows in one. A licensed pyrotechnician (Blake Stoltz of Flylight Drone Shows on this event) is required for that side of things and a licensed pilot is needed to fly the show. We have to go through all the steps one would normally take when putting on a fireworks show--permits, safety equipment, fire marshall, etc—in addition to the standard drone show workflow.
LD: What kind of impact does this have on the drones? Did you have to coat them with fire retardants?
NT: The main impact is that flight time is reduced. Every ounce of extra payload reduces flight time. One can only use a drone designed to carry payload. Most drone show drones are too small to carry a significant payload but we designed the Verge Aero X1 from the start to give us options like this. The pyrotechnic devices are attached with a bracket that fires them away from the drones so we haven’t found it necessary to coat them with anything.
LD: Did including pyro impact the choreography?
NT: There are not really any constraints on how the drones can fly, but we obviously fly the pyrodrones more conservatively.
LD: What gear did you use?
NT: We used our X1 drone and the show was created in our Design Studio. We’re able to fully render and previsualize everything—including the pyro.
LD: Is this something you will incorporate into your shows going forward or are there venues where it would be impractical?
NT: Absolutely! We’re extremely excited about the potential for new technology and expect to use it in many shows. However, the additional cost and operational complexity, along with safety concerns, will limit the number of events and venues where pyrodrones are flown. That said, it’s really quite spectacular to experience in person, so I think we’ll be seeing a lot more of these shows!
#HookEm!
Some of the other highlights of the drone show.
Verge Aero has previously flown displays that incorporated fireworks into the choreography, including an event in Wisconsin for Pyrotechnic Guild International last year, [below] but this is the first time in the Americas when pyro has been mounted on the drones and used in flight.