Drone News Roundup: DJI Mini 3 Revealed in FCC Filing, UAV Coach’s 12 Days of Giveaways, and More!

This week we’re covering a recent FCC filing for the DJI Mini 3, making it look like a less expensive version of the Mini 3 Pro could launch soon.

We’re also covering UAV Coach’s 12 Days of Giveaways (which is happening right now!), a chainsaw attachment for a drone created by researchers in Hawaii, an FPV drone tour of DJI’s new headquarters, a story about 50 light show drones failing all at once during a light show in Australia, and a documentary in the works from Women and Drones.

Now on to the links!

FCC Filing Indicates DJI Mini 3 May Launch Soon

DJI Mini 3, but not a Pro. pic.twitter.com/p8T8GtVduO

— OsitaLV (@OsitaLV) November 23, 2022

DJI recently made a filing with the FCC for the Mini 3, indicating it may launch a less expensive version of the Mini 3 Pro soon. A leak from drone industry insider @OsitaLV showing photos of a Mini 3 label (shown above) seems to back up the idea. The release of the Mini 3 would follow DJI’s trend of releasing less expensive versions of its drones after their launch—this was done recently with the DJI Mavic 3 Classic, and has been done in the past with the DJI Mini SE.

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Win a Free Drone, Drone Accessory, or Gift Card During Our 12 Days of Giveaways

Right now UAV Coach is giving away drones and drone-related goodies, and you have the chance to get one of them. Giveaways include things like gift cards, drone accessories, and even a DJI Avata. We’re making these giveaways every weekday from December 1 through December 16, with all the winners announced on December 19. All the giveaways will be made on Instagram. Each giveaway will have different eligibility requirements—follow the link below to learn more on the UAV Coach Instagram account.

*To enter UAV Coach’s 12 Days of Giveaways, you must be a U.S. resident and 18+ years old.

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Chainsaw-Wielding Drone Used to Fight Invasive Fungus in Hawaii

Researchers at the University of Hawaii have created a device that allows a drone to carry a chainsaw. The flying chainsaw allows researchers to collect tree branch samples so they can test them for an invasive fungal pathogen that’s threatening to wipe out its ōhiʻa trees, which is called Rapid ʻŌhiʻa Death (ROD). The device has been named Kūkūau, after a large crab that lives in Hawaii, and consists of a small rotation chainsaw with a robotic gripper claw that mounts under the drone.

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FPV Drone Tour of DJI’s Sprawling New Headquarters

We recently wrote about DJI’s new headquarters, Sky City, which is located in Shenzhen, China. Sky City took six years to build and is massive, taking up two high rises, one 40 stories and the other 44 stories. This FPV drone tour from DJI is the next best thing to being there in person—watch it for an up-close tour of the buildings and surrounding grounds of DJI’s sprawling new HQ.

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50 Drones Fall from the Sky During Drone Light Show

The highly-anticipated City Of Light Christmas drone show didn’t go exactly as planned last night…

Multiple drones began malfunctioning and falling from the sky throughout, crashing into the Swan River below as crowds watched on. #9News pic.twitter.com/oThMMvUEYf

— 9News Perth (@9NewsPerth) November 21, 2022

During a recent Christmas-themed drone light show in Perth, Australia 50 drones fell from the sky into the Swan River in less than a few minutes. No one was hurt by the falling drones but they were lost for good, costing their owner Drone Sky Show a total of around $100,000 (each drone cost about $2,000). The light show had about 500 drones total, meaning that 10% of them malfunctioned all around the same time—watch the video above to see what happened.

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Women and Drones Is Working on a Documentary

Women and Drones is collaborating on a multi-part documentary with a documentary film company called Monumental Access. The focus is on women working in various positions across the drone industry. Sharon Rossmark, the CEO of Women and Drones, recently sat down with Scott Howe of Commercial UAV News to record a podcast highlighting the documentary work—follow the link below to listen to the episode.

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