Search and Rescue Drones (SAR)

Find Search and Rescue Drone Manufacturers; SAR Drones, search and rescue UAVs, first responder drones, lifeguard drones, as well as quadcopters, unmanned helicopters and autonomous boats used for SAR operations.
Overview Search and Rescue Drones (SAR)
By Staff Writer Last updated: November 3rd, 2023

First Responder Drones

Search and rescue (SAR) drones assist in the location of people in distress or potential danger, or vessels that may be lost at sea or unable to manoeuvre. SAR drones and lifeguard drones may be deployed in the aftermath of a disaster, or to search vast or difficult terrain such as wilderness and mountainous regions.

The use of SAR drones for search and rescue mission is typically much less costly than helicopters or manned aircraft, which can be more expensive to run and slower to deploy. Search and rescue UAVs are relatively quick and easy to deploy in situations when time is of the essence, and allow first responders to keep out of harm’s way. In addition to locating missing persons, they can also be used to identify potential hazards in the search area before a ground team is sent in.

Search and Rescue Drone by UMS Skeldar
Search and Rescue Drone by UMS Skeldar

Search and Rescue Drone Platforms

Search and rescue unmanned aerial vehicles; fixed-wing UAVs, quadcopters, multirotors and unmanned helicopters, have different advantages and disadvantages when carrying out search and rescue missions. Fixed-wing search and rescue UAVs can generally fly faster and operate at higher altitudes than search and rescue quadcopters and multirotors. Due to being more efficient, they can operate for longer and thus have greater range.

Multirotor UAVs and unmanned helicopters have vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) capabilities and can be launched from a much more restricted area, with no need for a runway or launch mechanism such as a catapult. Multirotor SAR drones are more manoeuvrable than fixed-wing platforms, and can hover in place to provide a highly stable imaging platform.

Hybrid VTOL UAV platforms take off using rotors and then transition to forward flight. This gives hybrid VTOL search and rescue drones the small operational footprint advantages of a multirotor SAR drone, as well as the extended range and coverage of a fixed-wing search and rescue UAV.

Hybrid Fixed-Wing Search and Rescue UAV by Thread Systems
Hybrid Fixed-Wing Search and Rescue UAV by Thread Systems

SAR Drone Capabilities

Drones used in SAR environments may require some form of built-in sense-and-avoid capabilities, in order to reduce the risk of collisions with objects such as trees, power lines and helicopters. This is especially true of UAVs that operate autonomously, which may be required in mountainous or urban regions or other areas that may make it difficult to maintain radio links.

When operating in such regions, or in terrain or stretches of water that cover vast areas, SAR drones may also need to operate beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS).

SAR Drone Collision Avoidance System by Iris Automation

Search and Rescue UAV Control and Payloads

Search and rescue UAVs may be controlled via a handheld ground control station on a device such as a mobile phone, laptop or tablet, or via a fixed operations centre. The drone control software may provide direct remote control, as well as waypoint setting and search area selection functionality in order for users to create exhaustive search patterns. Live feeds of the drone’s payloads may also be monitored via the software.

SAR drones may carry a variety of payloads, including thermal and visual cameras, mobile phone detection systems, and devices that can drop essential items such as radios, food and water, medicine and life preservers.

In addition to live video feeds, still imagery is also useful in search and rescue missions, as the resolution of RGB photography cameras is generally much higher than that of video cameras. Images can be sent back to the ground control station in order to create maps of the terrain that are based on up-to-the-minute intelligence. Maps created using precise geospatial analysis software can be integrated with algorithms that indicate high-probability search areas based on the target’s last known location and direction of travel.

Multirotor Rescue Drone by Acecore
Multirotor Rescue Drone by Acecore
Acecore gyro-stablised drone gimbal for SAR operations
Acecore gyro-stablised drone gimbal for SAR operations

Products (27)

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Helius UAV

Ultra-lightweight, rapidly-deployable nano drone for tactical and field operations

Ultra-lightweight, rapidly-deployable nano drone for tactical and field operations
......r reconnaissance, search-and-rescue, and security applications, even in low-visibility scenarios.... ...rformance nano drone designed for rapid deployment and superior aerial intelligence. Weighing just...
Raybird UAS

Small tactical UAS for long-range reconnaissance missions

Small tactical UAS for long-range reconnaissance missions
Raybird is a cutting-edge fixed-wing unmanned aerial system (UAS) for extended reconnaissance missio...
AR5 Fixed-Wing UAS

Long-range fixed-wing UAS for naval & maritime surveillance

Long-range fixed-wing UAS for naval & maritime surveillance
......ance and reconnaissance), border patrol, search and rescue, and other critical maritime missions....
AM-FPV

Agile FPV Drone for Precise Tactical Missions

Agile FPV Drone for Precise Tactical Missions
...all, agile FPV drones and high-payload long-endurance platforms, the AM-FPV provides unmatched...
ScanLift Mini

Compact quadcopter drone with versatile payload capabilities

Compact quadcopter drone with versatile payload capabilities
...nt. The rugged drone delivers flight times of up to 30 minutes and a top speed of 12 m/s, and has...
Star-X VTOL-6500HP Pro VTOL UAV

Advanced hybrid VTOL UAV with 40 kg payload capacity

Advanced hybrid VTOL UAV with 40 kg payload capacity
...including ISR, search and rescue, and communications relay....
Star-X VTOL-4910HP VTOL UAV

20kg capacity hybrid VTOL UAV for maritime operations

20kg capacity hybrid VTOL UAV for maritime operations
...e warfare, and search and rescue. Up to four aircraft can be controlled from a single GCS in a swarm...
BVH616 (HEIFU Pro) Hexacopter UAV

Class 3 hexacopter drone with modular payload capabilities

Class 3 hexacopter drone with modular payload capabilities
...s 3 hexacopter drone designed to meet the requirements of a wide range of professional applications,...
Falcon 10 Unmanned Helicopter

Electric unmanned helicopter with portable folding design

Electric unmanned helicopter with portable folding design
...er management, search and rescue, situational awareness, border defense and many more....
Velos V3 Helicopter UAV

Small helicopter drone with fully redundant design

Small helicopter drone with fully redundant design
The Velos V3 is the next-generation version of the versatile Velos unmanned helicopter platform, fea...
Penguin B Small UAV Airframe

Highly configurable fixed-wing UAV with wide range of options

Highly configurable fixed-wing UAV with wide range of options
The Penguin B is a modular UAS that provides unmanned aircraft systems integrators with a wide range...
VXE30 VTOL UAS

Fully autonomous hybrid VTOL UAS for long-endurance ISR

Fully autonomous hybrid VTOL UAS for long-endurance ISR
The VXE30 VTOL is the latest and most advanced version of the "Stalker" series UAS. It is a fully au...
Penguin C Mk2 Fixed-Wing UAS

Catapult launched up to 25 hour endurance UAS

Catapult launched up to 25 hour endurance UAS
The Penguin C Mk2 is a versatile medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) fixed-wing UAS that is launch...
Penguin C Mk2.5 VTOL UAS

Group 3 / NATO Class I UAS with long endurance, long-range, low logistical footprint

Group 3 / NATO Class I UAS with long endurance, long-range, low logistical footprint
The Penguin C Mk2.5 VTOL is a versatile medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) UAS with a hybrid VTOL...
C100 Heavy-Lift Quadcopter

Foldable long-endurance heavy payload drone

Foldable long-endurance heavy payload drone
...ght and power) drone easily folds down into a small rucksack and can be deployed and airborne in...
X8 Heavy-Duty Multirotor Drone

Versatile hybrid power heavy-payload drone for industrial & public safety applications

Versatile hybrid power heavy-payload drone for industrial & public safety applications
...public safety, search and rescue, disaster response, environmental monitoring, and more. It can... ...d conventional drones. The UAV platform design is based on several thousand hours of operational...
X500 Multirotor Drone

Professional-grade drone engineered for exceptional payload capacity and endurance

Professional-grade drone engineered for exceptional payload capacity and endurance
...a professional drone engineered for exceptional payload capacity and endurance. Equipped with...
Piglet MUAS

Medium unmanned aerial system with built-in ballistics calculator

Medium unmanned aerial system with built-in ballistics calculator
...large-capacity drone can carry a weapons systems such as rifles and grenade launchers, and...
Crow Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

Versatile and rapidly deployable water-resistant sUAS

Versatile and rapidly deployable water-resistant sUAS
Crow is a small unmanned aerial vehicle platform designed to be cost-effective, user-friendly, and e...
SF30 Group 2/3 UAS

Rugged long-endurance hybrid VTOL ISR platform

Rugged long-endurance hybrid VTOL ISR platform
The ShadowfaxUAS SF30 is a rugged hybrid fixed-wing VTOL UAS that has been designed from the ground ...
Alpha 800 UAV Helicopter

Versatile small unmanned helicopter for ISTAR and Civilian missions

Versatile small unmanned helicopter for ISTAR and Civilian missions
......g mapping, inspection, surveillance and reconnaissance, forward observation and search and...
SDO 50 Helicopter UAV

Versatile long-range autonomous helicopter drone

Versatile long-range autonomous helicopter drone
The SDO 50 is a state-of-the-art unmanned helicopter with a flight endurance of over 3 hours and the...
Falcon II Quadcopter

All-weather, versatile, high-wind resistance multi-copter designed for exceptional performance

All-weather, versatile, high-wind resistance multi-copter designed for exceptional performance
...ric quadcopter drone specially designed for the needs of law enforcement and emergency services....
Falcon II Nyx Electric Quadcopter

Tactical UAS for Intelligence/Surveillance/Reconnaissance

Tactical UAS for Intelligence/Surveillance/Reconnaissance
The Falcon II Nyx UAS is a high-performance, all-weather, RF and magnetically shielded quadcopter ca...
M690Pro Quadcopter

Long endurance multi-functional UAV

Long endurance multi-functional UAV
The M690Pro is a long endurance quadcopter in a portable backpack design capable of flying up to 55 ...
M690B Multirotor Drone

Industrial quadcoptor designed to support a wide range of operations

Industrial quadcoptor designed to support a wide range of operations
...90B multirotor drone with a smart battery features a lightweight design with long endurance...
DeltaQuad VTOL UAV

Fully-Electric Hybrid VTOL Fixed Wing UAV

Fully-Electric Hybrid VTOL Fixed Wing UAV
The DeltaQuad Pro DeltaQuad Pro series of fully electric UAVs is designed for high stability in bo...

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