Donation Handover: UAS Backpack for the Fredelsloh Volunteer Fire Department
The Fredelsloh Volunteer Fire Department recently received a UAS backpack from VALOFLY GmbH for its drone squad. Daniel Stahlmann (CEO of VALOFLY GmbH), Niklas Ohm (Fredelsloh Fire Chief), and members of the drone squad met at the Fredelsloh fire station to officially hand over the backpack.
In collaboration with backpack manufacturer PAX, VALOFLY developed the UAS backpack and tested it together with the drone squad of the Fredelsloh Fire Department. The idea to design a backpack for a drone squad came to Daniel Stahlmann during his time as group leader of rescue robotics in the Northeim district. Since drone operating units often have to move away from the actual scene of the incident due to factors such as launch site requirements, it is important to have the necessary equipment quickly at hand and easily transportable. Large-scale incidents, such as the Christmas floods of 2023 in Lower Saxony, have shown that a drone squad must be operational independently of a fixed emergency vehicle in order to survey large areas from the air in a short time.
This backpack now puts these requirements into practice. With a single motion, the drone team has all the necessary equipment compactly at their disposal: a drone system in a case, cordoning-off equipment for the launch site, personal protective equipment such as contrast-enhancing (sun)glasses, spare batteries, tablets or smartphones with power banks.
After the handover, Daniel Stahlmann wished the drone squad of the Fredelsloh Volunteer Fire Department all the best and appealed to his colleagues' innovative spirit: “Drones are still quite new in the fire service and have only been gaining popularity for a few years. If there are any problems during training or operations, the own solution is just a few ideas and prototypes away.”
Niklas Ohm adds: “We have many dedicated young colleagues in our fire department who are very interested in drone work. This interest is an important basis for safe flight operations. It makes me proud to see how the unit is continuously developing, both in operations and in training. We are currently working on networking the new and existing drone units in the Northeim district in order to create standardized procedures and prepare ourselves together for future operational situations, especially disasters covering a large area. This will allow us to flexibly draw on each other's personnel and equipment during operations. Regular meetings focus on training and the exchange of experiences. This repeatedly gives rise to practical ideas, some of which have also been incorporated into the equipment of the UAS backpack.”
We are currently working on networking the new and existing drone units in the Northeim district in order to create standardized procedures and prepare ourselves together for future operational situations, especially disasters covering a large area. This will allow us to flexibly draw on each other's personnel and equipment during operations. Regular meetings focus on training and the exchange of experiences. This repeatedly gives rise to practical ideas, some of which have also been incorporated into the equipment of the UAS backpack.
Drones are still quite new in the fire service and have only been gaining popularity for a few years. If there are any problems during training or operations, the own solution is just a few ideas and prototypes away.
