BT breaks Guinness World Record by flying 160 synchronized drones in biggest ever indoor flight spectacular – all controlled by just a single computer
- A total of 160 drones were involved and were controlled by a single computer
- Each drone weighed 50 grams and had an LED light attached to it that changed colour and turned on and off in time with the music
- Incredible record attempt at Wembley was organised by telecomms company BT
- Children from St Joseph’s School in Islington programmed the show in lessons
The world record for the most drones to be used in a single indoor show was broken by telecomms company BT last weekend.
A total of 160 drones flew around a stage while singer Jess Glynne performed her number-one single ‘I’ll Be There’ to finish her set at the Wembley event.
The drones were all controlled by a single computer which had been programmed by schoolchildren from central London.
Jess Glynne performed her number-one hit ‘I’ll Be There’ to a show involving 160 drones which were choreographed by schoolchildren
Children from St Joseph’s School in Islington, London, programmed the drones as part of school coding lessons
BT coordinated the attempt in an event held to advertise the firm’s mobile and internet networks and to launch its new logo.
Children from the St Joseph’s School, in Islington, London, helped to choreograph the display as part of primary school coding lessons.
The drones could be seen hovering and swirling above Glynne’s head as she performed in front of a crowd of more than 1,000 people.
And the event now holds the Guinness World Records title for the Most Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) airborne simultaneously from a single computer (indoors).
Each drone in the effort weighed 1.8oz (50g) and had an LED light mounted to it – the lights changed colour and switched on and off in time with the music.
All the drones had LED lights fitted to them and hovered and swirled above the stage as Ms Glynne performed the final song of her set
The spectacular indoor show demonstrated the use of 160 drones weighing 50 grams – each with an LED light mounted onto it, that changed colour and switched on and off with the music
The head of school at St Joseph’s, Angela Noronha, said: ‘As a five year sponsor of our computing initiative, BT has been integral in expanding the programme and it is now ingrained in 60 per cent of UK primary schools.
‘Our future will continue to rely more and more on digital skills and participating in this exciting event will inspire children, fuelling their imaginations as well as developing their critical digital technology skills.’
Jess Glynne added: ‘It was an honour to be invited to perform at the launch of Beyond Limits and to be part of an incredible Guinness World Record with BT.’
Her set included the popular tracks Hold My Hand, Don’t Be So Hard On Yourself and Thursday.
BT launched its ‘Beyond Limits’ programme at the event, which includes a commitment to provide digital skills training for 10million people.
Alex Tintore, the Technical Delivery Manager at drone specialists Verity used by BT for the show, said: ‘When BT approached us to work with them to achieve this Guinness World Record by flying 160 drones indoors, we weren’t fazed by the tight timeline.
‘Thanks to a system that’s proven itself in more than 180,000 autonomous flights since 2016, the setup and the performance were smooth. It was a rewarding experience to work on this project, and we are proud to have supported BT in achieving this milestone.’
WHAT IS ‘DRONE-DIVING?’
Aerones is also the company behind ‘drone-diving,’ a new extreme sport that involves lifting someone into the air by a 28-propeller drone and dropping them to be parachuted safely back to the earth.
Preparation for the jump lasted six months and during that time, the team increased the payload up to 440 pounds (200kg) and conducted a number of tests, including flights carrying Augstkalns over the river Daugava.
The super-powered drone measures 34 feet (3.2sqm), boasts 16 rotors and weighs 154 pounds (70 kilograms).
The incredible video of the ‘drone-dive’ shows the drone taking off from a body of water and head towards a communication tower, which stands 393 feet (120 meter) tall.
A daredevil demonstrator grabbed a long handle hanging from the drone, which took him off the platform and into the air.
Once the drone reached 1,082 feet (330 meters), he let go and fell to the earth for a about one second before releasing a parachute.
The same drone was used in January to debut ‘drone-boarding’ by towing snowboarders at high speed across a frozen Latvian lake.
A video shared by the firm showed a snowboarder test out the drone at an abandoned airbase.
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