BRISTOL, United Kingdom — (BUSINESS WIRE) — July 1, 2020 — Atlas, a global leader in autonomous unmanned aerial systems (UAS) operating in the U.S., U.K. and EU, announced it has been chosen as a UAS provider for the Norwegian People’s Aid (NPAID) Search and Rescue (SAR) Mid-Troms unit, due to its unique capabilities in extreme conditions.

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AtlasPRO operation in NPAID’s Arctic SAR Training (Photo: Business Wire)

The NPAID Mid-Troms unit is a volunteer SAR unit operating in northern Norway specializing in first response and lifesaving operations in extreme Arctic environments. The unit covers a region of Arctic Norway famous for its sparsely populated mountain ranges and Fjords. The NPAID team ensures the safety of tourists in the region, especially as adventure tourism continues to increase.

As a highly sophisticated and professional task force, NPAID Mid-Troms is an early adopter of new technologies and its project team is constantly seeking tools aimed at optimizing SAR operations. The team selected Atlas as its UAS provider and uses the AtlasPRO in its missions. Due to its unsurpassed capabilities and reliability, the AtlasPRO is transforming SAR operations in extreme Arctic conditions.

Atlas redefines “man-unmanned teaming” with its robust UAS solutions, designed to be a force multiplier for first responders on the ground. The solutions enable consistent lifesaving operations in extreme conditions, including Arctic weather scenarios. The AtlasPRO drone can operate autonomously, enabling the operator to focus solely on search and rescue, and is being used by different SAR forces in NATO countries.

“Working on lifesaving operations in extreme environments means that every minute counts. Our volunteers require a unique set of skills, but also the best working tools that can deliver fast and accurate results through every mission and challenge, especially during cold temperatures and the winter darkness period, at remote sites and off-grid no-connectivity locations,” said Kenneth Brattli Molund, unit leader and RPAS project SAR technology integration manager at NPAID in Mid-Troms. “We have chosen the AtlasPRO for its ability to withstand and deliver unique sensor setups and operate in harsh conditions, and also due to Atlas’ capabilities as a technology design-house, that allow us to dream bigger and co-design better, faster and safer SAR solutions.”

Atlas’ award-winning MESH communication capabilities allow users to operate several UAVs in tandem from one control station, enabling hours of consistent surveillance over a point of interest in a BVLOS scenario. This provides comprehensive situational awareness for team members on the ground using multi-stream capabilities to numerous smart devices. These capabilities result in greater cost-effectiveness for defense and SAR units across the globe.

“We are proud that our technology is changing SAR paradigms and assisting NPAID Mid-Troms’ professional volunteers in these lifesaving operations,” said Ivan Tolchinsky, founder and CEO at Atlas. “By enabling a robust drone that provides consistent data in every terrain or weather condition, the AtlasPRO fulfills our company vision to save lives.”

Later this year, Atlas and NPAID Mid-Troms are scheduled to reveal a new product that will change the paradigm of avalanche SAR operations and will enable UAS capabilities that have never been used before.

Atlas is a world-leading aerospace company that is redefining the unmanned industry with smart, connected and cost-effective unmanned aerial systems. Atlas robust drones can be operated autonomously enabling the operator to focus on mission objectives. Atlas’ proprietary and award-winning multi-point communication technology, AtlasMESH, is enhanced with artificial intelligence, enabling operation of drone fleets that result in smart mission distribution, flight optimization and data understanding. The company designs and manufactures its product in the E.U. and provides its technology to leading NATO governments, first responders, and multibillion-dollar corporations in the fields of security and industry. https://www.atlasdynamics.eu/

NAS - Norse Asset Solutions is the in-country Atlas system representative and project solution partner towards NPAID. NAS offers and supplies Atlas systems for Norway and Scandinavia. www.NorseAssetSolutions.com

NPAID (Norsk Folkehjelp) division Mid-Troms is a local and geographical entity part of an international large organisation working on supporting and solving demanding missions that are in challenging environments. NPAID have the following main work scopes and tasks; Mine Action and Disarmament, Development Cooperation, First Aid and Rescue Service and Refugees and integration. NPAID Mid-Troms are consisting of Arctic SAR specialists performed by qualified volunteers with unique competency and highest level of commitment easily allowing them to be compared to units and capacity consisting of full-time and professional SAR (Search and Rescue) units. https://www.npaid.org/ - https://folkehjelp.no/lokallag/midt-troms

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200701005376/en/

John Pascarella, jpascarella@aboutsage.com (on behalf of Atlas)