Tethered Drone Will Be Watching The Starting Line At The Race

A tethered drone will be part of the security plan at this year's Boston Marathon, according to a company news release.

Massachusetts-based CyPhy Works has announced that its tethered drone, PARC, will be part of the safety and security measures used by the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) at the 2017 Boston Marathon.

PARC is an acronym that stands for Persistent Aerial Reconnaissance and Communications. That means that like many of the runners, this drone can fly for a very long time.  "Think multi-day flights, not the 20-minute hops of the drone you bought last December.  This means that for the first time ever, the security team can have access to a real-time HD video stream at their command center operations for the duration of the event," the company said.

It is not the first time the PARC drone has been used for marathon security.  In Feb. 2016, the Tokyo Police asked for CyPhy Works' help to ensure all runners safely reached the finish line at The Tokyo Marathon. "We’re now being asked to help protect the starting line in our home state, and we’re proud to watch our marathon drone as it helps to ensure that the oldest annual marathon in the world stays on top," the company said.

The Boston Marathon will be run April 17th.

(Image from CyPhy Works website)

FMI: www.cyphyworks.com