Speed, Performance Improved Over DRL Racer2

The Drone Racing League has introduced its next generation Racer3 drone that will be used in the league's competitions beginning in June.

DRL founder and CEO Nick Horbaczewski said in an interview with ESPN, which will be televising the races, that the aircraft is "dramatically more powerful, faster and more agile that the Racer2."

The new drones can accelerate from a standing start to 80 miles per hour in less than a second, Horbaczewski said, which has allowed the league to create larger and more extreme courses.

Pilots have had access to the Racer3 since late last year. Horbaczewski said that the drone has 16 pounds of thrust, "so we could strap a 15-pound bowling ball to the bottom of this thing and fly it around."

According to the DRL website, the league partnered with Pulse to design a custom five-cell battery which provides 1,800-milliamps and powers 7,000kg of static thrust. This is all made possible by a combination of custom motors and LiPo engineered to spin a larger prop to maintain fast bell acceleration.

The current DRL season will wrap up this week in Fitchburg, MA. The top 12 of the DRL's 16 professional pilots will then advance to a playoff round in Munich.

(Image from DRL website)

FMI: https://thedroneracingleague.com/racer3/