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Bladeworx

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בליידוורקס
www.bladeworx.co.il

An aeronautics company specialized in UAV aerial photography. The company has a commercial license from the Israeli Civil Aviation Authority, the first of its kind in Israel, to operate unmanned miniature air vehicles (UAVs). It is also the first Israeli civil company authorized to use UAVs for surveillance and crowd control proposes.

In July 2014, the company was contacted by Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat, in order to assist in the efforts of the Israeli authorities to oppress a wave of protest in the Palestinian neighborhoods of occupied East Jerusalem. Soon after, a cooperation unfolded between Bladeworx, Israel Police and the Jerusalem Municipality, in the framework of which a unit of six 'Phantom' UAVs (DJI-made unmanned mini quadrotor helicopter) equipped with video day cameras and thermal imaging for nighttime was patrolling the route of the Jerusalem light rail for an entire month 24/7.

Bladeworx's UAV operators were deployed on the rooftop of a police station in the Palestinian neighborhood of Shuafat and in the streets of the nearby Beit Hanina under police protection, while the UAVs hovered over the light train's line. The UAVs transmitted compressed HD video and images to the headquarters of the municipality, the police and the light train. The company claims that "this is the first time anywhere a UAV system is being employed to patrol a train line."

During the summer of 2014, the company uploaded photos to social networks capturing its activity in East Jerusalem under the hashtag: "Bladeworx at the service of the state".