Aerial Monitoring Solutions and Shearwater Redefine How Villages Are Protected Across Africa – When Minutes Matter

AI-powered flight planning and dynamic risk mitigation will strengthen awareness and enable earlier warning—advancing continuous surveillance and safer communities across Africa.

JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA – September 2, 2025 – Aerial Monitoring Solutions (AMS), one of South Africa’s leading UAV manufacturers, today announced a strategic collaboration with Montreal-based Shearwater Aerospace to strengthen village and border protection across Africa. The effort targets a central challenge of long‑range BVLOS security missions: overburdened pilots who must plan, replan, monitor systems and weather, coordinate with ground teams, and stay alert for hours at a time in fast‑changing conditions. By easing this workload and standardizing best practices, the partnership aims to enable longer, more frequent patrols and a steadier aerial presence.

AMS setting up UAV for aerial launch

In parts of West Africa, for example, armed groups cross borders on motorbikes—often in the hundreds, sometimes up to 400. They raid remote towns for people, livestock, and equipment, and in some attacks, people are killed. In this context, even 15–20 minutes of earlier warning can enable evacuations and a faster security response.

AMS works with and supplies UAVS to some of Africa’s most experienced security drone programs. Teams patrol vast river corridors, marshlands, deserts, and mountain passes to protect villages and borders, while also helping safeguard pipelines and power lines. As part of their offering to their customers, AMS trains and equips local security partners to fly these patrols themselves—building local capacity and a sustainable, round‑the‑clock watch. Operating in some of the world’s toughest conditions—fast‑changing storms, extreme heat and dust, and limited power or signal—AMS helps their customers keep a steady watch and helps local partners act sooner.

Together, AMS and Shearwater are reducing operator workload by automating the most time-consuming tasks pilots handle today—so crews can focus on protecting people on the ground. Powered by Shearwater’s patented Smart Flight™ autonomy platform, slow manual planning before takeoff is replaced by auto-generated routes in seconds. The system considers micro-weather and terrain to produce optimized, energy-efficient paths, prebuilds contingency plans and can vary patrol routes within the operating area to reduce predictability. It then verifies that live weather and energy are within aircraft performance and regulatory limits and issues a clear go/no-go.

Planning a Mission in South Africa with Smart Flight Planning

In flight, Smart Flight™ continuously monitors evolving weather and energy use, updates reserves and contingency plans, and surfaces simple options—continue, reroute, or return to base when conditions become too risky. From any point, it proposes safe, terrain- and weather-aware paths home or to alternates, avoiding risky straight-line returns through mountainous terrain.

“With Smart Flight, operators can focus entirely on the mission objective,” said Adam Rosman, managing director of Aerial Monitoring Solutions. “Contingency planning and dynamic replanning demand insight into terrain, weather, and aircraft limits; automating those steps—including a clear go/no-go—takes a huge load off pilots and keeps missions within safe bounds.”

Looking ahead, these automated capabilities will make villages safer across Africa. Patrols launch in seconds, stay on scene longer, and adapt safely as weather shifts—giving communities precious minutes of early warning. Route variation reduces pattern exposure, making it harder for armed groups to anticipate coverage. In-flight prompts and terrain-aware return paths cut the risk of aborts or aircraft losses, keeping the watch steady so responders can mobilize and civilians can move to safety.

The partnership also creates a repeatable playbook for safe BVLOS patrols in complex, often off-grid environments. By proving steady performance across mountains, deserts, and long patrol corridors, AMS and Shearwater offer a practical model others can adopt to scale community protection and safeguard critical infrastructure across the region.

For media inquiries or partnership opportunities, contact: press@shearwater.ai

About Aerial Monitoring Solutions

Founded in 2013, Aerial Monitoring Solutions (AMS) is a South Africa-based company specializing in the design, manufacture and maintenance of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) for commercial and civil markets. With a diverse fleet of high-quality, locally built UAVs, AMS supports sectors ranging from infrastructure to environmental monitoring with a focus on safety, accuracy, and operational excellence. www.aerialmonitoringsolutions.co.za

About Shearwater Aerospace

Shearwater Aerospace develops state-of-the-art AI-powered software to enhance drone operations, enabling operators to fly farther, more often, and with full confidence. Its flagship platform, Smart Flight™, plans optimal BVLOS flights and provides dynamic risk mitigation by accounting for weather, terrain, flight restrictions, and aircraft performance. The system is trusted by leading partners including Lockheed Martin Canada. www.shearwater.ai