Chainsaw attached to drone and flown around in terrifying video footage

The chainsaw drone doesn’t seem to be the ultimate killing machine just yet — getting foiled by a tree and a set of balloons

Andrew Griffin
Monday 04 April 2016 12:44
Comments

Finnish filmmakers have attached a chainsaw to a drone and flown the assembled killing machine around.

The video happily describes itself as showing a “KILLER DRONE!”, and is the latest in a run of dangerous drones. Those have also included drones with guns attached, meaning that they can be flown and remotely fired.

Some of those more terrifying videos have led to calls for the flying drones to be banned. While they are largely used for carrying cameras at the moment, the videos also show how the same technology could be used to carry around potentially lethal weapons.

The new machine is based on the DJI S1000, which has eight blades sticking out of its side and is meant to be especially customisable. Its makers have used that customisation to add the drone on the machine’s bottom, allowing it to be swung around and used as a weapon.

The footage — some of which is taken from a camera mounted onto the killer drone’s body — shows it being used to destroy snowmen and chop down trees. But it also shows how homemade drone weapons can easily run into problems — it appears not to have the power to get the chainsaw through a tree trunk, and ends up destroyed by a set of balloons.

The drone’s Achilles heel is remarkably similar to the same tools that are being used to take down drones. Though the flying machines are agile and can often move out of the way of most ways of taking them down, some have proposed using large nets that can be shot at the machines and stop their rotors from spinning.

Register for free to continue reading

Registration is a free and easy way to support our truly independent journalism

By registering, you will also enjoy limited access to Premium articles, exclusive newsletters, commenting, and virtual events with our leading journalists

Please enter a valid email
Please enter a valid email
Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number
Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number
Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number
Please enter your first name
Special characters aren’t allowed
Please enter a name between 1 and 40 characters
Please enter your last name
Special characters aren’t allowed
Please enter a name between 1 and 40 characters
You must be over 18 years old to register
You must be over 18 years old to register
Opt-out-policy
You can opt-out at any time by signing in to your account to manage your preferences. Each email has a link to unsubscribe.

By clicking ‘Create my account’ you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use, Cookie policy and Privacy notice.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy policy and Terms of service apply.

Already have an account? sign in

By clicking ‘Register’ you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use, Cookie policy and Privacy notice.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy policy and Terms of service apply.

Register for free to continue reading

Registration is a free and easy way to support our truly independent journalism

By registering, you will also enjoy limited access to Premium articles, exclusive newsletters, commenting, and virtual events with our leading journalists

Already have an account? sign in

By clicking ‘Register’ you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use, Cookie policy and Privacy notice.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy policy and Terms of service apply.

Join our new commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in