Swiss Flight Services Purchases UltraCamX to Expand Contract Work
Graz, Austria — Vexcel Imaging GmbH, a Microsoft® company, has signed a purchase agreement with Swiss Flight Services located in Colombier, Switzerland, for the purchase of an UltraCamX (UCX) large format digital aerial camera system.
“We provide our data collection equipment, sensors and services to other aerial mapping companies, so we need to be cost effective and totally reliable,” said Samy Dadoucha, Accountable Manager of Swiss Flight Services. “The large collection capacity of the UltraCamX allows us to greatly expand our aerial services and maintain our competitive position in the market.”
Swiss Flight Services has primarily been flying with a Pictometry sensor and has participated in the collection of oblique imagery of European cities by BLOM. Since the founding of the company, Swiss Flight Services has collected about 42,000 km2 in 11 countries. The purchase of the UltraCamX allows the company to offer additional capabilities to more customers in the public and private sectors and better utilize their two aircraft and IMU-GPS.
“The UltraCamX is a perfect sensor for a company that collects a high volume of data like Swiss Flight Services,” said Alexander Wiechert, Business Director of Microsoft and Managing Director for Vexcel Imaging GmbH. “The technology of the UltraCam series has continuously been improved and the UCX has proven to be outstanding value for the price.”
About the UltraCamX
UltraCamX collects 216 megapixels per trigger to produce 14,430 across track and 9,420 along track pixels, with a sustained collection rate of three gigabits per second. The camera maintains forward overlap of 70% at 3 cm pixels and 80% overlap at 5 cm pixels feasible at normal flying speeds. Meanwhile, the UltraCamX system features a low-cost data flow that allows unlimited image collection in the air. Low-cost, exchangeable data storage devices store up to 4,700 images and can be swapped mid-flight for reduced ground turnover time.
About Vexcel Imaging, GmbH
Acquired by Microsoft Corporation in May 2006, Vexcel Imaging GmbH brings 20 years of photogrammetry expertise to Microsoft’s Bing Maps business unit and is at the heart of the burgeoning Microsoft Photogrammetry business. The company’s offerings include its series of UltraCam digital aerial mapping cameras and related software tools, such as the UltraMap workflow software and Office Processing Center software (OPC).
About Swiss Flight Services
Swiss Flight Services SA (SFS) is a private aerial survey and air operator company founded in 2006 and based at Colombier, Switzerland. SFS specializes in airborne spatial data acquisition of the earth surface throughout Europe and North Africa. Until now, SFS has primarily worked with Pictometry® technology, which provides full-color high-resolution vertical and oblique imagery. Their fleet of two aircraft with crew and sensors are available for hire. For more information, see www.sfsaviation.com.