New South Wales, Australia
#00065
Case study of
#00069 Real-time drone (UAV) aerial surveillance with lifeguard alerting
Implementer
Surf Life Saving NSW, with NSW DPIRD (SharkSmart)
Timeline
Since Dec 1, 2021
Location
Description
Surf Life Saving NSW has flown shark-surveillance drones at up to roughly 50 NSW beaches each summer since December 2021 under the NSW Shark Management Program, with trained pilots clearing the water when a dangerous shark is sighted. In December 2025–January 2026 the NSW Government added a 6.7 million AUD enhancement (following an earlier 2.5 million AUD boost), funding around 30 more drones, extended summer operations into late April, a Surfing NSW club drone roll-out, and 150 additional Community Shark Bite Kits.
Metrics
3Funding
Lessons learned
- Detection drops sharply in murky water and the program is grounded by wind, rain, and storms — clear-water surf beaches are the optimal deployment context.
- No bites have been recorded at monitored beaches while drones and SMART drumlines are actively deployed, but coverage is limited to patrolled hours and the area overflown — gaps in time and space remain a structural constraint.
- The same patrol flights provide secondary value by locating rip-current swimmers and missing persons, increasing cost-effectiveness of each sortie.
Documented Jun 26, 2026