The digital age is all about innovation. One new technology complements another until we are living in a world that is only a few steps removed from what would have once been considered science fiction.


Consider the case of unmanned aerial systems (UASs), also known as drones. Originally used exclusively by the military to keep soldiers out of harm’s way, they are now being used for more mundane and less lethal purposes, such as delivering packages and checking on power lines.


In May, the Southern Co., a Georgia utility, boasted that it would be “one of the first U.S. utilities to receive Federal Aviation Administration [FAA] approval to pilot unmanned aerial systems.” The utility explained that it is permitted by the FAA to investigate the applicability of UASs for assessing weather-related damage to power lines and for routine inspections.


With that permission, the utility will explore the potential benefit of drones to reduce the duration of storm-related outages, perform power-line inspections more safely, lower operating and maintenance costs and reduce environmental impacts. The primary emphasis is on assessing and repairing storm damage. The company said that, with more than 27,000 miles of transmission lines across 120,000 square miles in the Southeast, the technology could provide the Southern Co. system a quicker and more detailed assessment of weather-affected areas and infrastructure.


“Families across the Southeast depend on us to quickly and safely get the lights back on after major storms,” said Kimberly S. Greene, Southern Co. executive vice president and chief operating officer.


The company will conduct initial UAS research operations at subsidiary Georgia Power’s Klondike Training Facility in ­Lithonia, Ga., and, following research operations, may deploy the technology across the Southern Co. system.