CASE C29 · · 2024
Drone Solution (Sweden): 27-minute interior inspection of 67 m wind turbine blades
In 2024 Swedish provider Drone Solution demonstrated interior inspection of 67 m wind turbine blades with a caged drone. Three flights totalling 27 minutes recorded the blade interiors and halved the people needed in the confined space. The drone reached only just over 30 m into each blade, and the source is a manufacturer article.
| Owner | Wind turbine management company (not named) |
| Provider | Drone Solution |
| Location | Not stated (Nordic provider) |
| Aircraft | Flyability Elios 3 (interior); separate unnamed drone for exterior |
| Sensors | 4K camera, live LiDAR (FlyAware) |
Before
Two trained people crawl through the blades from the hub, or a rover is used with the blade horizontal; a full turbine takes 5–9 days.
With drones
With blades pitched to 10 and 2 o'clock, the caged drone flew over 30 m into each blade from the hub; the exterior was flown by a separate drone.
Outcomes
| Metric | Value | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| blade interior time | 27 minutes over 3 flights (about 30 minutes per blade) vs about 2–4 hours per blade by rover | Reported |
| turbine inspection | headline claim of 1 day instead of 5 | Reported |
| personnel in confined space | 1 instead of 2 | Reported |
Caveats & limits
- Manufacturer case study of a 2024 demonstration; client and site not named; rover baseline is stated inconsistently.
- The drone reached just over 30 m of a 67 m blade, so the outer half was not covered from inside.
- Blades must be pitched so a failing drone rolls back; personnel still need turbine-access training.
Sources
- Drone wind turbine blade inspections with the Elios 3Flyability Full text read
Sources checked: 2026-10-22