Case Study: West Beach Erosion Survey – Night Flight Operations with DJI M350 and L2 LiDAR
Client: Department for Environment and Water (DEW)
Location: West Beach, South Australia
Date: June 2025
Services: Night-time LiDAR Erosion Survey
Equipment: DJI M350 RTK + Zenmuse L2 LiDAR Sensor
Project Overview
In partnership with the Department for Environment and Water (DEW), Drone Hire Australia (DHA) was engaged to capture high-precision erosion survey data along Adelaide’s metropolitan coastline, focusing on West Beach. This critical project aimed to monitor ongoing coastal changes, providing accurate datasets to guide sand replenishment and coastal management strategies.
Operational Challenges
- Controlled Airspace: West Beach is located under Adelaide Airport’s controlled airspace. All operations required detailed coordination with CASA and Airservices Australia to ensure flight safety.
- Night Operations: To minimise public disruption and take advantage of stable atmospheric conditions, flights were conducted after dark. This required compliance with CASA night operation provisions under DHA’s ReOC and strict pilot competency checks.
- Coastal Environment: Operating over open sand and water environments meant accounting for wind shear, moisture, and temperature variations that could impact LiDAR accuracy.
Our Approach
- Regulatory Coordination:
DHA liaised directly with CASA and Airservices Australia to secure operational approvals, NOTAM notifications, and real-time ATC communication protocols for safe integration into the night-time airspace. - Specialised Equipment:
The DJI M350 RTK was paired with the Zenmuse L2 LiDAR, enabling high-density point cloud capture at centimetre-level accuracy. This configuration allowed efficient coverage of large coastal sections with minimal passes. - Precision Flight Planning:
- Mission planned in DJI Pilot 2 with overlapping LiDAR scan patterns for uniform ground coverage.
- Adjusted flight altitudes and speeds to account for coastal topography and to optimise point cloud density.
- Safety and Redundancy:
- Dual-pilot operation for EVLOS compliance.
- Portable lighting and high-visibility marking for launch/landing zones.
- Real-time kinematic (RTK) positioning to maintain accuracy throughout each flight.
Outcomes
- High-Resolution 3D Data: Delivered dense point clouds and accurate DEMs (Digital Elevation Models) for DEW, enabling precise erosion volume calculations.
- Operational Efficiency: Achieved full survey coverage in fewer flights than traditional daytime operations due to improved night-time LiDAR performance.
- Regulatory Compliance: Zero incidents, with all flights conducted under approved CASA night and controlled airspace provisions.
Impact for the Client
The survey data directly supports DEW’s coastal protection program, providing measurable insights for sand replenishment planning, infrastructure protection, and environmental management. The ability to operate safely at night in controlled airspace allowed DEW to avoid public beach disruption and maintain operational continuity during peak daylight beach usage.
