The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has been working toward one goal when it comes to drones: get more of them safely in the air. However, right now, the FAA is without a permanent leader or a stable funding package. The Senate Commerce Committee recently held a hearing to consider a nomination for FAA Administrator; hopefully
beyond visual line of sight
More BVLOS Drone Operations Approved by FAA
By Kathryn Rattigan on
Posted in Drones
Two more companies will conduct drone operations beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS). Recently, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approved UPS Flight Forward and uAvionix for this type of operation in national airspace. UPS Flight Forward plans to conduct BVLOS drone operations for small-package delivery using a ground-based surveillance system. UPS Flight Forward will conduct…
Soaring Eagle Technologies Obtains Nationwide BVLOS Drone Waiver from FAA
By Kathryn Rattigan on
Posted in Drones
This week, Soaring Eagle Technologies, a drone data collection company that provides services for critical infrastructure in the U.S., received one of the first beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) waivers from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to fly unmanned aerial systems (UAS or drones) for commercial inspection missions under operational guidelines as opposed to specific operations in a…
Final BVLOS ARC Report Issued with over 70 Recommendations for the FAA
By Kathryn Rattigan on
Posted in Drones
Last week, the Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) Aviation Rulemaking Committee’s (ARC) Final Report was released. The report has been much anticipated by the drone industry and its stakeholders. The report recommends a complete overhaul of existing Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations with entirely new regulations. The goal of that…
FAA Selects Iris Automation for BVLOS ARC
By Kathryn Rattigan on
Posted in Drones
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has selected Iris Automation to participate in the FAA’s Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC). Iris Automation is a safety avionics technology company with Detect-and-Avoid systems and other services that assist its customers in developing scalable BVLOS operations for commercial drones. The BVLOS ARC’s mission is…
Beyond-Visual-Line-of-Sight Drone Operations in Alaska
By Kathryn Rattigan on
Posted in Drones
A beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) flight of a drone traveled along the Trans-Alaska pipeline system (TAPS) this month, led by a team from the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) Center for Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration. Operators flew the drone along 3.87 miles of TAPS, using onboard and ground-based detection systems (instead of human observers) to detect and…
State Farm Receives First Drone Waiver for Flights Over People and BVLOS Operations
By Kathryn Rattigan on
Posted in Drones
State Farm has become the very first company in the United States to receive a waiver from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for drone operations over people and beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS). The waiver is valid until November 2022. Senior Vice President for P&C Claims, Robert Yi, said, “The waiver will provide our…
Record Breaking Drone Flight Shows Promise for More Commercial Success
By Kathryn Rattigan on
Posted in Drones
Taking off from the Blackpool airport in England, a drone owned by a private company called FlyLogix, set a British record last week after successfully completing a 50-mile offshore beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) round trip. On its trip, the Condor drone inspected an unmanned platform in Morecambe Bay operated by one a British utility company. While drone…
How Can You Mitigate Risks When Flying a Drone Beyond Visual Line of Sight?
By Kathryn Rattigan on
Posted in Drones
Precisionhawk, one of the leaders in the drone market, released a report this week outlining operational risks when flying drones beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS). Precisionhawk’s research comes from its participation in the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Pathfinder program, which was created to explore incremental expansion of drone operations in the national airspace. Precisionhawk’s…