The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is seeking public comment on requests by four companies to conduct beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) drone operations at or below 400 feet. These companies are Zipline, UPS Flight Forward, Phoenix Air Unmanned, and uAvionix.
As the FAA reviews the recommendations of the BVLOS Operations Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC), the agency is mulling how it can allow for expanded drone operations in certain environments where safety is not adversely affected. Essentially, the FAA is looking for additional technical input on key concepts and potential approaches for use in future exemptions and waivers given to drone companies.
Drone delivery giant Zipline, for instance, wants a revision to its Exemption No. 19111B, so it can use “Detect and Avoid” systems to deconflict with other aircraft during BVLOS operations, in lieu of using visual observers.
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On the other hand, UPS Flight Forward seeks an FAA nod to incorporate a remote operations center that would allow a remote pilot in command (RPIC) to conduct flights in a different location using the FAA-certified Matternet M2 drone and a ground-based surveillance system along with a suite of situational awareness tools that would replace the use of visual observers.
Phoenix Air Unmanned, meanwhile, seeks relief to operate the SwissDrones SVO 50 V2 for linear infrastructure operations, including aerial work, aerial photography, survey, and powerline and pipeline patrol and inspection. These operations, the company says, include BVLOS flights over certain roads and transient operations over people within the right of way (ROW).
And finally, drone avionics tech specialist uAvionix is asking the FAA for an exemption to permit BVLOS flights for the purpose of research and development using the Rapace eVTOL aircraft.
The FAA says it will open a 20-day public comment period on May 25, 2023. The agency anticipates making a decision this summer, stressing that the data collected from these operations will inform the FAA’s ongoing policy and rulemaking activities. You may go to www.regulations.gov and follow the online instructions for sending your comments electronically.
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