Beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS)

A Wingcopter drone recently flew a distance of 16 miles (26 kilometers), transporting blood samples nearly twice as fast as ground-based vehicles, to showcase how the use of drones could improve emergency medical care in rural areas significantly.

The state of Telangana in India is beginning trial runs for the delivery of COVID-19 vaccines, medicines, and other healthcare items using drones from today. For this “Medicine from the Sky” project, logistics company Blue Dart has teamed up with drone delivery startup Skye Air Mobility and UK-based Unified Traffic Management (UTM) technology platform Altitude Angel.

Chinese company EHang, a pioneer in passenger-grade drones and urban air mobility solutions, has announced that its flagship electric air taxi, EHang 216, and delivery drone, Falcon, have successfully completed Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) trial flights for airport transport and parcel delivery in Estonia.

Drone logistics company Swoop Aero and drone safety technology firm Iris Automation are joining forces to offer safety-focused beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) drone delivery solutions to clients across the globe.

Houston-based drone startup Paladin has spent the last three years living with first responders to build an autonomous system that runs itself, so that emergency personnel can focus on saving lives. Now, the company says it’s ready to unveil the system publicly and provide instant situational awareness to even more first responders across the United States.

US aviation giant Honeywell has launched a new technology cluster that, among other things, will permit drones to fly longer beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) missions and carry heavier payloads by using hydrogen fuel cells.

Israel’s High Lander, which makes fleet management and UTM solutions, has just hit a milestone. The company has received approval for Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) flights in overpopulated urban areas, including residential and commercial zones, in northern Israel.

Percepto, a company that produces an autonomous “drone-in-a-box” solution, has issued a news release announcing its selection as one of six vendors on the FAA’s new UAS Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) Aviation Rulemaking Committee, also known as ARC. The work of this committee will be important as the world heads inexorably toward an era of autonomous, safe, and routine BVLOS missions.

In the minds of many outsiders, North Dakota may be better known for its conservative sensibilities and hard-charging cowboy types. Yet it’s now drawing a lot of attention for its decidedly modern, progressive embrace of drones, as North Dakota tests the first state-wide drone network system in the US.

A leading Canadian drone services and manufacturing firm has received approval from Canadian regulator Transport Canada to commence with BVLOS flights in six locations across Canada. The future… is fast approaching.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has taken an additional step toward the day when beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) drone operation will be routine. After last week’s announcement it had created a new committee to propose BVLOS regulations, on Monday the FAA tapped safety avionics technology company Iris Automation to participate in that rule-making process.

The Federal Aviation Committee (FAA) is creating a new committee to work up rules to allow routine beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) drone operations. The development was announced at the virtual FAA Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) Symposium.

UK-based advanced air mobility (AAM) specialist Skyports has announced it’s adopting Kongsberg Geospatial airspace situational awareness technology to enhance its Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations.

Singapore’s national water agency, PUB, has figured out that it can save about 5,000 manhours every year by deploying drones to conduct monitoring activities at six water reservoirs spread across the nation.

A new agreement between NASA and aviation services company, The Longbow Group, is expected to result in the establishment of beyond visual line-of-sight (BVLOS) flight corridors for Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) drone flight tests in Hampton Roads, Virginia.

Canadian Unmanned Traffic Management and fleet management company AirMarket, in partnership with mobility and IT Company Telus, have carried out a successful live demonstration of a system designed to safely operate multiple drones for surveillance, infrastructure monitoring, and more.

Scrambling to turn back the surge of COVID-19 infections and deaths sweeping the nation, India has broadened testing of drones in delivering vaccines and other medicines to Beyond the Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) destinations.

Nobody can claim the august Royal Mail is resistant to change. Not only has the 506-year-old company already begun testing delivery by drones, but it now plans to extend that through Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) flights as well.

California-based Volansi continues its ascent as a global leader in autonomous drone deliveries with another in a series of important business development announcements.

AUVSI’s big XPONENTIAL conference is continuing for another day. We took in an expert panel discussing the challenges – and the promise – of Beyond Visual Line of Sight.

Britain’s Civil Aviation Authority will allow a West Sussex-based drone company to operate regular flights beyond the pilot’s line of sight. It’s to test the safety of the technology. And it could be the beginning of a logistical transformation, leading to delivering parcels by drone.