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....more
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...more
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has just released a 55-page report containing a series of recommendation for improving the FAA’s integration of drones into the National Airspace System (NAS). In conducting this...more
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...more
Routine Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations for unmanned aircraft took a major step forward yesterday, with the release of the long-awaited report from the Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC) tasked with making...more
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...more
While technology has progressed quickly, Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) policymaking has lagged behind. Commercial drones efficiently and safely inspect our nation’s infrastructure, deliver medical and other supplies, and...more
On January 14, the Federal Aviation Administration approved the first fully automated commercial drone flights by granting Massachusetts-based American Robotics, Inc. permission to operate drones without hands-on piloting and...more
The United States Postal Service (USPS) recently issued a Request for Information (RFI) from industry experts on unmanned aircraft systems used for letter or parcel delivery. USPS says that it is merely investigating the...more
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and industry partners in the unmanned aerial systems (UAS or drone) traffic management system pilot successfully demonstrated...more
Last week, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) gave the go-ahead for the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) to conduct beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) drone operations. The KDOT team, which includes Kansas...more
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...more
Even with the rapid growth of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) or drones, one of the FAA’s primary rules is that the pilot must maintain visual line of sight with the unmanned aircraft at all times. When waivers were granted...more
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...more
State Farm just announced that it has received “the first national waiver to any company in the U.S. by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)” for the operation of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) or drones beyond visual...more
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announced last week that it has discovered unauthorized users have attempted to hack into its online trademark system to attempt to make unauthorized changes to active trademark...more
Avitas Systems, a General Electric (GE) venture, received Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approval to fly a large unmanned aerial system (UAS or drone) beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) of the operator in Loving...more
At Grand Sky, a commercial unmanned aerial system (UAS or drone) focused research and development park in North Dakota, started flying large UAS beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS)....more
Last week, Xcel Energy (Xcel), Colorado’s largest utility company, received a waiver from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for drone operations beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS)....more
Praxis Aerospace Concepts International (PACI) announced this week that it has been granted a Part 107 waiver under the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) regulations to fly drones...more
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...more