Mon, Dec 11, 2017
BVLOS Flights Will Take Place In March, 2018
Six representatives of government, business and knowledge institutions – including the Netherlands Aerospace Center (NLR) – signed an agreement at Groningen Airport Eelde last week to perform out-of-sight drone flights.
These ‘Beyond Visual Line Of Sight’ (BVLOS) flights are important to enable a variety of different societal and economic applications that necessitate drones covering a greater distance. The experiment is dedicated to delivering parcels of medicines to Schiermonnikoog, one of the West Frisian Islands. The flights will take place in March 2018 from the mainland town of Lauwersoog. The other participating parties are UMCG Ambulancezorg, ANWB Medical Air Assistance, Dronehub Groningen (comprising the Drenthe Provincial Government, Omnidrones and Leeuwarden University of Applied Sciences), Delft University of Technology and the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, the project initiator.
It must be possible to carry out BVLOS flights safely. To run a realistic scenario, the NLR drone will fly across closed airspace above the Wadden Sea where the drone may encounter other air traffic. This makes it important to keep a sufficient distance from other aircraft. The NLR flights will thus provide important input for new legislation. Moreover, the preparation of requirements that must apply to the drone, drone pilot and performance of the flight will yield valuable information about the process of obtaining exemption for such flights.
Participation in the project is in line with NLR’s policy to facilitate the safe integration of drones in civil airspace, also at regional level. Through its contribution to the BVLOS experiment, NLR is taking an important step in that direction.
(Image provided with NLR news release)
More News
Light Gun A handheld directional light signaling device which emits a brilliant narrow beam of white, green, or red light as selected by the tower controller. The color and type of>[...]
"The journey to this achievement started nearly a decade ago when a freshly commissioned Gentry, driven by a fascination with new technologies and a desire to contribute significan>[...]
Aero Linx: JAARS, Inc. For decades now, we’ve landed planes on narrow rivers and towering mountains. We’ve outfitted boats and vehicles to reach villages that rarely se>[...]
"Our driven and innovative team of military and civilian Airmen delivers combat power daily, ensuring our nation is ready today and tomorrow." Source: General Duke Richardson, AFMC>[...]
Aircraft Conflict Predicted conflict, within EDST of two aircraft, or between aircraft and airspace. A Red alert is used for conflicts when the predicted minimum separation is 5 na>[...]