More Dallas-area Authorizations Anticipated

The FAA made a little aviation history in the U.S. when it announced the issuance of authorizations for multiple commercial drone delivery services to operate simultaneously in the same airspace without the typical requirement for visual observers beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS).

Drone flights currently require the pilot or trained visual observers (VOs) to maintain visual contact with the drone during flight. However, these advances in technology and procedures are key to enabling the routine performance of BVLOS drone flights.

The authorizations were granted to Zipline International and Wing Aviation, allowing them to carry out package deliveries using the Unmanned Aircraft System Traffic Management (UTM) technology. The FAA developed the UTM in response to a congressional mandate as part of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018. The system facilitates the interaction of companies with each other to share data and coordinate drone flight plans. This enables operators to organize and manage multiple BVLOS flights conducted in the shared airspace while the FAA provides rigorous safety oversight to the process. All flights are performed below 400 feet altitude and kept away from crewed aircraft.

The FAA anticipates flights utilizing UTM services to begin this month, with additional authorizations to be issued in the Dallas area in the coming months.

Meanwhile, the FAA is moving forward with its plan to release the Normalizing UAS BVLOS Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to permit drone operators to expand operations while maintaining as high a level of safety as in crewed aviation. The FAA is on track to release the NPRM this year.

FMI:  medium.com/faa/