Over the Hills and Far Away …

Dominion Energy, the multi-state power-utility headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, and Skydio, the first American drone manufacturer to exceed $1-billion in value, have jointly announced that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has granted Dominion Energy a waiver to fly Skydio drones beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) for purpose of inspecting power-generation facilities in seven states. 

Dominion obtained subject waiver in cahoots with Skydio’s regulatory team (read Lawyers) and Virginia Tech’s Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership (MAAP), a component of the FAA’s BEYOND program—a pay-to-play DOD program that allows state, local, and tribal governments, in collaboration with industry, to undertake more complex Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) operations in the National Airspace System. 

Skydio asserts its AI technology allows operators to safely pilot their drones in close proximity to structures—such as bus-stops and children’s hospitals—in a way that would be difficult or impossible for less technologically advanced drones—e.g., those of their competitors’.

The waiver authorizes Dominion Energy—one of the U.S.’s largest energy companies—to conduct BVLOS operations to inspect more than forty power facilities in Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia.

Dominion Energy’s earliest (2014) drone deployments focused primarily on identifying electrical transmission-line defects. The company has subsequently expanded its UAS program to include approximately fifty drones and operators. At power-generation facilities, Dominion Energy drones take volumetric measurements and assess construction progress, provide surveying and mapping services, and inspect infrastructure.

Dominion Energy will conduct the imminent BVLOS operations using Skydio’s X2 unmanned aerial system, which pairs a foldable airframe with Skydio Autonomy—an AI-driven software engine that Skydio claims allows its drones to see and understand their surroundings, plan a path through them, and avoid obstacles.

MAAP director Tombo Jones states: “Two major goals of the research we conduct as an FAA-designated test site are helping companies like Dominion develop practical ways to use drones to make their operations safer and more efficient, and working with drone companies like Skydio to find opportunities to leverage the real power of their technology to make new kinds of operations possible.”

Mister Jones adds: “This waiver achieves both of those things and is a real win for us in our efforts in the BEYOND program. We’re excited to see the difference it will make for Dominion and Skydio now, and what it lays the groundwork for in the future.”

FMI: www.maap.ictas.vt.edu