Censys and Soaring Eagle Technologies Awarded Longest Distance BVLOS Waiver Ever

by Ian M. Crosby

Remote sensing solutions provider Censys Technologies and the United States’ leading commercial Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) service provider, Soaring Eagle Technologies, have been granted their third BVLOS waiver, enabling more efficient tech-enabled data acquisition. At a distance of 12 miles, the waiver covers the longest distance ever approved by the FAA.

Longest Distance BVLOS Waiver Yet: 3 Miles Down Range

Censys and Soaring Eagle Technologies have both worked closely alongside the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) over the course of the last three years, with the goal of building a dependable safety case utilizing Iris Automation’s advanced detect-and-avoid technology (DAA) system, Casia, and have completed thousands of flights.

The team at Soaring Eagle Technologies intends to leverage the waiver for the inspection of transmission power lines as pertaining to the FAA’s Part 107.31/33 waiver, allowing the remote pilot-in-command (RPIC) to fly three miles down range for a total of six unique miles of data.

“Soaring Eagle, Censys and Iris Automation are on a mission to help surveyors, engineers and asset managers—including those responsible for utilities, bridges and other critical infrastructure—bridge the gap in cost effectiveness in applications of unmanned aviation,” said Will Paden, President of Soaring Eagle. “The continued expansion of BVLOS operations means data acquisition with significantly lower cost and environmental impact.”

“Censys and Soaring Eagle Technologies are doing truly significant work to expand BVLOS operations,” said Gabrielle Wain, Iris Automation’s Vice President of Global Policy and Government Affairs. “Censys and their clients have documented a huge amount of flight data, coupled with the Casia DAA’s groundbreaking performance and reliability data, to prove their mission’s safety and capability to the FAA.”

“The difference between submitting a waiver three years ago and today is data,” explained John Lobdell, Censys CTO and waiver team lead. “When we submit a waiver now, we have proof from our flight teams, DAA suppliers and customers that proves BVLOS mission reliability.”

As per FAA regulations, drone pilots are required to maintain visual line of sight with any drone they are operating at all times, unless they have been granted a BVLOS waiver. The Censys Technologies team makes use of its industry expertise, DAA technology and data to assist clients in getting their aircraft in the sky quickly and efficiently for advanced operations.

Read more about Censys, Soaring Eagle Technologies, Iris and BVLOS flight:

Ian attended Dominican University of California, where he received a BA in English in 2019. With a lifelong passion for writing and storytelling and a keen interest in technology, he is now contributing to DroneLife as a staff writer.