A UK drone maker on the cost of BVLOS approvals
ADS Advance reported comments today from Jenna Copley, director at UK drone manufacturer UAVTEK, who told the publication that beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) approvals remain difficult to secure at scale.
Copley said: “BVLOS approvals remain slow, expensive and difficult to scale”. She added: “In some cases, it’s easier and more cost-effective to develop and demonstrate capability overseas than in the UK.”
ADS Advance reports that UAVTEK “has carried out significant operational activity in countries including Jordan and Ukraine, where Copley said the route to deployment can be more practical.”
The article gives one example: “a UAVTEK project to develop a drone capable of carrying and dropping a life preserver to someone in the water.” It says: “The company sought approval for the operation but encountered a regulatory roadblock, and the project was abandoned.”
Copley said: “Another operator carried out a similar mission without seeking permission and ultimately won the business.” She went on: “That creates a difficult environment for responsible operators. If companies that follow the process lose opportunities to those that do not, the industry risks drifting towards an ‘ask forgiveness rather than permission’ culture.”
The article does not name the other operator, and does not say when the project took place or which approval UAVTEK sought.
On the regulators’ side, ADS Advance writes: “Ofcom has proposed opening additional spectrum for drone control links, while the Civil Aviation Authority has published an Airspace Architecture Concept of Operations setting out how routine BVLOS flights could eventually operate alongside crewed aircraft.”
That was the only UK thread that met our bar today.