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Airbus Granted Waiver For Urban BVLOS Drone Flights
Kate O'ConnorAugust 22, 20190

Airbus Aerial has received a waiver from the FAA to conduct urban
unmanned aircraft systems (UAS/drone) flight operations beyond visual
line of sight (BVLOS) and without requiring a visual observer in Grand
Forks, North Dakota. The flights will be conducted under the North
Dakota Department of Transportation’s UAS Integration Pilot Program
(IPP), an FAA-sponsored public-private partnership whose stated goal
is to “help define the regulatory framework for drone operations and
their integration into the national airspace system.”

According to Airbus, the North Dakota team is working specifically on
safe ways to use UAS technology while conducting flights over people,
night flights and BVLOS operations without the need for visual
observers. “Waivers to this magnitude are not achieved unless you have
an innovative team of partners that are extremely dedicated, working
for the advancement of UAS integration initiatives while keeping
safety at the forefront,” said North Dakota Department of
Transportation (NDDOT) IPP UAS program administrator Russ Buchholz.

Airbus Aerial is a division of Airbus that focuses on aerial data
collection, analysis and distribution. In North Dakota, the company
will be working with Xcel Energy, using a fixed-wing drone to fly
BVLOS over Xcel’s residential distribution network. Airbus says the
operations are “critical in equipping the utility industry to
appropriately assess and utilize UAS.”