The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma Beyond Program has received approval from the FAA for Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations using equipment from uAvionix.
This marks the second BVLOS waiver by the FAA for the combination of uAvionix SkyLine software and SkyLink hardware. The first was in North Dakota.
In Oklahoma, the approval means drone pilots operating on the Choctaw Nation’s Emerging Aviation Technology Center UAS Test Range need only an electronic observer while meeting requirements to remain clear of crewed aircraft while the drone is beyond the pilot’s visual range of sight.
The approved waiver signifies that uAvionix and the Choctaw Nation have demonstrated to the FAA that the aircraft detect and avoid systems, procedures, and the control network meet the safety threshold for operations in the national airspace system, according to uAvionix officials.
Components of the system include the uAvionix SkyLine C2 management platform and pingStation3 dual-mode ADS-B receivers. The SkyLine C2 management platform is integrated with the DeTect Harrier radar as part of the surveillance layer and used to control several uncrewed aircraft through the uAvionix muLTElink and SkyLink series of C2 radios.
“Successfully demonstrating safe and controlled Beyond Visual Line of Sight operations is critical to meet the growing demand for the use of drones in everything from package delivery to search and rescue operations,” said Marcus Hartman, aviation operations manager for the Choctaw Nation.
“This approval is a major milestone for the Choctaw Nation’s Emerging Aviation Technology Center,” added James Grimsley, executive director of advanced technology initiatives for the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. “With this approval we achieved a major milestone in the FAA Beyond program by enabling BVLOS test flights for our partners and customers by leveraging the permanently deployed hardware and software from uAvionix.”