senseFly has become the first drone operator to be granted anytime Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) authorization in Switzerland. The country’s Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA) has granted senseFly permission to fly any of its eBee-branded mapping solutions beyond the visual sight of a drone’s operator, using observers, without the need to set-up a flight operation ‘Danger Area’ beforehand.

“This country-wide, anytime BVLOS authorisation is a first for Switzerland and we are delighted to be working closely with FOCA to pioneer this kind of flexible, extended use,” said Jean-Christophe Zufferey, senseFly’s CEO. “While this permission is valid only for senseFly, it opens the door for our Swiss eBee customers to apply for, and enjoy, similarly flexible flight conditions. This will, in turn, allow them to grow their businesses by taking on larger, more complex projects.”

BVLOS flight was granted under the conditions that the eBee drones are operated at a maximum flight height of 500 feet above ground level (or 1,000 feet over urban areas) and use visual observers to each monitor a section of airspace—with a radius of 2 kilometres—for other aircraft. They must also be able to communicate instantly with the drone’s operator in the case of any potential issues.

“At senseFly, we are committed to bringing solutions to market that facilitate the seamless and safe cohabitation of drones and manned aircraft,” Zufferey added. “This is why we launched our Safer Together initiative with Air Navigation Pro. It is also why we will be collaborating closely with JARUS on our BVLOS findings and experiences, in order for that group to help the EASA develop the most valuable BVLOS Standard Scenario for future European use.”

Globally, senseFly is not the first eBee operator to be granted approval for such extended use. Numerous senseFly customers are able to operate under similar conditions, such as ATEC-3D in England and France’s leading agricultural operator, AIRINOV.

In late 2016, senseFly’s eBee mapping drone was verified as ‘harmless’ by the Italian Civil Aviation Authority (ENAC), enabling Italian eBee owners to operate their aircraft much more flexibly, including flying over urban areas, without needing specific authorisation for each operation.