Drone delivery startup Flytrex and its partner Causey Aviation Unmanned (CAU) announced today they have been granted an exemption by the FAA to operate drones ‘Beyond Visual Line of Sight’ (BVLOS) without the requirement of visual observers.
The newly acquired authorization enables both companies to scale their delivery services across American suburbs as the waver permits their drones to fly longer distances beyond a pilot’s visual line of site.
According to Flytrex, BVLOS approval is one of the most advanced regulatory approvals to date and paves the way for the scaling of CAU and Flytrex’s delivery operations, contingent upon meeting certain conditions and limitations.
The news comes on the heels of the company’s unveiling of its autonomous pickup feature, which enables Flytrex to automate food delivery via drone fully. With the new capability, a Flytrex drone flies to the restaurant, picks up the food for delivery, and takes the order to the customer’s home.
Flytrex drones, which can carry up to 5.5 pounds of food, fly up to speeds of 32 miles per hour. And while the drones can handle each mission entirely autonomously, the company says that they still have FAA-certified drone operators overseinge each mission.
The BVLOS approval comes after CAU, the operator for Flytrex, received Part 135 certification in January, essentially giving the the company the official go ahead to deliver food, beverages, and other goods across the country.
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