In a significant development for commercial drone operators in Australia, RocketDNA was the first company to be assessed for the Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) self-assessment trial and has now received the approval for the Civil Aviation Safety Authority’s (CASA’s) trial.
This is a game-changing approval that significantly streamlines drone operations for enterprise customers.
To date, BVLOS operations have required each and every operational area to be assessed individually through a highly detailed and complex risk assessment process.
The result was significant time delays (should we also mention large monetary value for preparation, assessment and approval in here?) for each new site approval, extensive documentation for every location amendment and limited flexibility to respond to changing operational needs.
For large enterprises operating across multiple sites—particularly in mining, agriculture, or industrial sectors—this approach created serious bottlenecks, with regulatory clearance coming at the cost of expensive technology and business development.(what customer wants to wait 12-18 months for an approval right?)
CASA's new trial represents a fundamental shift in philosophy. Instead of approving each individual site, CASA is trialing qualified operators to self-assess sites themselves following the approved documented practices and procedures within clearly defined safety parameters.
Under this trial, Operations that previously took 12-18 months to approve can now commence within days.
After nearly three years of successful BVLOS operations in Australia, RocketDNA has more experience than most commercial drone operators; with highly established safety management systems and refined operational procedures.
While the traditional SORA route is still available for more complex operations, this new trial framework offers the potential of significant flexibility for established operations.
RocketDNA looks forward to working with CASA towards the success of this trial and to play a key role in the furthering of safe and practical BVLOS operations in Australia.
