Vantis Expands Partnership and Secures FAA Waiver for 5,000 Square Mile BVLOS Operations
Frontier Precision Secures FAA Waiver for BVLOS Operations
A new FAA waiver allows Frontier Precision to operate any NDAA-compliant drone weighing under 55 pounds across more than 5,000 square miles of airspace managed by Vantis, North Dakota’s beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) system. This marks Frontier Precision as the second champion operator to join Vantis.
The waiver is aircraft-agnostic, enabling the use of various drone systems within the established Vantis service volumes, which collectively cover a significant area of managed airspace. This approach moves beyond traditional waivers that are limited to specific platforms.
Vantis BVLOS Waiver Reduces Approval Timelines
Hunter Hegel, Operations Manager at Northern Plains UAS Test Site, emphasized the significance of the waiver, stating, “This waiver is another strong example of what Vantis was built to do, to help operators move beyond limited visual line of sight operations and into scalable, real-world BVLOS missions.” He noted that Vantis combines advanced surveillance, real-time situational awareness, and regulatory expertise to facilitate faster and safer unmanned operations.
Hegel further highlighted the progress made with champion operators, mentioning that the use of Vantis infrastructure has reduced approval timelines from years to just 23 business days.
Expanding Vantis BVLOS for Industry Applications
Collin Kemmesat, Regional Sales Manager at Frontier Precision, discussed the importance of efficiency in unlocking the potential of big data across various sectors, including oil and gas, utilities, and agriculture. He stated, “This waiver allows us to push the boundaries of what’s possible, providing our customers with real-world data and more efficient inspection and system capabilities.”
Future initiatives will include the onboarding of Group 3 VTOL aircraft weighing up to 1,320 pounds for long-endurance missions and the advancement of autonomous swarm operations for agricultural applications. A Vantis Fly Day event is scheduled for May 28 at Gorman Field, featuring live BVLOS demonstrations, NDAA-compliant aircraft, sensors, and Frontier Precision’s mobile command trailer.