Unanticipated Development: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Unveils its Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) Regulation

Unanticipated Development: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Unveils its Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) Regulation

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has published a draft rule for Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) drone operations, opening a 60-day public comment period that will end on October 6, 2025. This move, announced by the U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy, is a significant step towards expanding the use of drones in various industries such as package delivery, agriculture, aerial surveying, and newsgathering.

The rule aims to replace the slow, case-by-case waiver system with a standardized Part 108 operator approval process. It also requires drones to securely identify and avoid other aircraft and obstacles, use Remote ID, and adhere to other communication standards.

Interested individuals or organizations are encouraged to review the proposed rule in the Federal Register and submit their comments electronically to the FAA by October 6, 2025. Comments can typically be submitted via the regulations.gov website under the specific docket for the BVLOS rule or by email to the FAA contact provided in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) notice.

Under the new rule, commercial drone operators, not individual pilots, can obtain either operator permits or operator certificates for BVLOS operations. An operator is considered a company, not an individual drone pilot. The rule also embeds the 400-foot altitude limit for drone flights within a consistent, nationwide regulatory framework.

The BVLOS rule heavily relies on autonomous detect-and-avoid technology to replace human observers. It also includes provisions for integrated traffic management and security oversight. The rule's goal is to let drone operators fly beyond the pilot's line of sight without needing special permissions for each mission.

The FAA aims to finalize the rule after considering submitted comments, targeting early 2026 for completion. This rule is a significant step forward in the integration of drones into the national airspace system, making it easier for businesses and organisations to use drones for various operations.

[1] Federal Register publication date: August 7, 2025 [2] Comment deadline: October 6, 2025 [3] NPRM publication date: August 7, 2025 [4] Targeted completion date: Early 2026 [5] Submission methods: regulations.gov website or email to FAA contact provided in the NPRM notice

1. The FAA's draft rule for BVLOS drone operations, published on August 7, 2025, aims to replace the current case-by-case waiver system with a standardized Part 108 operator approval process.
2. Interested individuals or organizations are encouraged to review the proposed rule, published in the Federal Register, and submit their comments electronically to the FAA by October 6, 2025, either through the regulations.gov website or by email to the FAA contact provided in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) notice.
3. The rule requires drones to securely identify and avoid other aircraft and obstacles, use Remote ID, and adhere to other communication standards.
4. Under the new rule, commercial drone operators, not individual pilots, can obtain either operator permits or operator certificates for BVLOS operations, with an operator being considered a company, not an individual drone pilot.
5. The BVLOS rule heavily relies on autonomous detect-and-avoid technology to replace human observers, and includes provisions for integrated traffic management and security oversight.
6. The FAA aims to finalize the rule after considering submitted comments, targeting early 2026 for completion, which is a significant step forward in the integration of drones into the national airspace system, making it easier for businesses and organizations to use drones for various operations. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5] and [4]

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