Industry stakeholders in India are calling for a clear beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) framework along with a comprehensive system to manage drone air traffic. Currently, companies can conduct BVLOS operations with specific government approval, but the Drone Federation of India (DFI) says this process can be slow and limits broader adoption.
DFI, which has over 550 members, has submitted initial suggestions regarding BVLOS safety to the Indian government, according to an article published in the Economic Times. The federation is said to be collecting data from companies that have conducted long-distance drone flights during research and development to establish benchmarks for safety, reliability and failure management in BVLOS operations, and says these findings will be shared with the government in the coming weeks.
There are currently 9,969 no-fly zones in India, which necessitate a centralised system to manage real-time drone flights, establish safe flight paths, and quickly issue flight permissions. The Ministry of Civil Aviation introduced the National Unmanned Aircraft System Traffic Management Policy Framework in 2021, but this is yet to be fully implemented.
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