Spright receives first-of-its-kind FAA BVLOS Waiver for drone operations

Spright, a turnkey drone solutions provider, has earned a nationwide, non-geo-specific Certificate of Waiver from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) drone operations, allowing its drones to travel up to four nautical miles for critical utility infrastructure surveys.

“Spright is proud to have earned the FAA's first non-geospecific BVLOS waiver for utility inspection, and we believe it is testament to our aviation-minded culture that puts safety at the center of everything we do,” said Joe Resnik, president of Spright. “Moving forward, Spright customers will have access to the most advanced and versatile inspection solutions in the industry, resulting in a more effective maintenance model that leads to measurable time and cost efficiencies.”

FAA BVLOS Waiver for Spright

The FAA BVLOS waiver is unique in the industry and enables electric utility companies to perform more frequent and demand-responsive inspections. This will help create a maintenance model that better predicts and helps to decrease the risk of outages and interruptions.

The certification is a testament to the company's aviation-minded culture that puts safety at the center of everything it does, according to Joe Resnik, president of Spright.

The BVLOS waiver is a critical capability for drones to fly further than what is visible to the human operator, depending on the landscape and terrain. Long-linear inspection and vegetation management activities are more efficient and effective with BVLOS operations.

Companies can expect a maintenance model that better predicts the likelihood of outages and interruptions.

Spright is leveraging its aviation foundation as the UAS division of Air Methods to operate at the highest level of safety and professionalism, ensuring full compliance with regulatory standards and requirements. As a result, the FAA recognizes that Spright has achieved all necessary benchmarks to perform BVLOS flights in a safe and compliant manner.

Spright's BVLOS services are available as part of a comprehensive UAS inspection solution or as a standalone service for utility companies looking to increase the long-range capabilities of their existing drone program. The company's drones can perform critical utility infrastructure surveys to maximize service efficiency for utility customers across the United States.

Spright is based in Gilbert, Arizona and is a division of Air Methods, the nation's leading air medical service, delivering lifesaving care to more than 100,000 people every year.