The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) recently launched phase two of the BEYOND program.
The program aims to help integrate drones and other emerging technologies into the national airspace system under established rules instead of waivers and also ensure American leadership in aviation innovation. Rules would provide clear, performance-based standards, moving the agency away from case-by-case approvals.
Phase one launched in October 2020 as a successor to the Integration Pilot Program. Participants logged more than 70,000 flights, including more than 48,000 beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) operations. Real-world operational and safety data was used to inform the FAA’s forthcoming BVLOS rule.
Phase two will select up to eight additional state, local, tribal and territorial entities to serve as lead participants. Lead participants will help the FAA address any remaining challenges to safely scaling routine drone operations.
“As drone technology continues to advance, the FAA is focused on building a regulatory framework that is safe, scalable and grounded in real-world data,” FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said. “Phase two of BEYOND will expand the partnerships and operations needed to address remaining challenges in beyond visual line of sight operations, public safety missions, on-airport operations and other complex airspace environments.”
Details on the application process are available at Sam.gov.