{"id":259273,"date":"2025-05-15T12:22:34","date_gmt":"2025-05-15T17:22:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mfe-is.com\/?p=259273"},"modified":"2025-05-20T07:08:54","modified_gmt":"2025-05-20T12:08:54","slug":"mfe-skydio-bvlos-waiver-article","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mfe-is.com\/en_ca\/mfe-skydio-bvlos-waiver-article\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Does MFE Need a BVLOS Waiver Anyway?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Why Does MFE Need a BVLOS Waiver Anyway?<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLearn why we wanted a broad BVLOS waiver and how Skydio helped us navigate the complexities of FAA regulations to secure it, allowing us to conduct fully remote demonstrations of the Skydio X10 and Dock for X10\u2014even from several states away.<\/em>\n\nDrone technology has advanced quickly over the last few years.\n\nToday, companies can fly a drone by a pilot located off-site, collect inspection data, and then return the drone to its charging station. Called remote drone operations, using drones for this kind of remote data-collection is the future of inspections in heavy industries.\n\nTen years ago, doing this would have seemed like science fiction.\n\nA drone you can fly from Houston, even if the drone is located in Colorado? That would have sounded very futuristic in 2015, back when drones could barely stay airborne for more than 20 minutes and the FAA hadn\u2019t even released its Part 107 rules yet.\n\n\"skydio-mfe-bvlos-waiver-2\"\n\nBut now it\u2019s possible. The Skydio X10 and Dock are a solution for fully remote drone operations, enabling continuous monitoring and remote data gathering\u2014without on-site personnel needed for flying the drone.\n\nSkydio\u2019s advanced autonomy is a key enabler here: the X10 can intelligently navigate complex environments, avoid obstacles, and execute inspection missions with minimal human intervention, making remote operations both safer and more reliable.\n\nThe problem?\n\nYou can\u2019t just buy the drone and the dock and get started. First, you need to get approval from the FAA to fly Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS). That\u2019s because all remote drone operations are BVLOS by definition, since the pilot is not physically present to keep the drone in their visual line of sight.\n\nThe good news is that Skydio has a team devoted to helping companies navigate regulatory complexity. That’s why we partnered with Skydio to secure a BVLOS waiver that allows us to ship a Skydio Dock and X10 to a client’s location and fly the drone remotely from our Houston office, providing a truly remote, real-world demonstration.\n\nKeep reading to learn more about why we got the waiver, what we plan to do with it, and the support we got from Skydio to make this possible.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Why Does MFE Need a BVLOS Waiver?<\/h2>

Getting a BVLOS waiver is a long, expensive process.<\/p>

Going through that process makes sense if you offer inspection services, or if you own a company that does inspections.<\/p>

But we don\u2019t do either of those things\u2014what we do is provide end users and service providers with inspection solutions. So why did we need a waiver?<\/p>

Because our clients need to see remote operations in action to fully grasp their potential.<\/p>

With the waiver, we can ship the Dock and an X10 to a client\u2019s location and fly it remotely, using the X10 to collect actionable data the client can actually use. Doing live remote demos like this will let us show how the technology works in the field, showcasing the power of remote drone ops.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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How Companies Use Remote Drone Operations<\/h2>

Wondering how companies are actually leveraging remote drone operations?<\/p>

In industries like Oil and Gas, drone-in-a-box solutions are increasingly being used to inspect pipelines and offshore rigs in remote locations. And in Power Generation, they\u2019re being used to inspect transmission lines, wind turbines, and substations.<\/p>

Much of this is possible thanks to the autonomous capabilities built into modern drones. Features like automated flight paths, obstacle avoidance, and intelligent data capture allow operators to trust that inspections will be carried out accurately and efficiently, even when managed from afar.<\/p>

Here are some of the most common ways drones and docks like the X10 and its Dock are being used today:<\/p>