Percepto’s Waiver Allows Customers to Fly BVLOS on Qualified Sites Across the Country, with Central Control

Percepto’s  Waiver: First of its Kind

by DRONELIFE Staff Writer Ian M. Crosby

Leading autonomous inspection and monitoring solution provider Percepto announced that it has been granted a nationwide Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) waiver by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

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This first-of-its-kind approval will enable US-based Percepto customers to remotely operate drones, provided that their sites meet all of the waiver’s criteria. Percepto’s automated drone-in-a-box solution detects infrastructure problems, allowing for faster response times and increased efficiency, and is regularly deployed by electric utilities, oil & gas, solar power stations and mining operations.

The new waiver will enable the Percepto system to be remotely operated at qualifying sites across the country, granting a greater degree of safety, effectiveness and ease of use, while foregoing the need to wait for site specific BVLOS approvals. Percepto customers will be able to receive actionable insights immediately via Percepto’s drone-in-a-box for inspection and monitoring. In addition, Percepto grants the ability to centrally control drone-in-a-box fleets at multiple sites.

“We are very excited by the possibilities this national BVLOS waiver presents to our operations partners. This change helps us extract more value from an already important operations system,” said Koch Ag and Energy Solutions LLC. Operations Enablement Leader Tim Shanfelt.  “Percepto’s national BVLOS waiver will enable expansion of our automated drone inspection and monitoring without the wait for site specific FAA approvals. The achievement further positions Percepto as the industry leader for monitoring critical infrastructure, and serves as a catalyst to making automated drone inspection and monitoring a part of mainstream industrial practices.”

“Obtaining this waiver marks a significant milestone in our longstanding vision to provide remote inspections and operations at industrial facilities, particularly at isolated locations, with much greater efficiency and safety,” said Ariel Avitan, Percepto Co-founder and CCO. “Percepto makes it easier than ever for governments and businesses across the U.S. to implement automated drone operations, and unleash the true potential of AI-powered inspections.”

“This groundbreaking approval enables Percepto to scale BVLOS operations at customer sites nationwide,” said Neta Gliksman, Percepto Policy & Government Affairs VP. “We are grateful for the FAA’s review and timely approval of our safety case, and we look forward to continuing to work with US regulators to bring the benefits of this amazing technology to the American people.”

Read more about Percepto:

• Florida Power and Light and Percepto: Dronifying Florida, from the Floor of Xponential 2022
• Percepto BVLOS Waiver First Under New European Drone Regulations
• Percepto Remote Drone Operations: Groundbreaking BVLOS Approval in Israel
• Autonomous Drone Inspections at US Refinery: Delek US Gets BVLOS Approval with Percepto AIM
• CASA Approves Percepto for BVLOS Flight on Australian Industrial Site, Enabling Full Autonomy

Ian attended Dominican University of California, where he received a BA in English in 2019. With a lifelong passion for writing and storytelling and a keen interest in technology, he is now contributing to DroneLife as a staff writer.