UK drone data provider SenSat has completed a 6.5-nm/12-km beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) flight in complex airspace as part of that government’s Pathfinder program. The government will use Pathfinder test data and results to formulate drone policy in the coming years.

SenSat says that BVLOS operations will allow it to cut the price of drone data by up to 90 percent because fewer flights can achieve greater results. By way of example, it notes that drone mapping of the High Speed 2 rail line between London and Birmingham would have required 470 line-of-sight drone flights but can be accomplished with only seven of its BVLOS flights using structure from motion (SfM) photogrammetry.

The new technique uses survey-grade GPS to digitally recreate ground features. This is blended with artificial intelligence to convert real-time complex data into decision points. Last year, SenSat flew more than 1,620 nm/9,000 km over live highways in the UK, supported more than $4.68 billion worth of infrastructure projects, and is the UK’s largest drone data provider. The company estimates the “drone economy” will create 628,000 new jobs and create $56 billion worth of new economic activity in the UK by 2030.