The Centre is providing conditional exemption for experimental drone flights for vaccine delivery as part of its endeavour to enhance the scope of drone usage in the country and assist the fight against Covid-19 pandemic, said an official statement.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation and Directorate General of Civil Aviation have granted conditional exemption to the Government of Telangana for conducting experimental Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) drone flights for delivery of vaccines. Exemption has been granted from Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) Rules, 2021.
This exemption shall be subject to complete adherence to the conditions and the directions or exemptions issued by the ministry.
This exemption shall be valid for a period of one year from the date of approval of the SOP or until further orders, whichever is earlier, said the statement from the Civil Aviation Ministry.
Last month, the Government of Telangana was granted conditional exemption for conducting experimental delivery of Covid-19 vaccines within Visual Line of Sight (VLOS) Range using drones.
To accelerate the drone deployment process to formulate application-based models, the grant has been extended to Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS).
The trials may commence by end of May 2021.