Kea Aerospace completes BVLOS test flight in controlled airspace

Data collection by drone developer Kea Aerospace has completed its first beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) flight in controlled airspace in New Zealand.

Operating from the Tāwhaki National Aerospace Centre, the company’s R6 test uncrewed aircraft reached almost 8,000 feet, covering a track distance of 32 nautical miles (58 km). The flight was Kea Aerospace’s first time entering the second zone of the newly designated Special Use Airspace near Kaitorete and also transitioning within this area into controlled airspace.

The test flight follows Kea Aerospace’s June BVLOS mission where the R6 reached an altitude of 3,000 feet and covered a distance of 5 km over Kaitorete Spit.