American Robotics approval

AR is award authorization to operate automated drones meaning they do not require hands on piloting on the ground or direct observation while in flight which is the major difference in this approval . Previous approvals of this type under a 107 certificate or wavier required a "spotter " or visual observer positioned every 3 - 4 miles on the ground during the flight . So yes this is the first time there is a wavier of the requirement for the visual observer. Worth noting however they still need to have a human on each and every flight to run a safety check before takeoff and inspect the aircraft with remote tools . AR 107 wavier is for rural areas , non populated in Kansas , Massachusetts and Nevada on land owned by them or its customers.

Airobotics received their part 107 waiver in August 2016 and also March 2019 received approval also from the FAA to fly in Texas to inspect oil and gas infrastructure .There are also other companies flying now under waivers on pre approve flight paths and time . Under AR 107 wavier these flights will be still operated under predetermined flight programs be that path , time and heights so in this case planned routes and altitudes below 400 feet with a maximum takeoff weight 20 pounds. Again something Airobotics have been doing in Texas since April last year.

Who knows with AR mechanism to avoid collisions with other drones ,towers and birds and Els secure algorithm and connectivity with real time data transmission of any data packet, regardless of size and bandwidth requirement, simultaneously sending it to one or multiple recipients over all available links, while encrypting it in the air for superior security. There might be a possible relationship as both parties technology go hand in hand .

I was not able to find out if AR tech sends live data or is transmitted when the drone docks to be charged but have sent an email asking the question.

None the less more and more approvals in this space are a positive for the whole industry and Airobotics with "Halo" included are in the final stages of approval for a Type Certificate ..TC . The Holy grail where you can fly in any FAA approve airspace. This announcement for American Robotics has nothing to do with a FAA TC .

https://www.faa.gov/uas/advanced_operations/certification/