Foremost UAS range receives BLOS approval from Transport Canada

By Jamie Rieger
The Foremost UAS range can start moving forward with beyond-line-of-sight testing of unmanned air systems after receiving the final required approval from Transport Canada.
Unmanned Systems Canada made the announcement on Nov. 3. that the Honourable Marc Garneau, Minister of Transport, announced that the “Foremost UAS Range has received final Transport Canada authorization necessary to begin operations as Canada’s first permanent restricted airspace for Unmanned Air Systems (UAS, drone). The site will be used for UAS research and development, and test and evaluation for civil and commercial applications. With 700 square nautical miles of restricted airspace up to 18,000 feet above sea level, the Foremost UAS Range is ideally suited for Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV) flight operations that will enable the next generation of systems to address increasingly beneficial aspects of oil and gas, agriculture, forestry, and environmental applications,” read the press release.
The announcement came at a UAS conference in Edmonton that was attended by mayor, Ken Kultgen and representation from the Foremost UAS range.
“We signed the paper in Edmonton at the UAS conference with 300 delegates there from all over the world. It was really great timing that we were there,” said Kultgen.
“We had lots of companies talking to us at the conference that Transport Canada is telling them they need to get their aircraft tested for beyond-line-of-sight. They are being told that if they want to fly BLOS, they need to go to Foremost for test flights,” said Kultgen.
While at the conference, the Foremost UAS range received an award for dedication and perseverance, an award they shared with a company from Quebec.

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