Civil Aviation Authority approvals that go beyond the standard. Closer to people and property. Longer than line of sight. Trained for urban environments where other operators can't legally fly.
Our enhanced CAA approval is a bespoke set of operating permissions. It documents our procedures, training, equipment, risk management, and safety controls in detail, and grants permissions in exchange. Most operators rely on standard PDRA-01 permissions. Our approval unlocks substantially more.
Standard permissions require a 50 metre separation between drone and any uninvolved person or property not under the operator's control. Our approval reduces that to:
BVLOS approval lets us fly the aircraft beyond what a pilot can directly observe with the naked eye, using onboard telemetry, video downlink, and observer support. Different platforms are approved to different ranges:
Every pilot on our team holds the General Visual Line of Sight Certificate (GVC) as a minimum, the highest-tier standard remote-pilot competency assessment in the UK. Many also hold specialist endorsements:
Our enhanced permissions, combined with operator training and approved equipment, let us fly in urban environments where standard PDRA-01 permissions don't allow operations. London, Birmingham, Manchester, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Cardiff, Belfast, Leeds, Sheffield, Bristol, if your asset sits in a city centre, we have a route to flying it.
Most UK drone operators fly under standard PDRA-01 permissions. Our enhanced CAA approval lets us go materially further on every key metric.
| Permission | Standard (PDRA-01) | Nationwide Drones |
|---|---|---|
| Separation from uninvolved people / property | 50 metres minimum | 10 metres horizontal in flight |
| Take-off / landing separation | 30 metres minimum | 5 metres for Mavic 3 / Thermal / Enterprise 10 metres for Matrice 300 / 350 / M30 / M30T |
| Beyond Visual Line of Sight, DJI Mavic 3 | Not permitted | 1,000 metres from pilot (with competent observer) |
| Beyond Visual Line of Sight, Matrice 300 / 350 / M30 | Not permitted | 2,000 metres from pilot (with air observer team) |
| Urban operations (London, Birmingham, etc.) | Severely restricted by separation rule | Approved with appropriate site assessment |
| Night-time / post-dusk operations | Allowed with risk assessment | Approved with endorsed pilots (thermal work) |
| Pilot qualification | A2 CofC or GVC | GVC minimum + thermal / night / urban endorsements |
"1:1 rule" applies for any unplanned overflight of uninvolved people, we will not exceed our permitted limits even when permitted to do so.
Tell us where you want to fly and what you need to capture. We will confirm the permissions, manage the airspace co-ordination, and quote you back fast.