A newly released audit from the Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General provides a detailed look at the Federal Aviation Administration’s progress in integrating beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) drone operations into the National Airspace System. The report, dated June 30, 2025, charts a dramatic rise in approvals—from 1,229 in 2020 to 26,870 in 2023—reflecting a surge in regulatory activity and industry engagement. Yet, despite these gains, the audit underscores that scalable, economically viable BVLOS operations remain elusive.
The FAA has leveraged multiple regulatory pathways to expand BVLOS capabilities, including small UAS rule waivers, air carrier operating certificates, and exemptions under Section 44807. By October 2024, 190 BVLOS waivers had been issued to 134 operators, spanning sectors from academia to energy infrastructure. Partnership programs have been central to this growth. The BEYOND program logged over 66,000 flights, with more than 44,000 conducted BVLOS. The Partnership for Safety Plan (PSP) and Integration Partnership Agreement (IPA) programs recorded 85,753 flights, 94% BVLOS, supporting diverse missions such as UPS Flight Forward’s medical deliveries in Florida and FedEx’s aircraft inspections in Memphis.
One milestone came in July 2024, when the FAA authorized multiple commercial BVLOS operators to share airspace in North Texas. Enabled by Unmanned Aircraft System Traffic Management (UTM) services, this marked the first time such multi-operator BVLOS flights were approved, offering a glimpse of scalable operations.
However, the audit reveals that flights without visual observers—a critical step toward economic scalability—remain rare. In BEYOND, fewer than 763 BVLOS flights, about 2%, were conducted without visual observers. PSP and IPA participants reported none. This reliance increases operational costs and limits the commercial appeal of BVLOS deployments. Lead participants in BEYOND have emphasized that removing visual observers is essential for cost-effective scaling.
Performance metrics within BEYOND have also proved challenging. Of six operational Key Performance Indicators aimed at advancing BVLOS, only one was met or exceeded. Just three of eight lead participants partially met the target of eight BVLOS flights without visual observers in a month, with only one achieving scalable BVLOS without observers. Participants cited mismatched KPIs, insufficient UTM infrastructure, and technological hurdles as primary barriers. Organizational turnover compounded these issues, with program manager changes affecting nearly all participants.
Data collection processes have improved, incorporating standardized forms and simplified reporting per Government Accountability Office recommendations. Yet, the audit notes that data remains underutilized for rulemaking. The FAA does not consolidate information across offices, limiting trend analysis, and manual input methods leave room for errors. Notably, the agency stopped gathering data on societal and economic benefits and community engagement, despite these being stated program goals, reducing insight into broader impacts.
Regulatory mechanisms continue to evolve. The FAA has issued six Part 135 air carrier certificates for drone delivery, cutting processing times from 2.5 years to as little as six months. For agriculture, 44807 exemptions now cover 38 drone models. The Near-Term Approval Process (NTAP), introduced to expedite third-party service supplier approvals, granted its first letter of acceptance in May 2024, streamlining UTM service adoption.
The audit identifies critical needs for achieving scalable BVLOS: mature UTM infrastructure, refined performance metrics aligned with diverse operations, and broader participant engagement to diversify operational data. Concentration remains high, with two participants accounting for 95% of BVLOS flights, suggesting a narrow data set for regulatory development.
Legislative directives add urgency. The FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 mandated a proposed BVLOS rule by September 2024 and final performance-based rules by September 2025. As of the audit’s release, the proposed rule had not been issued, though a June 2025 Executive Order instructed the FAA to publish it within 30 days.
Seven recommendations accompany the audit, including updating KPIs, adding participant onboarding mechanisms, consolidating data repositories, and reinstating societal and economic benefit tracking. The industry’s path forward will depend on addressing technological gaps, particularly in UTM systems, and aligning regulatory frameworks with operational realities. The North Texas multi-operator flights demonstrate what is possible when technology and regulation converge, offering a model for future BVLOS integration.