Botlink, the developer of the XRD2 cellular drone communication device, has announced its inclusion in the Choctaw Nation’s beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) waiver, as well as their continued BVLOS operations in the Choctaw Nation Reservation.
The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma was awarded a unique BVLOS waiver without visual observers by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in January 2023. The FAA BVLOS waiver is instrumental in advancing drone utilization and enables partners to conduct testing and demonstrations in southeast Oklahoma.
“The Botlink XRD2 is an integral part of Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma’s beyond visual line of sight flight operations,” said senior manager of aviation operations Marcus Hartman. “In addition to the reliable command and control link over LTE, the XRD2 gives us the ability to maintain situational awareness BVLOS through the added video link at a much greater range than any other available video equipment.”
According to Botlink the XRD2 is the only US designed, developed, and assembled cellular hardware and software product specifically for drones, and it has enabled BVLOS operations on four different continents since the first iteration in 2016.
Fully compliant with Section 889 of the NDAA, the XRD2 is designed for maximum communication security, while being the easiest to integrate and operate cellular connectivity device on the market.
“The Botlink team put in thousands of hours developing the XRD2, and receiving positive feedback on ease of use and high-reliability connection from partners like the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma (CNO), means all those hours paid off,” said Matt Sather, general manager of Botlink. “We’re excited to continue to build our relationship with CNO, as well as the entire Oklahoma region, which has shown a strong commitment to utilizing cellular networks for drone C2”, continued Sather.
