In this video, Nokia, in partnership with Citymesh, discusses Belgium’s nationwide Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) drone network, believed to be the first of its kind in the world.
The project began with a vision from Citymesh CEO and volunteer firefighter Mitch De Geest, who imagined drones supporting his platoon without requiring firefighters to operate them on-site. That idea inspired the development of a drone-in-a-box system, later scaled into a national network powered by Nokia’s 5G technology and supported by government initiatives.
Today, 40 of the planned 70 drone stations are operational across Belgium, managed from four remote operations centers by trained pilots. Over the past year, the network has conducted more than 1,300 emergency flights for fire departments. When a distress call is received by 112, a drone is automatically deployed alongside fire trucks, arriving within two minutes to deliver live aerial video to first responders.
This technology enhances situational awareness, improves safety, and saves critical time, from pinpointing hotspots to directing teams to the correct location. Delivered as a service, the network demonstrates the power of dual use: reinforcing public safety today while also supporting national defense and security needs tomorrow. Belgium’s experience underscores the importance of regulation and collaboration, ensuring that drone technology complements, rather than replaces, local emergency teams.
