BVLOS

BVLOS (Beyond Visual Line of Sight) describes drone operations where the remote pilot or visual observer cannot see the aircraft with unaided eyes. Most aviation regulators, including the FAA in the US, allow routine drone flight only within visual line of sight by default, so BVLOS operations need a waiver, an exemption or a specific operating approval.

The distinction matters because nearly every commercial drone model that scales, including package delivery, pipeline and power-line inspection, and drone-in-a-box security, depends on BVLOS. Whether an operator holds BVLOS approval, and for what area, is often the real limit on how far a drone deployment can grow.