On March 19, 2025, the latest web-up of the BLU Space project took place, focusing on the current challenges and opportunities of BVLOS (Beyond Visual Line of Sight) flights. Vincenz Schneider, Project Lead Offshore Logistics Drones at EnBW, Clemens-Vincent Blume, Head of Sales & Marketing at Morpheus Logistik GmbH, and Dr. Jan Dirks, Advisor at the Federal Ministry for Digitalization and Transportation, discussed the potential and regulatory hurdles of this technology in various fields of application. The focus was on offshore drone logistics and drone operations in urban and peri-urban airspace.
Offshore drone logistics: opportunities and regulatory hurdles
Vincenz Schneider of EnBW reported on the "Upcoming Drones Windfarm" research project, which, together with the German Aerospace Center (DLR), is investigating how heavy-duty drones can be used to transport materials and people in offshore wind farms. The challenges are enormous: increasing distances between land and offshore facilities make logistics difficult, while the operation of drones over the open sea is difficult to plan due to a lack of regulations. Although there are no explicit prohibitions, there are no clear legal rules to facilitate operations and insurance issues. The status of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), where national and international regulations collide, is particularly problematic.
BVLOS flights in urban areas: Efficiency through automation
Clemens-Vincent Blume of Morpheus Logistik presented how his company uses BVLOS flights for automated logistics. The company, based in Lüdenscheid, Germany, is a leading European drone operator and was the first company in Europe to receive EU SAIL III approval for drone logistics transport.
Possible applications range from the rapid delivery of medical samples and pharmaceuticals to the supply of industrial spare parts and the networking of production sites to security applications. The basis for success lies in the combination of powerful software, optimized hardware and efficient operation.
Blume emphasized the need for a unified regulatory framework to make BVLOS operations more predictable. In particular, recurring route approvals would make it easier for companies to scale their services efficiently.
Regulatory Perspectives: European requirements and national challenges
Dr. Jan Dirks from the German Federal Ministry of Digital Affairs and Transport (BMDV) provided insights into the regulatory framework for BVLOS flights. Germany is closely bound by European law and therefore has limited scope for special national regulations.
A key problem is that many regulations from manned aviation are transferred to drones without taking into account their specific requirements. The BMDV is committed to optimizing these regulations and facilitating BVLOS operations. A possible solution could be to not regulate the geographical area, but to impose specific requirements on operators and their systems. This would allow German drone operators to have clear guidelines without being slowed down by conflicting international regulations.
Another key topic was the air picture and synchronization between unmanned and manned air traffic. The transition to Advanced Air Mobility requires a closer integration of existing systems. U-Space can serve as a bridge to better integrate drones into air traffic.
Conclusion: Progress and open questions
The web-up has shown the potential of BVLOS flights - but also the regulatory challenges that remain. While technological advances are already enabling a wide range of applications, there is often a lack of clear, workable regulations.
The discussion highlighted the need for consistent and practical regulations to make BVLOS flights safe, efficient and economical. In particular, integration into existing air traffic systems and standardization of approval procedures remain key issues for the coming years.
