Insights Into Safe and Scalable BVLOS UAS Operations from Kenya's OI Pejeta Conservancy

Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) oper-ations of Uncrewed Aerial Systems (UAS) hold significant potential for transforming many sectors, but face significant regulatory, safety, and operational complexity challenges. This paper presents a framework developed for planning and executing safe and compliant BVLOS missions in the context of wildlife conservation. While validated through a case study at the O1 Pejeta Conservancy, Kenya, this approach may also serve as a foundation for similar operations in other complex environments. Leveraging the widely adopted Specific Operations Risk Assessment (SORA), we developed an operational framework that addressed both air and ground risks. Key measures include strategic planning, coordination with local authorities, and the establishment of contingency volumes and operational procedures to ensure safety. Field trials have demonstrated the practical challenges of ensuring airspace safety and highlighted the importance of close collaboration with Air Traffic Control (ATC) and the need for more robust, and redundant Command & Control (C2) solutions for long-range or remote operations. This study provides a replicable framework applicable to diverse BVLOS scenarios while offering insights specific to wildlife conservation. Documentation related to this work is pub-licly accessible: https://github.com/GuyMaalouf/WD-June24-BVLOS-Docs