ANRA Technologies, a provider of airspace management solutions, has announced that it has received a Letter of Acceptance (LOA) from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to deploy its strategic conflict detection and aggregated conformance monitoring services (collectively identified as strategic coordination (SC)) in partnership with the New York Power Authority (NYPA).
NYPA, which already relies on ANRA’s Mission Manager platform for its drone operations, will now integrate ANRA’s SC solution to enable beyond-visual line-of-sight (BVLOS) operations for uncrewed aircraft systems (UAS). This addition will further boost efficiency and safety across NYPA’s enterprise. ANRA’s SC leverages methodologies from the U.S. Shared Airspace initiative, ensuring NYPA’s drone activities are smoothly integrated with other airspace users.
This collaboration draws on ANRA’s experience in the U.S. Shared Airspace initiative, where ANRA provides strategic coordination services to operators like the Arlington Police Department and Manna Drone Delivery. NYPA now benefits from these proven methodologies, with ANRA as the only non-vertically integrated service provider – meaning the drone operator doesn’t have their own SC – supporting SC for multi-user environments.
The LOA granted to ANRA as a UAS Service Supplier (USS) was issued under the FAA’s Near Term Approval Process (NTAP), designed to provide drone operators with expedited approvals for BVLOS operations. This special process is part of the FAA’s effort to advance UAS integration and increase safety through oversight while supporting industry advancements in air traffic technology and procedures. As a vital step toward enabling BVLOS flights on a more routine basis, the NTAP streamlines the typically lengthy approval process by focusing on solutions that meet rigorous safety and operational standards. Other ANRA customers may include this LOA in their waiver, exemption, or COA requests for BVLOS operations where they want to utilize ANRA’s service to mitigate drone-to-drone collision risk.
“This is a first-of-its-kind LOA,” said Amit Ganjoo, Founder and CEO of ANRA Technologies. “By using ANRA’s strategic deconfliction services, NYPA not only demonstrates its forward-thinking approach but also prepares them for the FAA’s next drone rule that will include airspace management requirements.”
With this authorization, ANRA and NYPA are at the forefront of evolving BVLOS operations, utilizing ANRA’s Mission Manager to streamline and centralize automated mission planning, real-time tracking, and SC across a unified platform. Mission Manager reduces the need for multiple systems, integrating essential features such as LAANC, fleet management, and airspace services into a single pane of glass, providing NYPA with a powerful, consolidated view of its drone operations.
The FAA’s authorization granted to ANRA is part of the agency’s ongoing efforts to evaluate and potentially expand BVLOS capabilities in the drone industry, which could enable broader applications of drone technology across various sectors. Traditionally, drone operations require the pilot to maintain a direct visual line-of-sight of the aircraft, but with the advancement of air traffic technology under the NTAP, companies like ANRA can provide solutions that allow operators to manage airspace with a robust, automated system.
