Israel has created aviation history by approving a drone to fly in civilian airspace and not restricting its flight to uncontrolled airspace. Following its certification by the Civil Aviation Authority of the State of Israel (CAAI), the Hermes Starliner UAS by Elbit Systems will now be able to fly at medium altitudes for a multitude of long-range missions, such as securing mass public events, environmental inspection missions, precision agriculture work, maritime search and rescue, as well as border security and anti-terror operations.
For safety reasons, international aviation regulations prohibit uncertified aircraft from flying in civilian airspace, limiting drone operations to unrestricted airspace – typically below 400 feet above the ground (AGL). The certification issued by the CAAI to the Hermes Starliner UAS changes this.
And the reason why this particular drone is being allowed to integrate into civilian unsegregated airspace is because it follows NATO…
