Drone Delivery Canada announced it has received a Compliant UAV Operator Special Flight Operations Certificate (SFOC) from Transport Canada.
The milestone means the company is now approved to fly its drones beyond the visual line of sight, which means DDC can continue to test its drone delivery system.
“The company has been working around the clock to achieve compliant status and is both grateful and appreciative of being recognized as a professional and safe operator of unmanned aircraft (UAS) by Transport Canada,” said Mark Wuennenberg, DDC’s vice-president of regulatory affairs, in a Feb. 9 news release.
“Realizing this milestone enables DDC to continue moving towards becoming a leader in drone delivery services for Canadians by Canadians across our vast geography.”
DDC, which is based in Vaughan, is currently in the process of testing out its delivery platform, which includes flying drones between depots, or between a depot and a customer.
Under an agreement with the Moose Cree First Nation, the company has flown test missions of up to 2.12 kilometres.
Eventually, DDC believes its unmanned aerial vehicles would provide an ideal delivery system for bringing much-needed mail, medicine and groceries to remote Indigenous communities in Ontario’s Far North.