. California based Parallel Flight Technologies has received an exemption under Special Authority for Certain Unmanned Aircraft Systems 49 U.S.C. § 44807 from the Federal Aviation Administration, allowing the company to operate its Firefly heavy-lift drone commercially in the United States.

The exemption grants the administrator of the FAA administration the authority to use a risk based approach to determine if certain unmanned aircraft systems can operate safely in US National Airspace System (NAS) on a case by case basis. This grants UAS operators safe and legal entry into the NAS, thus improving safety. We anticipate this activity will result in significant economic benefits. The FAA Administrator has identified this as a high priority project to address demand for civil operation of drones for commercial purposes.

The Small UAS Rule (14 CFR Part 107) is only applicable to unmanned aircraft (drones) that weigh less than 55 pounds at takeoff. The exemption allows Parallel Flight Technologies to legally operate Firefly and it can move from testing and development into real commercial work such as supporting wildland firefighting operations in locations where traditional aircraft may struggle to operate.

“This is an important step for our team and our customers,” said Craig Stevens, CEO of Parallel Flight. “The 44807 exemption validates the safety architecture, system design, and maturity of our platform. We are ready to support customers as demand for heavy‑lift, long‑endurance UAS continues to grow.”

The Firefly can be transported in the back of a pickup truck and its patented Parallel Hybrid Electric quadcopter propulsion system enables payloads of up to 100 pounds and remain airborne far longer than most battery-powered drones and Parallel Flight expects to ship its first customer units this summer.