The first European drone operator in the Specific Category to obtain approval for executing cross-border operations is a pioneer of the commercial cargo drone industry: FlyingBasket.

European nationals can cross borders within the European Union without problems, but a flying drone needs special permission and to abide by Article 13 of the new EU regulation 2019/947 regarding the execution of cross-border operations. FlyingBasket recently became the first European drone operator in the Specific Category to obtain approval for cross-border operations, so its drones can fly in Germany.

FlyingBasket received the authorization from Luftfahrt Bundesamt (LBA) for a mission to be performed with the largest forestry company in Germany – Bayerische Staatsforsten that manages more than 700,00 Hectares of forest land in Bavaria. The authorization is awarded to FlyingBasket based on its existing Operational Authorization granted by Ente Nazionale Per L'Aviazione Civile (ENAC). Article 13 of the new EU regulation for cross-border operations proves to be crucial for drone operators to effectively access the entire EU market, thereby contributing to the future of the European drone industry.

“At FlyingBasket we are proud to be granted this authorization in Germany. We would like to thank ENAC for working with us to address the various statutory requirements of the new EU Regulation and LBA for assessing our Operational Authorization in a short time enabling FlyingBasket to successfully accomplish the forestry mission with Bayerische Staatsforsten in the next days. We see this as the first step of many upcoming achievements in the context of cross-border operations across Europe”, said Moritz Moroder, CEO of FlyingBasket.

FlyingBasket is an Italian company based in the Dolomites, which designs, produces, and operates heavy payload cargo drones, with up to 100kg payload capability today. The company started in 2015 when Moritz and Matthias Moroder were hiking in the Dolomites and noticed a helicopter delivering food to a mountain shelter. The idea of replacing a helicopter with a drone was soon realized. In the following years, drone prototypes were designed, developed, and tested in a mountainous area where weather conditions can be extremely challenging.

Since its inception, FlyingBasket has become the benchmark in the commercial cargo drone industry. Over time, not only did its drones evolve but so did the company’s team. Today the FlyingBasket team consists of an international mix of highly skilled, motivated and creative minds. The company provides training and regulatory support to its customers, enabling companies in Logistics, Energy, Telecom, and Forestry to unlock the full potential of this innovative technology.