After rigorous testing, the leading provider of drone survey insights, Wingtra, has received an official FAA stamp of approval for its WingtraRAY drone to fly over populated areas when equipped with its parachute add-on. This Category 3 Operations Over People (OOP) approval—combined with its Blue UAS clearance and a full end-to-end workflow—pushes the Wingtra solution into a category of its own. In fact, it’s the only government-vetted, aerial survey platform that reliably tackles projects like miles of highway corridor and 3D city mapping projects within days without requiring months of paperwork to get waivers. All of this at a time of great uncertainty around a Chinese hardware ban looming over the country.

What we offer our customers is freedom and peace of mind. Freedom to take on any project without hesitation or paperwork, and peace of mind to know their operations are safe and their business will be viable well into the future. Professionals are in dire need of this data to make more informed decisions. Now they can have it faster and easier than ever. If you want to get ahead as a service provider or an in-house UAS team, this is the way.Julian Surber, Senior Product Manager, Wingtra

The potential cost of uncertain times

At the moment, the use of more than 70 percent of all commercial drones—across sectors such as surveying, mapping, public safety, and infrastructure inspection—is hanging in the balance based on a 2025 US National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) around Chinese-manufactured drones.

Consumers already see a slashed supply of new aircraft, spare parts and batteries. Support will also wane if this situation lingers. Industry analysts estimate that these restrictions could impact 450,000–460,000 US jobs, reflecting how deep the dependence now is.

The impact is huge on large-scale mapping, corridor surveys, and urban or infrastructure projects that require repeat, updated information. So surveyors, GIS service providers and engineering firms are now looking for options as they face delayed projects, re-tooled workflows, retraining staff, and new platform adoption. 

The proactive choice for quick adoption and reliable, future-proof operations

With safety and security front and center of US government operations, the standards around Category 3 OOP certification are high. The FAA’s rigorous testing and scrutiny put every part of a system under a microscope to test for reliable and secure performance. WingtraRAY’s size and weight class mark it as the first of its kind to pass these tests. In fact, these dimensions—supporting robust sensors and high speeds—are precisely what make it the only drone suitable to map at such high accuracy across large and repeat smaller projects with striking efficiency.

Add to this Blue-cleared fast-tracking on sensitive projects plus BVLOS readiness, and you have a system that anticipates a much wider envelope of projects that customers can tackle, without paperwork or delays, including those who work with government-linked clients and municipalities. As professionals eye up a system to switch to, they’d be keen to note that Wingtra’s end-to-end guided workflow helps ease adoption and learning curves, as it supports tight collaboration between experienced surveyors, managers and entry-level pilots. 

A reliable, easy-to-adopt, government-stamped option

Wingtra has seen this coming. Positioned in the Swiss drone tech “Silicone Valley” of Europe, the company has been working steadily on a solution that is easy to adopt with a single workflow from planning to flight to processing. Producing solutions that directly answer American market needs, they’ve secured the highest reliability and performance standard in the US: Blue UAS clearance, and now Category 3 OOP approval.

“As questions will likely continue to hang over the US drone market, the need for drone aerial survey data across industries only grows,” said Maximilian Boosfeld, CEO at Wingtra. “In fact, the tech has not only sparked a dependence, it’s also expanding the field of geo-information and its applications. As all of this advances, we see that professionals have the choice of moving ahead with it or falling behind. This is really clear in the case of mapping cities and highways in a matter of hours. With operations over people cleared, Wingtra is a no-brainer investment.” 

The proactive choice for quick adoption and reliable, future-proof operations

With safety and security front and center of US government operations, the standards around Category 3 OOP certification are high. The FAA’s rigorous testing and scrutiny put every part of a system under a microscope to test for reliable and secure performance. WingtraRAY’s size and weight class mark it as the first of its kind to pass these tests. In fact, these dimensions—supporting robust sensors and high speeds—are precisely what make it the only drone suitable to map at such high accuracy across large and repeat smaller projects with striking efficiency.

Add to this Blue-cleared fast-tracking on sensitive projects plus BVLOS readiness, and you have a system that anticipates a much wider envelope of projects that customers can tackle without paperwork or delays, including those who work with government-linked clients and municipalities. As professionals eye up a system to switch to, they’d be keen to note that Wingtra’s end-to-end guided workflow helps ease adoption and learning curves, as it supports tight collaboration between experienced surveyors, managers and entry-level pilots.

To learn more about WingtraRAY and the end-to-end drone survey solution, visit wingtra.com.