5G is set to significantly enhance the commercial drone market by providing advanced capabilities such as faster data transfer, lower latency and more efficient coverage, supporting BVLOS commercial drone deployments on a larger scale.
GSMA Intelligence has just released its new report “Powering lift-off for drones – Benchmarking spectrum and readiness for UAVs” which assesses drone regulatory readiness and spectrum availability across 13 countries in Asia Pacific, Europe and North America. Let’s take a deeper look.
The challenge
If you’re reading this story you are likely already aware that most unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) flying today are currently restricted to visual line of sight (VLOS) operations, which significantly limits their ability to expand commercial applications and reach global projections for drone use.
Beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) capabilities are critical in order to scale commercial drone operations conducting activities such as logistics, mission-critical operations and many other applications in between.
In order to achieve this goal, reliable communications with these aircraft is a mandate and the telecommunications network – more specifically LTE and 5G – provide the most obvious answer as these networks are already in place and have the capacity available to support these requirements. 5G connectivity provides faster data transfer, lower latency, and more efficient coverage. But there’s a catch.
Today most UAV operations flying VLOS are using unlicensed spectrum bands such as 2.4 and 5 GHz for command and control capabilities. These spectrum bands are open for anyone to use and don’t provide the level of security that would be required for BVLOS operations.
Mobile network operators (MNOs) are well positioned to provide licensed spectrum in support of UAV operations, but there’s still a glitch. Most countries are making progress in areas like remote ID, unmanned traffic management (UTM), and BVLOS policies, but spectrum regulations lag behind. The much needed regulatory framework is inconsistent or lacking when looking across different regions.
Current mobile network operator projects
The report highlights some examples of MNOs already working to help move drone operations toward BVLOS with the use of their mobile networks.
China Mobile
China Mobile’s CEO, He Bio, announced plans to deploy 100 low-altitude demonstration projects by 2025, building on existing partnerships with drone manufacturers like GODO and AutoFlight. These collaborations showcase applications across transportation, logistics, and tourism sectors. The operator is leveraging its network infrastructure to create specialised connectivity solutions for the growing low-altitude economy.
China Unicom
In partnership with Huawei, China Unicom has established the country’s largest low-altitude integrated and sensing communications (ISAC) test network. This implementation covers approximately 100 km² and services over 300 drone depots. The operator is utilising Huawei’s solutions to enhance the vertical reach of its antenna systems and plans to replicate this network architecture in other Chinese cities.
BT
BT has launched the UK’s first specialised SIM card designed specifically for drone operations. This hardware solution has been engineered to withstand extreme environmental conditions including vibration, temperature fluctuations, and humidity, enabling reliable all-season drone connectivity through the operator’s network infrastructure.
Swisscom
Nokia and Swisscom Broadcast (the enterprise-focused security and analytics division of the Swiss operator) have collaborated to implement a network of 300 drones dedicated to emergency services and industrial applications. This follows Nokia’s similar arrangement with Citymesh in 2023 to construct a nation-wide drone network in Belgium.
Although today’s focus is around 5G networks, as the mobile industry moves toward the deployment of 6G networks, new functionality comes into the discussion such as low-altitude integrated sensing and communication systems (lSAC) as mentioned above. Specific to UAVs, this technology combines sensing capabilities with communication networks for a variety of applications, including environmental monitoring, disaster management, and smart city initiatives. These systems utilise technologies like LiDAR, radar, and advanced wireless communication to gather and transmit data, enabling intelligent automation and decision-making. In short, the drones can ‘sense’ when they are approaching an object and make avoidance decisions accordingly.
The report results
The report compared the progress of 13 countries related to the implementation of regulartory frameworks since the last review in 2022. Here is what they found:
Leaders: Italy, Finland and the UK
Italy leads the drone regulatory index with a score of 85 out of 100. Italy has enacted several policies since the 2022 review, such as an initial electronic conspicuity measures for drones operating BVLOS called the ‘Drone Operation Plan’ which is mandatory for UAVs operating BVLOS. Additional rules have been implemented to allow drone operators to obtain clearance for the use of dedicated airspace issued by the Territorial Directorate of the Italian Civil Aviation Authority (ENAC). The implementation of a comprehensive mobile licensed spectrum framework for drones is still missing.
Finland ranks second in the index, with the introduction of mobile airborne permissions with no clearance needed and the establishment of clear mobile licensed rules. The UK has progressed with its ranking from the introduction of clear licensed spectrum policy frameworks for drones and an electronic conspicuity framework. Most interesting from the UK is a designated specific spectrum band for electronic conspicuity systems, such as the 1090 MHz band for automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B).17
Improved: Norway, Singapore, the US, South Korea, and Australia
The ranking of these countries improved on average by 10 percentage points vs the last report, with the US having the largest increase of almost 20 percentage points. These rankings show solid forward progress and set the basis for the future achievement of the required regulatory frameworks.
Regressed: Germany, Switzerland, France, Japan and Canada
The report also identified five regions which have regressed from their ratings two years ago. This is not to say that these countries aren’t advancing in other aspects related to drone operations, such as the introduction of U-space in some European locations, but related to a regulatory framework supporting the use of licensed spectrum in this area, they are currently trailing their peers.
Conclusion
The take away from this report is a mixed bag. You can clearly see that there are many forward advancements toward BVLOS flight across the 13 countries reviewed, but specifically related to the introduction of a regulatory framework in support of licensed telecom spectrum use there is still some work to do. Although many topics are noted in this article, we can’t do the full report justice in a short online review. It’s highly recommended to download and read the full set of research findings.
