The future of rural aviation took flight last week as iSight Drone Services, in collaboration with the Northern Plains UAS Test Site (NPUASTS) and Vantis, North Dakota’s statewide BVLOS system, successfully completed a groundbreaking beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) drone delivery of medical supplies more than 80 miles of western North Dakota prairie from Williston to Watford City.
This operation illustrates the real-world impact of BVLOS medical drone delivery in rural communities. The operation was part of Project RuralReach, a collaborative initiative led by the University of North Dakota Center for Innovation and funded by the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) through its ARPA Economic Adjustment Assistance Program. The project aims to demonstrate how unmanned aerial systems (UAS) can enhance quality of life, economic resilience and access to critical services in rural communities.
Unlike many previous UAS deliveries conducted in tightly controlled urban environments, this mission navigated dynamic, uncontrolled airspace populated by low-flying, non-cooperative aircraft potentially operating without transponders. Safely conducting operations in this environment requires sophisticated infrastructure to detect and deconflict all air traffic in real time. That capability was made possible by Vantis, North Dakota’s first-of-its-kind, statewide UAS network. Designed specifically to enable safe, scalable BVLOS operations, Vantis provides integrated surveillance, aircraft detection and command-and-control connectivity across rural regions where traditional air traffic systems fall short.
“Rural communities don’t have the luxury of cooperative-only airspace,” said Erin Roesler, Deputy Executive Director of the NPUASTS. “What makes this operation so impactful is that it proves BVLOS can be done safely; even in complex, real-world rural environments, and that it can bring real value to North Dakota communities. Supporting those missions – that’s the value of Vantis.”
Part of Project RuralReach
The demonstration was conducted under Project RuralReach, a federally funded initiative led by the University of North Dakota Center for Innovation in partnership with NPUASTS, Vantis and regional research partners. The iSight demonstration represents the first use case under the project, which also aims to enable a total of three UAS solutions to rural communities.
iSight Drone Services received $50,000 through the program to test long-range delivery operations in western North Dakota. The goal is to prove how drone technology can support:
- Rural Delivery – Reliable access to medical and essential supplies
- Sustainable Operations – Extended range through renewable power
- Emergency Response – Rapid deployment in times of disaster
This medical supply flight is a major step forward in building a statewide UAS commercialization strategy that connects drone technology to public benefit.
“The Vantis team played a crucial role in the success of today’s flights. Their diligent and tireless work behind the scenes in planning and ultimately executing the flight fully illustrates why they are recognized as leaders in UAS development,” said Jeff Barta, Project Manager with the Center for Innovation. “Their quiet contributions may not be apparent to the public eye but were certainly recognized by our team and deeply appreciated. Their performance, from our original briefing to the final landing, can only be described as being impeccable.”
North Dakota continues to lead the nation in UAS integration, driven by a vision to serve rural communities with cutting-edge, life-changing technologies. The success of this flight is not only a win for drone innovation but a win for access, equity and the future of rural logistics.
