CAA unlocks next stage in police uncrewed aircraft trials

Image courtesy NPAS / BBC

This milestone comes after careful consideration of a detailed safety case, presented to the UK regulator by the NPAS Futures and Innovation Team.

It marks an important step in the development of the trials of Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) uncrewed aircraft, which are already showing promising results for the future of policing from the air.

Sophie O’Sullivan, Director, Future Safety & Innovation at the UK Civil Aviation Authority, said: “Drone technology continues to advance and has the potential to deliver a range of public benefits including supporting crewed emergency air services in their important work.

“Together with operators such as the National Police Air Service, we are working to make drone operations beyond visual line of sight safe for all users of airspace by 2027. 

“This project is making an important contribution to that work by testing and demonstrating how drones can operate with other emergency service crewed aircraft and ground support and in a way that is demonstrably safe for all those flying in UK skies.”

Since July 2025, trials of uncrewed aircraft have only been able to operate from Avonmouth Port under the restrictions of a Temporary Danger Airspace (TDA), which prevented other operators from entering the airspace and restricted flying from 10pm to 3am.

The approval of a TRA, supported by a Transponder Mandatory Zone (TMZ) in Class G airspace, further opens the airspace and permits daytime flying – allowing NPAS to significantly expand the testing and development of its ‘detect and avoid’ capabilities, vital for the safety of others and for integration into existing airspace.

Providing essential support in the trials is the National Air Traffic Service (NATS).

Mark Balsdon, NATS’ Head of New Airspace Users Accounts and Partnerships, said: "NATS is privileged to support the NPAS trial and the pivotal use cases that are being enabled. Creating this new Temporary Reserved area of Airspace is a major step forward that will help advance policing and the greater integration of drones in the UK as a whole. We hope the project will provide valuable data to the CAA so that what are trials today can soon become routine."

The TRA became ‘active’ from Monday 27th October 2025.

NPAS is the first organisation to successfully deploy a TRA in Class G, uncontrolled, airspace – a significant achievement in the safe integration of uncrewed aircraft into UK airspace.

Head of Futures and Innovation at NPAS David Walters said: “This has been the most challenging process I’ve ever been involved with but it’s also one of the most rewarding. 

“This puts a huge focus on the importance of our trials, not only in exploring the future opportunities for police aviation, but for working with the regulator and partners in informing the safe integration of uncrewed aircraft systems into UK air operations.”  

The trial so far
Over the course of the trial, NPAS has logged over 90 hours of flight time, with the longest single flight reaching 4.5 hours and covering a distance of 297km. 

The capabilities were tested in a real-life scenario on Wednesday 24 September 2025, when the trials team, flying over the Severn Bridge, picked up ‘Man Overboard Alert’.

Diverting from the trial, the crew immediately liaised with HM Coastguard and emergency services partners and directed its camera focus to the location of the bridge, from which the alert was activated. 

Whilst it was quickly determined it was a false alarm, the crew was successful in its immediate and effective response to a real-life situation, providing valuable exercise experience. 

To further test and demonstrate operational capabilities, NPAS will be conducting joint emergency exercises in November 2025 with Search and Rescue, Severn Area Rescue Association and Mountain Rescue teams, to help inform future deployment strategies and strengthen collaboration across emergency services.

Trial highlights also include:

• Radar & ADS-B integration: Successful detection and tracking of cooperative and non-cooperative airspace users.
• Payload testing: Thermal identification of people at 3km away, tree canopy penetration and temperature-obscured missing person searches, with live video downlink being shared directly to the NPAS Operations Centre in Wakefield.
• Surveillance: Onboard radar effectively tracked an NPAS fixed-wing aircraft.
• Stakeholder engagement: The trials team has delivered demonstrations to a wide array of stakeholders, including representatives from the Home Office, police drone teams, aviation industry leaders, Civil Aviation Authority and National Air Traffic Control Service. Further visits are planned for senior police and police and crime commissioners and overseas police teams.

Next steps
The NPAS trials are due to operate within the TRA from Avonmouth Port until the end of 2025, at which time all the data gathered will be collated, analysed and presented to stakeholders to inform the future vision of UK police air support.