Skyports Deploys BVLOS Drones to Survey HumeLink West Transmission Build

Skyports Drone Services has taken a meaningful step in automated aerial surveying by using drones that fly beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) to support construction of the HumeLink West transmission project in New South Wales, Australia. The setup relies on a DJI Dock 2 unit stationed at the Maragle substation site, allowing scheduled surveys to be flown without any pilot physically present on the ground.

The aircraft sweeps the corridor roughly every fortnight, with operators overseeing each mission remotely from Skyports’ Remote Operations Centre in Lane Cove, Sydney, well over 350 kilometres away. That distance is central to the value proposition: Skyports reports the system can cover as much as five times more ground in a single day than conventional on-site drone surveys. While line-of-sight drone work typically stays within 0.5 to 1 kilometre, these flights routinely range between 8 and 10 kilometres.

Beyond efficiency, the approach keeps people out of harm’s way. Much of the terrain along the route is difficult to reach and intersects with live construction zones, so removing the need for crews to walk in offers a clear safety dividend. The imagery captured is then run through DroneDeploy, which converts it into 2D and 3D models of the site and tracks how conditions change over time — giving construction teams a tool for monitoring progress, spotting problems early and planning upcoming work.

This deployment builds on a year-long campaign in which Skyports flew LiDAR-equipped drones to map terrain and keep tabs on vegetation clearance along the transmission corridor. The new phase moves the programme into a more autonomous mode, with operations conducted under a Broad Area BVLOS Drone Approval from Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA). That authorisation lets Skyports self-certify qualifying BVLOS missions in suitable remote and sparsely populated areas, provided the approval’s conditions are met.

HumeLink West sits inside Transgrid’s broader HumeLink project, which involves roughly 140 kilometres of new 500 kV double-circuit transmission lines plus two substations — infrastructure aimed at reinforcing Australia’s electricity network and enabling more renewable energy to come online. Skyports said the effort marks the first project within the CIMIC Group in Australia to be cleared for fully remote BVLOS drone operations. The company also intends to widen its network of automated drone-in-a-box installations across the country, though it has not yet named further locations.