The next frontier of drone innovation isn’t just about flying further, it’s about staying connected anywhere on Earth. As the industry moves toward full autonomy and Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations, connectivity has become the defining factor of success. Reliable, uninterrupted communication forms the backbone of real-time decision-making, data streaming, and command and control (C2) continuity across vast distances. Yet traditional radio and cellular networks remain limited by coverage, terrain, and bandwidth constraints, particularly in remote or offshore regions. This is where satellite communication (Satcom) transforms BVLOS operations from possibility to reality.
In this article, we show how Satcom-enabled BVLOS operations are redefining drone efficiency and autonomy, how resilient communication enhances safety, and how collaboration is accelerating technological progress.
The Role of Satcom in Modern UAV Operations
Satcom forms the backbone of next-generation UAV connectivity, providing the global, high-bandwidth and low-latency infrastructure essential for safe and effective BVLOS operations. Unlike conventional RF or cellular networks, Satcom offers a truly borderless communication link, ensuring that UAVs remain in constant contact with command centres, even in the most remote or signal-deprived regions.
For AIR6 | AIRBORNE, Satcom is not an auxiliary technology; it is a critical enabler of autonomy. By embedding Satcom modules directly into the UAV architecture, the company ensures seamless command, control, telemetry and payload data transmission across vast distances and challenging environments. This integration supports real-time mission oversight, AI-assisted decision-making and secure data exchange between aerial and ground systems.
Whether deployed above open oceans, across mountainous terrain or deep within low-coverage desert regions, Satcom allows UAVs to maintain uninterrupted connectivity for both manual and automated operations. This capability is especially vital for missions that demand reliability and situational awareness, such as offshore infrastructure inspection, environmental monitoring, border surveillance, and emergency response.
In the evolving landscape of autonomous flight, Satcom bridges the gap between operational ambition and regulatory readiness. It ensures that UAVs are designed not only to meet current communication standards but are future-proofed for the next era of global, interconnected aerial operations.
Why Satcom Matters for BVLOS
BVLOS operations demand a level of connectivity and redundancy that only Satcom can deliver. Integrating satellite communication into UAVs provides several mission-critical advantages:
• Global Coverage and Resilience: Operate beyond terrestrial network reach from offshore wind farms and remote mountain ranges to humanitarian corridors and defence zones, without compromising data integrity or control.
• Real-Time Data Streaming: Transmit live video, sensor outputs, and mission telemetry directly to C2 or cloud platforms for analysis and real-time decision making.
• AI and Autonomy Enablement: Supports autonomous decision-making by ensuring consistent communication and data streams between UAVs and AI-driven mission management systems (Raspberry Pi/Jetson Nano).
• Regulatory Confidence: Enhances BVLOS safety cases by providing verifiable redundancy, enabling compliance with aviation authority requirements for continuous C2 link assurance.
• Fleet Coordination and Swarm Operations: Supports synchronised communication between multiple UAVs operating in dispersed formations, enabling coordinated missions across large or complex environments.
Real-World Applications of Satcom-Enabled UAVs
The transformative potential of Satcom connectivity becomes most evident in complex, data-intensive operations where uninterrupted command, control and data transmission are mission-critical. By enabling true BVLOS flight, Satcom extends UAV capabilities across maritime, alpine, and remote environments, bridging the gap between airborne systems, ground control, and digital networks that drive mission success.
UAV Selection: Reliable Satcom-enabled BVLOS operations begin with selecting an UAV capable of supporting them. As part of Project UAV-3S (an ESA mandate), a global review of the 100 most prominent sUAV manufacturers showed that only 43 platforms satisfied the baseline criteria for Satcom-ready operations – (1) industrial (or emergency-response) orientation, (2) a minimum 5 kg payload capacity and (3) at least 40 minutes of endurance. From there, each system was assessed for BVLOS capabilities, including technical and operational maturity, autonomy capability, and commercial scalability. This structured screening process resulted in a set of representative platforms across the three primary UAV categories: multirotor, helicopter, and fixed-wing.
Figure 1: UAV Selection Process
The AIR8 Medium Lifter is a true all-rounder, a versatile drone that meets all the requirements for BVLOS flights. It offers excellent manoeuvrability and is easy to launch and retrieve, even in confined spaces. This provided a solid foundation for AIR6 | AIRBORNE’s two core innovation strategies (1) Offshore Wind Inspection and (2) Emergency Logistics. Complexity of these strategies requires a solid and reliable drone platform as a baseline, with no payload and performance limitations for applications like inspections, monitoring, surveying and logistics.
Figure 2: AIR6 | AIRBORNE Satcom Strategy
Satcom Selection: In combination with the integrated Gotonomi Multilink satcom / LTE module, AIR6 | AIRBORNE have developed a powerful and versatile solution for a broad range of satcom use cases, using video compression technology to ensure actionable data whilst managing data transmission overheads. Gotonomi is a leading developer of miniaturised satcom and cellular connectivity solutions enabling BVLOS operations for commercial UAVs, operating on Viasat’s Velaris network, which is a protected service for aviation safety. Providing a secure, always-on communications link between drone operators, unmanned aircraft, and air traffic control/UTM, their products enable OEMs, system integrators, and operators to equip their platforms with reliable command-and-control, payload, and video-streaming capabilities for BVLOS inspection and surveillance applications.
Satcom technology for UAVs is highly specialised and requires specific capabilities. The key evaluation criteria are summarised below:
• SWaP: Size, Weight and Power (SWaP) optimisation is critical for UAV integration, and Satcom systems must adhere to the same constraints. As a Satcom module is considered a support payload, it should have minimal impact on flight time, endurance, and overall system dimensions.
• Completeness / Market Readiness: Only fully integrated solutions – comprising terminal, antenna, and software – designed for modular UAV integration and immediate deployment can be considered market-ready. Incomplete or partially assembled solutions are effectively patchwork.
• Data Bandwidth: Bandwidth remains a key performance factor, but commercially available options are currently limited. UAV Satcom bandwidth depends on the two major service providers: Viasat (32 / 64 / 128 kbps) and Iridium (22 / 88 kbps).
• Latency: Latency must remain within feasible limits, ideally below one second, to support responsive and reliable operations. Although orbital altitude establishes the fundamental latency, the realised end-to-end latency is driven by multiple system-level factors, including integration architecture, the choice of compression algorithms, and the effects of bandwidth allocation and network congestion.
• Ramp-Up Efficiency and Link Stability: Effective system integration, signal processing, and data compression are essential. Depending on the mission profile, these factors can be operationally critical.
Key Satcom use cases and their specific applications are outlined below. While they represent only a fraction of current and future possibilities, they capture the main themes raised by end users in recent months in their inquiries to AIR6 | AIRBORNE.
Primary Use Cases
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- Critical Infrastructure Protection
Satcom-enabled UAVs enhance the efficiency of surveillance and inspection of key assets such as power lines, pipelines, and transport corridors. Flights can be performed remotely from the C2 and operators receive live imagery and telemetry from UAVs, enabling rapid anomaly detection, proactive maintenance and improved asset resilience. - Alpine + Maritime Search & Rescue
In challenging environments such as mountainous terrain or open ocean, Satcom provides a dependable communication link for locating and tracking missing persons or vessels. Real-time video and GPS feeds ensure that rescue teams remain connected and informed, even when terrestrial networks are unavailable or degraded. - Border Control and Monitoring
Satcom connectivity supports large-scale border and corridor surveillance, providing real-time situational awareness across extended distances. UAVs equipped with high-resolution payloads deliver continuous imagery and motion tracking for enhanced border security operations. - Ship-to-Ship and Ship-to-Shore Logistics
Building on AIR6 | AIRBORNE ’s initiatives such as DrWind, SaturnX, and DrUber, Satcom integration enables autonomous delivery of cargo, spare parts, and medical supplies between vessels or from ship to shore. Continuous connectivity ensures real-time tracking, precise navigation and seamless coordination with maritime operations supporting reliable logistics in dynamic offshore environments. - Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR)
In defence, security or tactical operations missions, Satcom ensures secure, long-range command and control, even in GPS-denied or contested environments. When combined with the AirborneSIM platform, these missions can be simulated, refined and validated virtually before deployment, ensuring mission readiness and compliance. - Field Communications Relay
UAVs equipped with Satcom can serve as airborne communication relays, establishing secure, interference-free networks for emergency responders, field task forces, or defence operations in regions lacking or impaired terrestrial infrastructure.
- Critical Infrastructure Protection
Secondary Use Cases
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- Agricultural / Forestry Surveys and Monitoring
Large-scale agricultural and forestry operations benefit from Satcom-enabled UAVs that deliver real-time insights into crop health, forest density, and land use. Continuous connectivity supports precision agriculture and sustainable land management practices. - Disaster Mapping
Following natural or human-made disasters, Satcom-enabled UAVs provide rapid situational awareness through live aerial imaging, supporting coordinated response efforts, resource allocation, and post-event damage assessment when local networks are down and disrupted. - Environmental Monitoring
Continuous Satcom connectivity enables UAVs to collect and transmit environmental data from remote or inaccessible areas. This capability supports long-term monitoring of climate patterns, ecosystems, and natural resource management. - Wildlife Tracking / Mapping
Satcom facilitates real-time tracking of animal movement and habitat conditions, empowering data-driven conservation, anti-poaching operations, and biodiversity protection across large or protected regions. - Wildfire Surveillance and Response
UAVs equipped with Satcom deliver early detection and live tracking of wildfire behaviour. Real-time transmission enhances operational coordination, supports resource prioritisation, and improves firefighter safety in active response scenarios. - Geological Mapping and Mining Operations
From exploration surveys to operational monitoring and safety, Satcom-enabled UAVs provide continuous high-resolution data from remote or hazardous mining and geological sites, supporting accurate resource evaluation and planning.
- Agricultural / Forestry Surveys and Monitoring
Figure 3: Satcom Use Cases and Applications
Establishing a UAV SatCom Ecosystem
AIR6 | AIRBORNE works with Gotonomi as a connectivity partner. The Gotonomi Velaris Multilink unit combines a 4G LTE modem with a Satcom module working on the Viasat Velaris L-Band network. This provides near-global coverage using the same protected network that is proven for maritime and commercial aviation safety. Gotonomi’s terminal provides an IP data link that can be leveraged by other safety-critical systems that an operator relies on when making a BVLOS safety case; from autopilots to UTM to automated landing systems required for drone ports. The system-of-systems shown in the diagram below require this level of inter-operability to enable truly autonomous flight.
To enable both transmission of safety critical C2 data, and valuable but non-critical real time payload data, Gotonomi partners with Videosoft Global by embedding the software application on the compute module of the Multilink terminal. This provides the ability to stream real-time video down to 4kbps, allowing management of data costs.
Figure 4: Satcom Ecosystem Design
Image credit: Gotonomi
Integration through Simulation and Digital Twin Testing
AIR6 | AIRBORNE recognises that integrating Satcom into UAVs extends far beyond hardware. Using the AirborneSIM platform, the company is able to simulate satellite communication environments, testing signal latency, network handovers and fail-safe procedures in a high-fidelity digital twin before real-world deployment. This approach reduces risk, accelerates commercialisation and ensures reliability across every mission profile.
Simulation enables engineers to validate autonomous handover between Satcom and terrestrial networks, test multi-drone communication architectures and evaluate performance under variable signal conditions, which is important for mission assurance and regulatory compliance. Under an ESA mandate, AIR6 Systems – together with Austrian partners 4D-Aerospace and TU Graz – is developing a simulator dedicated to Satcom-enabled drone communication. The solution will be incorporated into AirborneSIM, offering end users a more complete simulation environment for BVLOS mission preparation and planning. For more information on AirborneSIM, please refer to AIR6 | AIRBORN’s previous articles, ‘Digitisation in Defence: How Simulation Provides the Tactical Edge’ and ‘Transforming Drone Operations & Training with AirborneSIM: The Power of Simulation’.
Beyond the Horizon: The Future of Satcom in UAV Connectivity
As BVLOS operations continue to redefine the boundaries of drone efficiency and autonomy, Satcom stands at the core of this transformation, delivering resilient communication links that ensure safety, reliability and mission advancements across all environments. The convergence of satellite technology, AI-driven autonomy, and advanced UAV engineering is unlocking a new era of intelligent, globally connected flight.
For AIR6 | AIRBORNE, this progress is built on collaboration between stakeholders, technology partners and researchers to drive innovation that extends beyond line of sight and beyond limits. Through continued integration of Satcom into its UAV platforms and simulation environments, the company is shaping a future where drones operate with confidence, precision, and complete situational awareness anywhere on Earth.
The future of unmanned aviation is not defined by distance, but by connection. Satcom enables the next generation of UAVs to deliver continuous performance, assured safety, and true operational autonomy across the globe.