KITE Drones Receive BVLOS Delivery Approval in Zimbabwe

Clearance for Commercial Drone Flights

Zimbabwe’s aviation regulator has given Drone Solutions International the go-ahead to fly delivery drones beyond visual line of sight, using Kite Aero’s KITE uncrewed aircraft. The decision shifts the operation from trial runs to routine commercial service and adds Zimbabwe to a list of 25 jurisdictions where KITE has been approved.

Building the Safety Case

The approval came after six months of joint work involving Drone Solutions, the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe, and Air Traffic Services. Together they assembled aircraft documentation, operating manuals, risk assessments, and airspace integration plans, then validated them through a live demonstration program in August 2026. Kite Aero supported the application with data from AXIOM, its operations management platform, which has recorded more than 41,000 autonomous flights and 20,000 flight hours across Africa, Europe, the Pacific, and the United States.

How Missions Will Be Managed

Commercial flights will be planned, authorized, and flown by Drone Solutions pilots through AXIOM. The platform bakes in the risk assessment, flight planning, and airspace coordination steps accepted by the regulator, while also monitoring aircraft hours, battery cycles, and maintenance needs. This gives both the operator and the authority a single, centralized record of fleet activity.

Medical Logistics First

The first missions will concentrate on medical and pathology logistics, connecting regional health facilities with central laboratories. Flying samples and urgent supplies could reduce pressure on road networks that struggle over long distances. Drone Solutions and Kite Aero have also set out expansion plans for Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Malawi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.