First responders and other organizations responding to natural disasters or other emergency situations may be eligible for expedited approval through our Special Governmental Interest (SGI) process. Operations that may be considered include:

• Firefighting
  • Includes Wildfire Suppression and Red Flag Warning Area Monitoring
• Search and Rescue
• Law Enforcement
• Utility or Other Critical Infrastructure Restoration
• Damage Assessments Supporting Disaster Recovery Related Insurance Claims
• Media Coverage Providing Crucial Information to the Public

To apply for a waiver through the SGI process you must be an existing Part 107 Remote Pilot with a current certificate OR you must have an existing Certificate of Waiver or Authorization (COA). To submit a waiver through this process, fill out the Emergency Operation Request Form (MS Word) and send to the FAA's System Operations Support Center (SOSC) at 9-ator-hq-sosc@faa.gov. If approved, the FAA will add an amendment to your existing COA or Remote Pilot Certificate that authorizes you to fly under certain conditions for the specified operation. If denied, operators should NOT fly outside the provisions of their existing COA or part 107. Operators have the option to amend their requests.

• The Special Government Interest (SGI) amendment process and is outlined in JO 7210.3.

Note that any Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) approval issued through SOSC will typically require the establishment of a Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR), and applicants should expect extended processing time compared to standard emergency SGI approvals (which may be issued in minutes for operations within visual line of sight).