-
- News
- Books
Featured Books
- pcb007 Magazine
Latest Issues
Current IssueVoices of the Industry
We take the pulse of the PCB industry by sharing insights from leading fabricators and suppliers in this month's issue. We've gathered their thoughts on the new U.S. administration, spending, the war in Ukraine, and their most pressing needs. It’s an eye-opening and enlightening look behind the curtain.
The Essential Guide to Surface Finishes
We go back to basics this month with a recount of a little history, and look forward to addressing the many challenges that high density, high frequency, adhesion, SI, and corrosion concerns for harsh environments bring to the fore. We compare and contrast surface finishes by type and application, take a hard look at the many iterations of gold plating, and address palladium as a surface finish.
It's Show Time!
In this month’s issue of PCB007 Magazine we reimagine the possibilities featuring stories all about IPC APEX EXPO 2025—covering what to look forward to, and what you don’t want to miss.
- Articles
- Columns
Search Console
- Links
- Media kit
||| MENU - pcb007 Magazine
Volatus Aerospace Selects Inmarsat’s Velaris
May 12, 2023 | InmarsatEstimated reading time: 3 minutes

Volatus Aerospace, a leader in commercial crewed and uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) solutions, has selected Inmarsat’s Velaris solution to expand its customer offerings in key sectors, including inspection, compliance, equipment distribution, public safety, and drone cargo delivery.
With Inmarsat satellite connectivity combined with LTE as a multilink capability, Volatus and its customers can expand business operations to fly longer distances beyond visual line of sight and increase return on investment exponentially across existing UAV services.
The two companies will work closely to integrate Velaris’ satellite connectivity for both small remotely piloted aircraft (UAS/UAVs) and larger crewed commercial aircraft. This will allow remote operators to monitor, control and secure their flights safely in any environment. The companies will also develop best practice operations in pursuit of a truly integrated airspace.
Volatus offers a range of crewed and uncrewed vehicle solutions and services across urban and rural environments, including in areas where traditional connectivity, such as cellular, is not reliable. Even in urban environments, signal shadows (called ‘urban canyons’) can still affect connectivity, particularly in dense cities with many high-rise buildings. In order to introduce semi-autonomous crewed and remotely piloted UAVs into the national airspace, reliable connectivity is required at all times to protect operators in the sky, as well as people and property on the ground.
To combat the challenge of patchy connectivity and allow Volatus to keep pace with customer needs, it sought a satellite connectivity partner whose network enables consistent, resilient connectivity in all environments. The solution, powered by Inmarsat’s award-winning ELERA satellite network, means Volatus can offer customers robust multilink connectivity during first responder (Drone as a First Responder) and long-distance beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) remote missions.
During missions where there is spotty, weak or no cellular connection, Inmarsat’s robust satellite connectivity will act as the primary command and control (C2) communication datalink to mitigate terrestrial connectivity challenges, for example congestion, signal shadows, and high altitude operations.
Velaris provides secure communications for commercial UAVs to fly BVLOS and seamlessly integrate with aircraft in commercial airspace. It allows operators to securely send their UAVs on long distance flights and access a variety of value-added applications, such as real-time tracking and remote operation, to ensure safe integration in managed airspace.
Volatus will use Inmarsat’s compact and lightweight micro satcom terminal to address real-world challenges - for example middle-mile cargo delivery and supply chain logistics - by integrating autonomous drone solutions into operational airspace.
Joel Klooster, Senior Vice President of Aircraft Operations and Safety, Inmarsat, said “It is an incredibly exciting time in the UAV sector. With Volatus, we will bring new innovations to market by harnessing the unique advantages of our Velaris UAV service.”
“The number of uncrewed vehicles in our airspace is expected to increase tenfold in the next decade, so having safe and resilient communication solutions ready for customers will be crucial. Volatus is set to be one of the first partners to take advantage of our micro-terminal. That will be a major step forward in the innovations it can offer customers.”
Dean Attridge, Vice President of Solutions Engineering at Volatus Aerospace, said “Joining the Velaris Partner Network will, no doubt, see the development of several new product areas in the coming months, while Inmarsat’s renowned regulatory expertise will help support our advancements in semi-autonomous crewed and autonomous uncrewed aviation safety."
“Together, we can create solutions that offer growth for our customer base, while ensuring every new offering has safety front of mind. Ultimately, our goal is to increase safety and performance facilitating more aircraft missions and offer more BVLOS solutions – and our partnership with Inmarsat will be integral to achieving this.”
Suggested Items
RTX's Collins Aerospace Enhances Capabilities to Speed Marine Corps Decision-making in Battle
04/22/2025 | RTXCollins Aerospace, an RTX business, successfully demonstrated new technology that helps the military gather and use information from a wider range of sources at Project Convergence Capstone 5, a large-scale military exercise.
AdvancedPCB Appoints Gary Stoffer as Chief Commercial Officer
04/18/2025 | PRNewswireAdvancedPCB is proud to announce the appointment of Gary Stoffer as its new Chief Commercial Officer (CCO). In this role, Stoffer will lead all sales, marketing, and commercial strategy initiatives as the company continues its mission to deliver cutting-edge PCB solutions to industries worldwide.
Real Time with... IPC APEX EXPO 2025: GreenSource's Growth and Future Developments
04/15/2025 | Real Time with...IPC APEX EXPOThings are looking bright for GreenSource. Michael Gleason shares an update on GreenSource's recent growth and upcoming changes. A recipient of a Defense Production Act Investment Program award, GreenSource is planning for new substrate capabilities. Current investments continue to enhance equipment and sustainability initiatives such as water quality. And their unique collaboration with the University of New Hampshire continues to aid their workforce development, despite recruitment challenges.
Apogee Semiconductor Teams with Arrow Electronics to Expand Distribution of Space-Grade Technologies
04/14/2025 | Apogee SemiconductorApogee Semiconductor, a leading provider of advanced technologies for space and extreme environments, announced its collaboration with Arrow Electronics, a global distributor of electronic components and services.
Satair, RTX’s Collins Aerospace Extend 50-year Relationship
04/14/2025 | Collins AerospaceSatair and Collins Aerospace, an RTX business, have signed a four-year extension of their cabin interior parts distribution agreement, continuing a relationship that has spanned more than 50 years.