A police drone with a camera hovers in the sky, lights glowing on its arms.

Joint Industry Demand for Assured Drone Electronic Conspicuity Connectivity

Mobile operators are being called upon to enable trusted, scalable and interoperable drone operations through programmable network APIs and advanced cellular capabilities.

About enterprise API demands

The global drone industry is scaling rapidly across logistics, public safety, infrastructure, agriculture and industrial operations, increasing the need for trusted and interoperable Electronic Conspicuity in shared airspace.

As Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLoS) operations expand, drones must be securely identifiable, connected and visible across networks and borders. However, current airspace awareness and drone visibility systems remain fragmented and inconsistent.

The drone and aviation ecosystem is therefore calling on mobile operators to expose standardised network capabilities through GSMA Open Gateway and CAMARA APIs. Leveraging 5G Standalone, NTN and advanced cellular technologies, operators can enable assured connectivity, trusted identity, resilient command and control communications and scalable drone operations.

APIs including Quality on Demand, Location Verification, Connectivity Insights and Number Verification will help establish mobile networks as a foundational infrastructure layer for the future of safe, scalable and commercially viable connected airspace.

Problem

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Current drone visibility and airspace awareness systems remain fragmented, vulnerable to spoofing and inconsistent across networks and markets, limiting the safe scaling of BVLoS and advanced drone operations.

Solution

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Programmable network APIs and advanced cellular capabilities provide trusted identity, assured connectivity, resilient communications and interoperable Electronic Conspicuity for large-scale drone ecosystems.

API service

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Quality on Demand (QoD), Location Verification, Number Verification, Population Density, Connectivity Insights and SIM Swap APIs supporting mission critical drone command and control, trusted positioning, operational awareness and scalable drone identity frameworks.

Impact

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Safer and more scalable drone operations, stronger trust and identity frameworks, resilient airspace communications, improved operational awareness, enhanced regulatory confidence and new enterprise revenue opportunities for mobile network operators.

More information

What is the drone Electronic Conspicuity demand statement?

The drone and aviation ecosystem is calling on mobile operators to expose standardised network APIs and cellular capabilities to support scalable, trusted and globally interoperable drone Electronic Conspicuity.

Why should mobile operators act now?

Drone operations are rapidly scaling across enterprise, logistics, public safety and industrial sectors. Regulators are progressing BVLoS frameworks and the market is moving quickly toward routine operational deployment.

How does GSMA Fusion help?

GSMA Fusion and Open Gateway provide a standardised framework for exposing network capabilities through interoperable APIs, enabling scalable deployment across operators, markets and aviation ecosystems.

Market snapshot

The global drone market was valued at approximately USD 73 billion in 2024 and is projected to exceed USD 163 billion by 2030.

Commercial drone deployments are rapidly expanding across logistics, infrastructure inspection, agriculture, public safety and industrial operations.

Annual drone shipments are expected to grow from approximately 1.5 million units in 2024 to more than 3.3 million units by 2030.

Regulatory frameworks supporting BVLoS and advanced drone operations are accelerating across the United States, United Kingdom and European Union.

5G Standalone, NTN and Open Gateway APIs are emerging as critical enablers of scalable, connected low altitude aviation infrastructure.

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Partners

This initiative is supported by:

Download the full Statement of Requirements

Drone Electronic Conspicuity Statement of Requirements