/ News & Airspace • By Ray Richardson • • 4 min read

TSA Wants Industry Voices for Future BVLOS Security Programs — RSVP by October 19

TSA is soliciting operators and associations for closed technical roundtables that will help shape model language for TSA-approved UAS BVLOS security programs. Requests are due October 19, 2026, unless TSA shifts that window after its final rule publishes. This notice is not a final rule and does not authorize BVLOS flight.

TSA Wants Industry Voices for Future BVLOS Security Programs — RSVP by October 19
Regulatory Status Notice

Part 108 is not currently operative law. The FAA draft final rule for Normalizing Unmanned Aircraft Systems Beyond Visual Line of Sight Operations remains under OIRA review (RIN 2120-AL82, pending EO 12866 review record rrid=1457213, received 10 July 2026). Ordinary commercial small-UAS work still sits under 14 CFR Part 107, plus whatever waiver or exemption you actually hold. Part 135 is a different certificate. This TSA notice does not move anyone from one pile to the other.

The Brief

On 4 September 2026, the Transportation Security Administration published a Federal Register notice (91 FR 56894, FR Doc. 2026-18124, RIN 1652-AA80) asking for industry representatives to join closed technical roundtables. The stated purpose is to collect individual input that TSA can use when it develops model language for TSA-approved security programs covering UAS operations beyond visual line of sight.

The notice is a solicitation for participants, not a security rule and not an operating authorization. TSA says the roundtables will be held after publication of the forthcoming FAA and TSA final rules so that attendees can see whether they fall under those rules and what the security requirements actually say.

Flight-Ready Breakdown

Regulatory Verification

What Changed

TSA opened a participation window for closed technical roundtables on UAS BVLOS security-program model language. Requests must reach the TSA contact listed in the notice by 19 October 2026. TSA may change that registration period after it publishes its final rule. Meetings may be in-person with a virtual option, or virtual only. TSA will send attendance details to people it qualifies.

Who Is Affected

  • UAS operators already flying BVLOS under FAA waivers or exemptions
  • Operators that intend to seek an FAA permit or certificate to conduct or support UAS BVLOS under the forthcoming FAA final rule
  • Industry associations representing those operators or a subset of them

Participation is limited. TSA will generally take people it determines represent entities potentially and directly affected by the final rule. Cap: no more than two individuals per association or company. TSA may cut the list further for space, topic, or convenience.

Everyone who sits in must be validated by TSA, approved for Sensitive Security Information (SSI) access, and must sign a non-disclosure agreement before the meeting. SSI duties continue after the roundtables end.

Contact named in the notice: Kristine Adams, TSA; phone (571) 227-2062; email BVLOS@tsa.dhs.gov.

Why It Matters

In the August 2025 joint NPRM (90 FR 38212), TSA proposed security requirements for UAS BVLOS operations that would be authorized under proposed 14 CFR part 108. Those proposals included vetting of certain covered personnel and a requirement that certain operators keep a TSA-approved security program. This notice is TSA’s stated path for collecting industry practice so it can write model approaches operators might use to meet those program requirements once a final rule exists.

If your desk expects to operate under a Part 108-era security program, or your association wants a seat when model language is shaped, the RSVP calendar is the actionable piece. If you are flying ordinary Part 107 work with no plan to sit in those rooms, today’s mission profile does not change because of this notice.

Before Next Mission

  1. Confirm the authority you actually hold today (Part 107, waiver, exemption, Part 135, COA). Do not treat this notice as BVLOS permission.
  2. If you want a seat: calendar 19 October 2026, email BVLOS@tsa.dhs.gov, and plan for SSI approval plus an NDA. Assume the date can move after TSA’s final rule publishes.
  3. Do not change CONOPS, visual-observer practice, or waiver paperwork based on draft or future security-program model language.

What Not to Assume

  • Do not assume this notice is a final rule, an effective date, or operational authority.
  • Do not assume Part 108 is law. It is still at OIRA.
  • Do not assume the roundtables start before the FAA and TSA final rules publish. The notice says they will be held after those publications.
  • Do not assume attendance is open to the public or that the rooms will produce consensus recommendations. TSA says they will not; individual views only; not a FACA advisory committee.
  • Do not mash this story with Section 232 UAS import-duty coverage. Different docket, different agency action.

Bottom Line

TSA is building the guest list for closed security-program roundtables that start after Part 108-era final rules publish. Calendar the 19 October 2026 RSVP if you intend to shape that model language. Keep flying under the authority you hold today.

Sources

Suggested next read: Part 108 OIRA status — July 2026

The Drone Pilot Brief does not accept payment for editorial coverage. This notice is not a final rule and does not authorize BVLOS flight.

Ray Richardson

About Ray Richardson

Part 107 Commercial UAS Operator, former manned aviation journalist, and Editor-in-Chief of The Drone Pilot Brief. Specializing in regulatory workflows, GIS mapping telemetry, and advanced fleet operations.

Related Briefs