While drones have been making headlines for years, adoption of Drone as First Responder (DFR) programs has remained slow — caught in a web of technical, regulatory and cultural challenges. But with Versaterm’s acquisition of DroneSense this summer, two of public safety’s most influential tech players believe they can finally break the logjam.
“DFR adoption faces regulatory, technical and cultural hurdles,” said Christopher Eyhorn, CEO of DroneSense in an interview with TheDroneGirl. “At DroneSense, now backed by Versaterm, we’re addressing these barriers head-on.”
From a regulatory perspective, FAA limitations on beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) operations have long been one of the biggest bottlenecks to DFR scale. But that’s changing with the release of the U.S. government’s proposed rule to enable routine BVLOS drone operations.
“This acquisition also comes at a pivotal moment,” said Rohan Galloway-Dawkins, Chief Product Officer at Versaterm. “Both Canada and the United States are preparing to loosen regulations around drone operations, allowing qualified, trained operators to fly beyond visual line of sight. These regulatory shifts will reduce the cost of DFR and unlock new opportunities.”
Versaterm is also addressing the technical barriers by embedding drone response directly into its CAD and Incident Command systems — simplifying workflows and eliminating the need for siloed apps.
“We’re enabling agencies to dispatch drones as easily as any patrol, fire or EMS unit,” Galloway-Dawkins said. “Our goal is to make drone deployments a seamless, routine part of emergency response.”
Yet it’s not just tech or policy that needs to evolve. Eyhorn points to public trust and agency culture as critical hurdles to overcome.
“Communities must have confidence that drones are deployed responsibly,” he said. “We’re leading with compliance, transparency and community trust through robust audit trails, flight logs and data governance.”
DroneSense’s platform includes end-to-end encryption, role-based access controls and secure real-time collaboration — protections Eyhorn says are essential for earning public and inter-agency trust.
Cultural buy-in will also be driven by ease of use and demonstrable impact. That’s where Versaterm’s integration strategy could shine.
“By embedding DFR into Versaterm’s CAD and RMS platforms, we make drone response a natural extension of public safety workflows,” Eyhorn said. “This is how we move DFR from pilot programs to mainstream, mission-critical practice.”
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