Houston-based Sky-Futures USA Inc., a drone inspection service for the oil and gas industry, can begin commercial unmanned infrastructure inspections in the U.S. It received the Federal Aviation Administration Section 333 exemption allowing its Ascending Technologies Falcon 8 drone in U.S. airspace, the company said March 16.

Drone-led inspections of industry infrastructure eliminate putting rope climbers at risk, reduce inspection time and reduce costs, said Jason Forte, the vice president of business development. He worked as an engineer in the GoM after retiring from the U.S. Air Force as a pilot. He amassed more than 6,500 hours in the Air Force, flying manned and unmanned aircraft.

Sky-Futures has inspected infrastructure for Talisman Energy Inc. (NYSE: TLM, TO: TLM), Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX), ConocoPhilips (NYSE: COP), Apache Corp. (NYSE: APC) and others.

The U.S. is the biggest potential single-source marketplace for commercial drone technology, and Sky-Futures USA has an existing client base in the country. Clients will begin commissioning work immediately now that the exemption has been received, said Chris Blackford, global operations director and co-founder.

Sky-Futures is based in the U.K.