In 1911, the Wright Brothers performed the first motorized flight. Very soon after that, they and other early aviation enthusiasts discovered that flying is not without risk. Many young pioneers lost their lives in airplane crashes. Legislators realized that a new set of rules were necessary to make flying safe and useful. Over the years, a comprehensive international set of regulations were created to address the issues of flight safety. Aircraft must comply with strict reliability requirements and must be certified before they can be used. Airmen must undergo rigorous training and must be medically sound in order to be allowed to fly aircraft and must have a pilot license. Aircraft operators must adhere to strict procedures. Indisputably, safety is paramount and on the top of the minds of everyone who is active in aviation.

Technological evolution has made it possible for just about everyone to own drones and send them aloft. First, there were a few. Now there are many. The aviation system, however, was never designed to cater for the large amounts of small unmanned vehicles flying at very low levels. The challenge for the industry now is to ensure cohabitation of both manned and unmanned in a safe manner. And that is what Unifly stands for. 'Unifly wants to bridge the gap between manned and unmanned aviation.'

In 2012, two military air traffic controllers brought a futuristic idea to VITO (Flemish institute for technological research) where Unifly was then later spun off from in 2015. They are based in Antwerp along with additional facilities at New York, and Denmark. Unifly's vision is anchored in building the technology that is needed to integrate drone traffic into the airspace. The company that helps to shape a future in which drones will be able to operate safely, thereby taking into account the needs of all stakeholders. Henceforth, Unifly is leading light to address, 'The Future of Unmanned Traffic Management – Applied today'.