Universal Orlando Drone Project Permit Issued for $178,000

The City of Orlando issued a $178,000 electrical permit on Oct. 16, 2026 for a job named "B4 Drone Project" on Universal property at 5900 Universal Blvd., the address on the city's Universal Studios Florida permits. The permit doesn't say what the wiring will power, and Universal has not announced a new drone show. No other City of Orlando permit on Universal property carries "drone" in its project name.

City permit5900 Universal Blvd.Status Open

City of Orlando, electrical permit

ELE2026-15433

B4 DRONE PROJECT

Work: Electrical alteration, commercial
Value: $178,000
Address: 5900 Universal Blvd.
Owner: Universal City Development Partners
Contractor: Service Complete Electric Inc., Oviedo
Filed: Oct. 16, 2026
Issued: Oct. 16, 2026

IssuedOct. 16, 2026

$178,000Estimated value of the electrical work in building B4

Same dayFiled, fees paid and issued Oct. 16
1Review cycle
B4The building named on the permit
OpenStatus as of Oct. 25, 2026

What the drone project permit shows

The permit record for ELE2026-15433 lists the job as an electrical alteration under commercial plan review, with an estimated cost of $178,000. The owner is Universal City Development Partners, and the contractor is Service Complete Electric Inc. of Oviedo. The permit went through one review cycle, and it was filed, paid and issued on the same day, Oct. 16, 2026.

The city lists 5900 Universal Blvd. on Universal's annual facility permit for Universal Studios Florida, and the drone permit sits on the same parcel, 282313883300120. Earlier permits call the building "USF B4", using the Universal Studios Florida initials. Epic Universe is not named anywhere on the permit.

What the record does not say is what the electricians are wiring. It names no show, no drone count and no equipment, so what the drone project is for is not confirmed.

What is B4

B4 is a Universal building that has been renovated in phases since at least 2024, and the drone job is the newest entry in its permit file. One permit calls it "USO North Campus B4". The biggest job is a $2.9 million building permit for "B4 Renovation Phase 3 & 4A," covering 22,183 square feet. It was filed June 18, 2025 and issued Oct. 15, 2025, with The Whiting-Turner Contracting Co. as contractor, and it is still open.

Permits on the parcel spell the building both B4 and B-4. In November 2023, for example, one permit was filed for "B4 AHU 3" and another for "B-4 AHU-3 Replacement". The biggest job filed this year uses the B-4 spelling. It is a $1.5 million building permit for a "B-4 Elevated Platform", covering 9,108 square feet. It was filed April 24, 2026 and issued Sept. 21, 2026, with PCL Construction Services as contractor. It is still open. The record does not say what the platform is for.

Service Complete Electric has worked in B4 before. The same contractor pulled a $250,000 permit for B4 phase 2 interior enhancements, which was issued Dec. 18, 2024 and finaled April 4, 2025.

Renovation phase 3 and 4A, building 2025$2,900,000
B-4 elevated platform, building 2026$1,500,000
Interior enhancements, building 2024$965,000
Phase 2 interior enhancements, building 2024$850,000
Interior renovation, electrical 2025$377,600
Renovation phase 3 and 4A, fire 2026$252,200
Phase 2 interior enhancements, electrical 2024$250,000
Drone project, electrical 2026$178,000
Renovation phase 2, fire 2024$176,278
Renovation phase 3 and 4, mechanical 2026$165,000
Renovation, fire 2024$156,800
Renovation phase 3 and 4, plumbing 2026$150,000

Every City of Orlando permit naming B4 or B-4 at 5900 Universal Blvd. filed since 2024 with an estimated value of $150,000 or more, largest first. Bars are drawn to scale.

CineSational and its drones

The permit does not mention CineSational, the Universal Studios Florida lagoon show with fountains, projections, fireworks and drones. That show ended its summer run on Aug. 23, 2026, the final date Coaster101 reported. Sky Elements managed CineSational's drones, KennyThePirate reported. Sky Elements also flew a Dec. 21, 2024 drone show at Lake Eola in Orlando where drones collided at the start of the show and several flew into the audience, seriously injuring a child, according to the NTSB final report on accident DCA25LA065. Days later Universal said it had "currently paused the drone component" of CineSational, Laughing Place reported. The show came back in April 2025 without drones, and the drones returned in June 2025. The Unofficial Guides put the fleet at 660 drones.

Universal drones and B4, the timeline

No source links the B4 permits to these drone shows.

Drone showsB4 permits

Dec. 18, 2024Service Complete Electric gets a $250,000 permit for B4 Phase 2 interior work.
Dec. 21, 2024The Lake Eola drone show crash seriously injures a spectator.
Late December 2024Universal pauses the drones in CineSational.
April 2025CineSational returns without drones. An FAA waiver for Sky Elements to fly over Universal Studios Florida runs from April 11, KennyThePirate reported.
June 2025The drones return to CineSational.
Oct. 15, 2025The $2.9 million B4 renovation permit is issued.
Aug. 23, 2026CineSational ends its summer run.
Sept. 21, 2026The $1.5 million B-4 Elevated Platform permit is issued.
Oct. 16, 2026The $178,000 B4 Drone Project electrical permit is issued.

What happens next

For a trip, the permit itself announces no show, no date and no closure. It is still open, and the city has not recorded a final date for it. For comparison, Service Complete Electric's last B4 permit was finaled about three and a half months after it was issued.

Separately, KennyThePirate reported that an FAA waiver letting Sky Elements fly over Universal Studios Florida runs from April 11 through March 31, 2027. Nothing in the permit ties it to Sky Elements or the waiver, and the permit doesn't name a drone operator.

Universal drone project, answered

Is Universal Orlando getting a new drone show?

Universal has not announced one. The city did issue a $178,000 electrical permit for a "B4 Drone Project" at the Universal Studios Florida address on Oct. 16, 2026, but the permit doesn't say what the work is for.

Where is the drone project?

Building B4 at 5900 Universal Blvd., the address on the city's Universal Studios Florida permits. Earlier permits call the building "USF B4" and "USO North Campus B4."

Are drones still in CineSational?

Coaster101 listed drones among the show's elements when its summer 2026 run ended Aug. 23, 2026. The drones returned in June 2025 after Universal paused them in December 2024.

Who is doing the work?

Service Complete Electric Inc. of Oviedo, the same contractor that did B4's $250,000 Phase 2 electrical work in 2024 and 2025.