FCC bans the sale of all foreign drones in the US – Jalopnik

The FCC has banned the sale of all new foreign-made drones and drone parts in the US, ostensibly as a matter of national security. As FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said on X“Criminals, terrorists, and hostile foreign actors have intensified their weaponization of these technologies, creating new and serious threats to our homeland.” It is certainly true that drones are redefining the shape of modern conflict. But the question here is: if foreign drones are banned, why wouldn’t all these bad guys just buy American drones? It is not clear how the ban will solve the alleged problem.

To be clear: this ban only affects future drone models designed outside the US. In other words, everything you can buy now will remain on sale. It’s just that newer models won’t be certified, so in the future only old foreign drones and new domestic drones will be available. Take that, terrorists! However, the military and homeland security forces can still apply for waivers for specific models they want. And since many first responders use drones these days, it wouldn’t be surprising if they also receive waivers.

But part of the reason these American companies are struggling is because they are fighting the established dominance of foreign drones, particularly from China, and even more specifically from DJI. This one company controls over 70% of the entire global drone market; the products are cheap, reliable and capable. However, in this world of trade wars and Taiwanese tensions, being so heavily dependent on a Chinese company is a potential risk. Plus, they might not be safe: The military banned DJI drones in 2017 for cybersecurity reasons, and they might even send all their information back to the Chinese government, per CNN.

So it looks like the Trump administration just took a hammer to the whole situation. Bad drones disappear! The problem, of course, is that everyone who uses them is let down. Drones are a huge market, estimated at approximately $6 billion in the US. For example, drones have become available crucial to agriculture in a way that cannot be replaced cheaply. The good news is that everyone can still buy the same old models as before; the bad news is that they’ll never get all the cool new stuff that the rest of the world will. To catch up, America will have to build competitiveness at a competitive price.