Amazon Drone Deals: DJI Mini 5 Pro with RC-N3 Controller now for $759!
Arizona
Zipline reaches $7.6 billion valuation as Valor Equity Partners leads $600 million funding round
Watching Zipline’s trajectory from a Rwanda-based medical delivery startup to America’s largest autonomous delivery network has been one of the defining stories in commercial drone aviation. The company just reached a $7.6 billion valuation with a $600 million funding round…
Bridgeport’s Flock Safety Drone Program Collapses Five Days After Launch Amid National Backlash
Just five days ago, we reported on Bridgeport, Connecticut officially launching its Drone as First Responder program with Flock Safety. Mayor Joe Ganim was demonstrating the drones on rooftops. Police Chief Roderick Porter was calling it “re-imagining policing.” Council President…
Mission Viejo’s Third Thermal Drone Dog Rescue Proves This Tech Isn’t a Gimmick
When strong winds forced Mission Viejo Animal Services to ground their drone last Friday, a 1-year-old Australian Shepherd named Lana was still somewhere in the steep canyons between Dove Canyon and Coto de Caza. The officers knew the technology could…
Congress Wants Counter-Drone Powers at Wildfires, Not Just Stadiums
Three days after the House passed the SAFER SKIES Act authorizing local police to take down drones at stadiums, a bipartisan group of lawmakers quietly introduced the next phase of counter-drone expansion. The Wildfire Aerial Response Safety Act (H.R. 6618)…
Wing and Walmart Just Made Drone Delivery a National Reality with 150-Store Expansion
After years of pilot programs and regional rollouts, drone delivery just went national. Wing and Walmart are adding 150 stores to their drone delivery network over the next 12 months, bringing the total to over 270 locations by 2027 and…
Amazon’s Drone Delivery Paradox: Green Light in UK, Red Flag in Italy
I spent the last few days parsing two very different Amazon announcements, and the contrast tells you everything about why drone delivery remains such a regulatory minefield. Within days of each other, Amazon received approval to launch Britain’s first commercial…
Pilot Institute Survey: 8,056 Operators Reveal DJI Ban Will Devastate American Drone Industry
I’ve been warning about the consequences of a DJI ban for over a year. Now we have the data to prove it. Pilot Institute surveyed 8,056 drone operators across the United States, and the findings confirm our worst fears: the…
Gilbert Tests Various Drones as First Responders
The Town of Gilbert, Arizona is quietly building one of the more serious Drone as First Responder programs in the Southwest, with its Police and Fire departments jointly testing autonomous drone deployments to improve emergency response times, as reported by…
Amazon Prime Air Drone Delivery Operations Slashed in Italy – What Now?
Amazon has halted its plans to run its commercial Prime Air drone delivery operations in Italy, effectively shelving the project after what sounded, on paper, like a very promising start. According to an article from Reuters, Amazon made the layoff…
FCC Bans All Foreign And DJI Drones: America Just Made Itself Weaker, Not Safer
We’ve been tracking the December 23 deadline for months, expecting DJI to land on the FCC’s Covered List through bureaucratic default. What the FCC actually did today goes far beyond anything we predicted. They didn’t just ban DJI. They banned…
Senators Demand DJI Drone Disclosures from Contractors at Nuclear and Border Sites
Two senators are pressing major construction contractors about DJI drone use at nuclear facilities and border security sites. The letters follow GSA Inspector General findings that contractors used DJI equipment at sensitive locations. But the real question isn’t whether the…
DJI Ban: Why Everyone Owes Drone Pilots Honest Answers
This week, DJI’s Head of Global Policy Adam Welsh sat down with YouTuber Faruk from iPhonedo for what was billed as a deep dive into the looming December 23 DJI ban. I watched the interview hoping for hard questions. What…