Washington
Washington state drone news: regulations, industry developments, innovative uses, events, and the impact on businesses and communities in the state.
DJI Urges U.S. Government To Complete Security Review As Retroactive Ban Powers Take Effect
DJI issued its first official statement to DroneXL following the FCC’s unanimous vote earlier this week, warning that the company faces automatic addition to the agency’s Covered List in 55 days—potentially triggering retroactive bans that could affect recently released drones,…
Canada’s First Anti-Drone Prison Task Force Cuts Contraband Drops 50% in Nine Months
A basketball stuffed with tobacco and cellphones. Ceramic knives that slip past metal detectors. Drones equipped with deep-sea fishing release mechanisms. These are just some of the seized contraband items displayed by a groundbreaking joint task force in Kingston, Ontario—Canada’s…
China’s Military Deploys Cost-Efficient DeepSeek AI Across Drone Swarms and Robot Dogs
China’s People’s Liberation Army has rapidly integrated DeepSeek artificial intelligence into military weapons systems ranging from autonomous combat vehicles to drone swarms, according to a Reuters investigation that reviewed hundreds of research papers, patents, and procurement records. The development threatens…
Norway Deploys First Operational NATO Drone Swarm As Europe Races To Match Ukraine’s Battlefield Innovation
The Norwegian Army has officially received its first Valkyrie autonomous drone swarm system, becoming the first NATO country to field an operational swarm platform as European allies scramble to adopt rapid-iteration defense development models proven effective in Ukraine’s ongoing conflict…
Florida Senator Pushes Emergency DJI Ban, New Drone Payload Restrains Suspects, and Georgia Prison Smuggling Arrests
Welcome to your weekly UAS news update. In my latest video, we have three stories for you this week. A Florida senator is pushing for an emergency retroactive ban on certain DJI and Autel drones. Not good. And then we…
Ukraine Deploys 9,000 Drones Daily in Staggering Scale of Modern Warfare
Ukraine is deploying approximately 9,000 drones per day against Russian forces, according to a top Ukrainian military official, revealing an operational tempo that dwarfs global drone production capacity and underscores how completely unmanned systems now dominate modern warfare. Ivan Pavlenko,…
DJI Mini 5 Pro: A Beginner’s Guide to Not Crashing
Hello fellow pilot! I bet you are happy and proud of your brand new Mini 5 Pro. Now, I’m going to guide you through the first, crucial steps of optimizing your purchase so you can squeeze every penny out of…
Three Arrested in Latest Drone Contraband Drop at Georgia Prison as State Battles Escalating Smuggling Crisis
Three men from north Georgia were arrested just after midnight Saturday near Washington State Prison in Davisboro after deputies discovered drone equipment and evidence consistent with an attempted contraband drop during a traffic stop, according to the Washington County Sheriff’s…
Iran Summons Polish Envoy Over London Display Of Captured Russian Shahed Drone
Iran summoned Poland’s ambassador in Tehran on Thursday to formally protest Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski’s participation in a UK Parliament display of a captured Shahed-136 drone allegedly used by Russia in Ukraine, according to Press TV. The diplomatic summons…
China Floods Russia With 328,000 Miles of Drone Cable While Sending Ukraine Just 72—Fueling Moscow’s Battlefield Edge
China dramatically increased exports of fiber-optic cables and lithium-ion batteries to Russia over the summer, sending 328,000 miles of cable in August while Ukraine received just 72 miles—a 456-to-1 disparity that’s helping Moscow overwhelm Ukrainian defenses with jamming-resistant drones, reports…
South Africa Investigates How Civilian Laser Sensors Ended Up in Russian Attack Drones
South African authorities are investigating how laser range finders manufactured by Pretoria-based Lightware Optoelectronics ended up in Russian Garpiya-A1 suicide drones attacking Ukraine. The discovery adds a new dimension to the growing problem of Western and civilian components being weaponized…
US Blacklists 15 Chinese Companies Over Drone Parts for Hamas and Houthis
The US Commerce Department added 15 Chinese companies to its restricted Entity List on Wednesday for facilitating the purchase of American electronic components found in weaponized drones operated by Hamas and Houthi militants, according to a final rule published in…