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The full firehose — every story on DroneXL, newest first. Breaking news, deep dives, reviews, and the deals ticker archive.

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Aug 25

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This is the DroneXL news wire: every story we publish, newest first, across consumer drones, DJI launches and rumors, FAA regulation, public safety, delivery, and the drone war reshaping the industry. We publish daily. For a single company’s coverage, jump to its hub from the companies index, or follow the DJI news desk for everything from the biggest drone maker.

Last updated August 14, 2026 — the feed below updates with every new story.

DJI teaser image showing a dome-shaped 360 camera lens in dim light with the date September 3, 2026 at 7 AM EDT

All Coverage · DJI Rumors

DJI Sets September 3 Osmo 360 II Launch, No US Price Announced

DJI's 15-second teaser dates the Osmo 360 II for September 3 at 7 AM EDT, three weeks after a China-only launch that skipped an American price.

Haye KestelooAug 254 min read

A DJI Mini 5 Pro hovering above a field of goldenrod

State Law

Washington Commercial Drone Fees Jump 10x to $150 After Jet Tax Repeal

Washington will charge commercial drone operators $150 per aircraft a year from January 2027, up from $15, in the bill that repealed its luxury jet tax.

Haye KestelooAug 25

Onboard camera view looking down the red-and-silver body of a rocket high above the ground, with Earth's curved blue horizon and dark sky beyond

Osmo Action 6

DJI Osmo Action 6 Rides LandSpace Rocket From Liftoff to Landing

DJI strapped its Osmo Action 6 to LandSpace's Zhuque-3 booster and published the full uncut ride, from ignition to a vertical landing in northwest China.

Haye KestelooAug 24

A man stands in a dry mountain valley field beside a large orange-and-black multirotor drone fitted with atmospheric sensors.

Technology

Rainmaker Says Its Drones Made 143M Gallons of Rain. Florida Calls Cloud Seeding a Felony

Western states are spending millions on cloud seeding. The one drone operator in the boom faces two state felony bans and a stalled FAA flare petition.

Haye KestelooAug 24

Aerial view of a hilltop stone fortress above a red-roofed town, transitioning into a cyan lidar point cloud

Video

I Used The Antigravity A1 To Preserve A 1,000-Year-Old Bulgarian Fortress In 3D

For Project Eternal, Mikhail Svilanov flew the Antigravity A1 360 drone over Ovech Fortress in Bulgaria and turned a single ten-minute flight into an explorable 3D Gaussian Splatting model with Splatica.

Mikhail SvilanovAug 24

Hand holding a micro FPV quadcopter fitted with a single 21700 lithium cell above a lake at sunset

FPV

1S Lithium-Ion FPV Build Flies 34 Minutes And 3 Miles On A Single Cell

A YouTube builder's custom 3-inch quad pairs one 21700 cell with a DJI O4 Air Unit for 34-minute flights and a 5 km lake crossing, plus the DJI part US builders can't get.

Haye KestelooAug 24

DJI

DJI Offers College Students Cash And Free Gear As FCC Blocks Its New Drones

DJI's new Campus Creators program pays students to post about DJI gear, eight months into an FCC block on every new DJI product in the US and days before a second ban deadline.

Haye KestelooAug 24

Elevate UAV conference promotional graphic showing a pilot holding a drone controller, a panel discussion on stage and an exhibitor hall

Events

Drone Nerds Moves ElevateUAV 2026 to Gulfstream Park for Live Demos

Drone Nerds brings its ElevateUAV summit to Gulfstream Park on November 17 and 18, 2026, with live flight demos and Autel, Vantage Robotics and Inspired Flight exhibiting.

Haye KestelooAug 24

Aerial view of a red crawler crane lowering a steel deck section at the tip of the unfinished Gordie Howe International Bridge cable-stayed span over the Detroit River

DJI

DJI Is 97% Of US Contractor Drone Fleets Despite FCC Ban, ABC Finds

An ABC survey of construction contractors finds DJI is the primary drone for 97.1% of members who fly, months after the FCC blocked new foreign models.

Haye KestelooAug 24

Close-up of a scorched Nvidia Jetson Orin computer module soldered to a debris-covered circuit board recovered from a downed drone

AI Warfare

Nvidia Chip Guided the Russian AI Drone That Killed Three Ukrainians

A Russian Molniya drone with an unencrypted Nvidia Jetson Orin chose its own target and killed three civilians at a Zaporizhzhia gas station on July 6.

Haye KestelooAug 24

A Forest Service drone sits on a red landing pad at night as a wildfire burns along a forested ridgeline in the background

Oregon

Oregon Warns Drone Pilots: One Flight Can Ground Every Fire Aircraft

Oregon's aviation and emergency agencies warn one unauthorized drone can ground every firefighting aircraft, as US drone incursions hit 67 in 2026.

Haye KestelooAug 23

Hundreds of illuminated drones form glowing purple clusters in the night sky above the treeline of Central Park in New York, with rows of lit launch pads and spectators in the foreground.

FCC BAN

FCC Labels Drone Light Shows Military-Grade While US Operators Fly Korean And Chinese Fleets

The FCC's swarm rule names drone light shows as military-grade. The US industry flies Korean and Chinese hardware. Comments close September 2.

Haye KestelooAug 22

Lockheed Martin

Saildrone Fires First Missiles From Its Robot Ship at US Navy's RIMPAC

Saildrone and Lockheed Martin fired two JAGM missiles from a Surveyor USV at RIMPAC 2026, the first missile launch from the company's uncrewed ships.

Haye KestelooAug 22

DJI Mini 5 Pro hovering in front of blooming goldenrod with its LiDAR sensors forward

Deal

DJI Mini 5 Pro Amazon Bundle Packs Over $100 In Free Gear For $899

An Amazon bundle pairs the DJI Mini 5 Pro with $100+ in accessories for $899. What's in it, what reviewers say, and the 250-gram registration catch.

Haye KestelooAug 22

The Amazon Prime Air MK30 delivery drone on display at XPONENTIAL Europe in Düsseldorf, Germany

Drone Delivery

Amazon's Pool Drop Shows Why Zipline Is Winning Drone Delivery

An Amazon MK30 dropped a package into a Texas pool. Zipline's tethered droid and parachute designs show why the 83-pound drone keeps missing.

Haye KestelooAug 22

DJI Air 3 drone behind a red prohibition symbol under a pink BANNED? banner

FAA

The FCC's 'Military-Grade' Drone Definition Is Broad Enough to Catch Your DJI Neo 2

The FCC wants to redefine 'military-grade' drones so broadly it could stop sales of thermal, LiDAR, and dock-equipped models already on the market — including the LiDAR sensor in a 151-gram DJI Neo 2. Pilot Institute's Greg Reverdiau breaks down all seven categories and how to file a comment before September 2.

Greg ReverdiauAug 22

HOVERAir Versa self-flying camera drones in white and black, each with a folding propeller cage and a gimbal-mounted camera above the handheld body

Industry

FCC Tells All Certification Labs To Tighten Drone Screening

After an erroneous grant let a Chinese flying camera reach US buyers, the FCC is sending guidance to every certification body it accredits.

Haye KestelooAug 21

Hand holding a DJI Osmo Pocket gimbal camera with a 1-inch sensor lens and magnetic filter attachment, with accessories on a desk behind it

DJI

The DJI Osmo Pocket 4 Accessories I Actually Use: Protection, ND Filters, Mics, Batteries, and Car Rigs

Jake Sloan shares the DJI Osmo Pocket 4 and 4P accessories he actually uses — protective covers, Freewell ND filters, mics, batteries, LUTs, and car rig gear.

Jake SloanAug 21

Insta360

Insta360 X6 In-Depth Review: What's Actually New — and Where It Falls Short

Ray from DC Rainmaker spent six weeks testing the Insta360 X6 underwater, on the water, and on the ground — new 1/1.1-inch sensors, 8K50, 10-bit, InstaFrame 2.0, and the features that don't quite deliver.

Ray DC RainmakerAug 21

DJI Avata 360 drone in flight showing its rotating dual-lens 360 camera module

DJI

DJI Offers $10,000 For Your Best Avata 360 Video While Washington Decides Its US Future

DJI's All For Passion Challenge pays up to $10,000 for Avata 360 sports videos through September 30. The drone's US story makes it complicated.

Haye KestelooAug 21

Thermal drone imagery of five elephants glowing orange and purple against dark bush, each framed by a white AI detection box labeled ELEPHANT #01 through #03

DJI

DJI Names 15 Onboard AI Challenge Winners, From Banana Farms to Bridge Cracks

DJI names 15 winners in its Enterprise Drone Onboard AI Challenge 2026, from a Colombian banana farm crop counter to closed-loop traffic inspection in China.

Haye KestelooAug 21

Pilot Institute host presenting the week 379 drone news update, with on-screen headlines about a DJI win, new drone tariffs and Chinese drone clearance

DJI

DJI Scores Its Biggest Legal Win in Years, New Drone Tariffs Hit 100%, and the HOVERAir Versa Clears the FCC

Welcome to your weekly UAS news update. We have three stories for you. DJI gets a big win. We have a new drone tariff. And then lastly, we have a Chinese drone maker that is somehow getting FCC clearance. So, let's get to it.

Greg ReverdiauAug 21

Close-up of a DJI Mini 5 Pro in flight, its gimbal camera and forward sensors facing the viewer against blurred green trees.

OPERATORS

DJI Ban Hits Home: Drone Pilots Ask Whether Their Businesses Survive

A new Part 107 pilot asked Facebook if the DJI ban killed his drone business before launch. 268 comments show what operators face ahead of September 3.

Haye KestelooAug 20

Shield AI's X-BAT fighter drone standing tail-first on its launch trailer in a jungle clearing

Industry

Navy Puts $50 Million On Shield AI's X-BAT While The Air Force Watches

The Navy and Defense Innovation Unit are investing $50 million in Shield AI's X-BAT, a tail-landing fighter drone that has never flown. The Air Force is deliberately sitting this one out, and the hard part is the landing.

Haye KestelooAug 20

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