First Responders

Police, fire, and search-and-rescue teams putting drones to work when minutes matter.

1,564

Articles

116

Beats covered

Reporters on beat

Oct 22

Last updated

Pilot Institute

FCC Moves to Shut Out Chinese Labs, DroneSense Adds LAANC, DJI Dock 4

Greg Reverdiau: the FCC votes Oct. 29 to cut off Chinese test labs, DroneSense adds LAANC through Aloft, and DJI's Dock 4 swaps batteries in 25 seconds.

Greg ReverdiauOct 16

Gray DJI Matrice quadcopter with a gimbal camera underneath and a cylindrical radar unit on top, sitting on a concrete pad with green and red arm lights on

Firefighters

Missouri Fire Drone Caught a 200-Acre Blaze Jumping Its Line

A Logan-Rogersville drone showed Highlandville crews a 200-acre Stone County, Mo., fire had jumped a river. It was the chief's first drone at a fire.

Haye KestelooOct 15

DJI Matrice 5TD drone hovering above an open white DJI Dock 4 on a grassy hillside, with an O4 Ground Station mast to the left and high-voltage transmission towers behind

LAUNCH

DJI Dock 4 Swaps Batteries in 25 Seconds, but Its Specs Skip the FCC

DJI's Dock 4 and Matrice 5TD bring a 25-second battery swap and 59-minute flights. Its radio specs cover Canada, Europe, China and Japan. Not the US.

Haye KestelooOct 14

Police

Flock Bets on Police Drones as San Francisco Weighs Drone Limits

Flock's CEO says drones will be nearly half its future revenue. San Francisco's Police Commission takes up its police drone rules on October 14.

Haye KestelooOct 13

Kyle Nordfors in a red Weber County Search and Rescue shirt holds a DJI Matrice 30T overhead with one arm against a blue sky, propellers spinning, as a second man watches from behind

Police

DJI Curbs Hit Police Budgets: $10,500 Matrice vs. $21,000 US Rival

One Ocean County, NJ sheriff's drone kit costs $29,428. NPR priced a US-made rival at twice DJI's Matrice 400, and sheriffs want an FCC exemption.

Haye KestelooOct 13

TEASER

DJI Teases Dock 4 With Battery Swapping for October 14, Not for the US

DJI's October 14 teaser shows its next dock, the leaked Dock 4, swapping a charged battery into a new drone. Dock 3 charges in place. The US can't buy it.

Haye KestelooOct 8

Fourteen-story beige concrete hotel tower with vertical window strips and Holiday Inn signs, seen against a clear blue sky with a palm tree in front

Police

Laredo Police Vow to Take Down Drones at Hotel Fire. FAA Lists No TFR

Laredo's police chief says officers will mitigate drones over the DoubleTree fire. Federal law lets local police do that only with FBI certification.

Haye KestelooOct 7

Skydio X10 drone sitting inside an open Skydio Dock on a rooftop, city skyline at sunset behind it

Police

Bellingham Police Pick Skydio for DFR, 1 Response in 23 Logged Flights

Bellingham police fly Skydio DFR drones on a $475,417 state grant. The public log shows 23 flights since Aug. 19, one an incident response.

Haye KestelooOct 6

First Responders

The drone industry moves fast. Stay ahead of it.