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Lawsuits, bans, privacy fights, and the case law being written around drones.

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Overhead black-and-white view of a DJI Phantom quadcopter surrounded by folding DJI Mavic drones and other multirotors arranged on a white surface
Counter-Drone

FBI launches national counter drone training center

The FBI has quietly flipped the switch on a new national hub designed to deal with one of aviation’s fastest growing gray zones, illegal and hostile drone activity over US airspace. Called the National Counter UAS Training Center, or NCUTC, the program is meant to train state and local law enforcement to detect, identify, track,…

drone spray pasture weed uas uav agras dji
Colombia

Colombia Turns to Drones to Fight Cocaine Boom

Colombia is reopening a chapter it thought it had closed a decade ago, but this time the crop dusters have rotors instead of wings. After banning aerial fumigation in 2015 due to health and environmental concerns tied to glyphosate, the Colombian government has approved a new plan to spray coca crops using drones, a move…

FPV Pilot Joshua Bardwell: FCC Component Ban May Not Be as Bad as It Sounds
Police

FPV Pilot Joshua Bardwell: FCC Component Ban May Not Be as Bad as It Sounds

While the drone world panics over the FCC’s sweeping ban on foreign drones and components, FPV expert Joshua Bardwell is urging pilots to take a breath. His analysis raises a critical question that most coverage has missed: Does the FCC even have jurisdiction over half the components it listed? In a video published December 23, Bardwell…

FCC Says DJI Can Keep Importing Air 3S, But Will Customs Let Them Through?
DJI

FCC Says DJI Can Keep Importing Air 3S, But Will Customs Let Them Through?

I’ve been going through the FCC’s official order and their accompanying Fact Sheet on foreign drones. The FCC created a deliberate gap in their ban that allows existing products to stay on shelves. But the gap between regulatory permission and practical enforcement at the border could cause real problems. Here’s what you need to know. What the…

DJI Responds to Court Ruling, Denies Military Ties Despite Pentagon Designation - Trump Administration Targets Chinese Drone Imports in September Crackdown
DJI

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 all foreign-made drones and critical components. Every single one. And they did it in the…

Senators Demand DJI Drone Disclosures from Contractors at Nuclear and Border Sites
DJI

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 drones were secure. It’s whether the contractors had legal authorization to use them at all.…

Texas Farm Bureau Warns FCC Drone Ban Threatens Agricultural Operations - salt lake city utah mosquitoes drone drones dji agras
DJI

Connecticut Agricultural Drone Law Takes Effect as 170% Tariffs Price Out 92% of Farms

I’ve been watching Connecticut’s agriculture drone bill since it first appeared in March. Now it’s law, and the timing couldn’t be more ironic: Connecticut just legalized agricultural drone spraying six days before the FCC’s December 23 deadline could ban the very equipment farmers need to use it. Here’s what you need to know: The law…

Paladin Drones Lawsuit: Ex-VP Accused of Sabotaging $9M Funding Round
Paladin Drones

Paladin Drones Says Former VP Tried to ‘Plunder’ Company After Failed Power Grab

We’ve been tracking Paladin Drones’ rapid expansion across police and fire departments for over a year, but court documents filed in late October allege explosive internal turmoil at the Y Combinator-backed emergency response drone company, including accusations of corporate sabotage, an attempted leadership coup, and shouting matches between executives. According to Law360, Houston-based Paladin

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