LOBBYING
AUVSI's Robbins Exits For SIA As The Drone Ban He Backed Rolls On
Michael Robbins leaves AUVSI September 30 to run the Semiconductor Industry Association, the industry he spent three years telling drone makers to copy.
All Coverage
The full firehose — every story on DroneXL, newest first. Breaking news, deep dives, reviews, and the deals ticker archive.
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Oct 27
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Japan
Helsing Pitches Japan A Strike Drone With A Contested Combat Record
Rakuten is brokering Helsing's sale of HX-2 strike drones to Japan's army, and the aircraft under test is the same one a German defense ministry document said struggled to launch in Ukraine.
Technology
HOVERAir VERSA FCC Certification Was Granted In Error, FCC Says
The FCC tells DroneXL it has ordered HOVERAir to stop selling the VERSA in the US, set aside the device's certification, and is weighing further action.
Counter-Drone
Texas Wants Counter-Drone Power. Only 61 US Officers Are Certified.
El Paso police told Texas senators they have tracked 1,776 cross-border cartel drone incursions and need more authority to respond. Congress already granted that authority in December. The constraint is a single FBI school in Alabama that has certified 61 officers nationwide.
WHOLE BLOOD
Hillsborough County Hasn't Voted on Its Blood Drone Program Yet
Hillsborough County commissioners decide September 2 whether the nation's first EMS whole blood drone program flies in October. The wire coverage already calls it launched.
DEFENSE FUNDING
Neros Raises $250M At $2.5B As The Army Bets On A Million Drones
Neros closed a $250 million Series C at a $2.5 billion valuation. It builds 1,200 drones a week and has promised a million a year by 2028.
Interview
Red Cat Has Air Force Black Widows Built as Army Tests AiN
Red Cat's entire $2.49 million Air Force Black Widow order is built and waiting, Divisional CEO Mitch McDonald told DroneXL, as the Army assesses the company's new Palantir-equipped AiN payload on its own factory floor.
Prime Air
Amazon Drone Crash In Darlington Draws AAIB Case Before December CAA Verdict
An Amazon MK30 crashed into a Darlington garden on July 29. The AAIB opened an accident inquiry as the CAA weighs the trial's December renewal.
DRONE DELIVERY
Uber and Zipline Target 1 Million Drone Deliveries a Day, 230 Times Today's Rate
Uber and Zipline aim for one million drone deliveries a day by the end of 2029, roughly 230 times Zipline's current global rate, while Part 108 sits unpublished at OIRA.
FCC BAN
FCC Drone Ban Comment Window Closes September 2, Putting LiDAR Drones On The Line
The FCC's proposal to pull previously approved foreign drones covers seven capability categories, not four, and comments close September 2, not September 3.
DOCKET 26-189
Idaho Quadcopter Says The Drone Noose Keeps Tightening. The FCC Notice Answers One Fear
Idaho Quadcopter says tariffs and FCC rules are pushing hobbyists out. The FCC's own notice answers his biggest fear about the drones he already owns.
Insta360
Insta360 X6 Review: I Took It Into an Alaska Glacier Ice Cave, and the Color Is the Real Upgrade
Jake Sloan tests the Insta360 X6 on a car rig, in a helicopter cockpit, and deep inside an Alaska glacier ice cave — dynamic range, 10-bit low-light color, and 120MP photos.
Deep Strike
Fire Point CEO Iryna Terekh Cut Drone Wing Build Time From Six Days To 2.5 Hours
Fire Point CEO Iryna Terekh went from making flower pots to running Ukraine's largest arms maker. The production fix behind the FP-1 strike drone.
US Government
I Used To Call The Trump Jr. DJI Theory A Conspiracy. The Tariffs Changed My Mind
New drone tariffs sent Unusual Machines stock to a record high. Donald Trump Jr. sits on its advisory board. Here is the public timeline that changed my mind.
DJI
DJI Wins Partial Reversal Of Pentagon Blacklist Ruling Over Fully Redacted Evidence
The D.C. Circuit reversed part of DJI's Pentagon blacklist loss, ruling a judge upheld a fully redacted justification without reading the classified record.
US Government
Trump Puts 100% Tariffs On Thermal Drones As His Sons' Drone Stocks Rally
Trump's Section 232 drone tariffs start September 3. Thermal aircraft pay 100%, everything else 25%, and two Trump-linked drone stocks jumped on the news.
Video
DARPA Hands Out Half Prizes, A Drone Saves A Life In Sweden, And The FCC Weighs Banning Your DJI Drone
In this week's US drone news update, I cover the DARPA Lift Challenge results, a drone-delivered defibrillator that saved a man's life in Sweden, and the FCC proposal that could pull already-approved DJI drones like the Mini 5 Pro and Air 3S off the shelves.
DJI
DJI Mavic 4 Pro Creator Combo Falls to $3,500 on Amazon, $100 Above Its June Low
The DJI Mavic 4 Pro Creator Combo is selling for $3,500 on Amazon, a $499 cut from list. Deal sites call it a record low. DroneXL's archive says the same combo hit $3,400 in June. And the FCC's pending LiDAR proposal reaches this drone, which matters more than the last $100.
Drone Delivery
Valqari VQ1600: Eight Weeks To Build, Zero Failed Deliveries
Valqari CEO Ryan Walsh rebuilt his delivery drone in eight weeks after the original couldn't handle Northwestern Medicine's specimen boxes — and the VQ1600 kept the hospital program's record perfect across 303 packages.
DJI Osmo
DJI Osmo 360 II Launches With 8K60 And No American Price
DJI put the Osmo 360 II on sale in China at 3,299 yuan, about $460, with native 8K60 panoramic video, swappable lenses, and 105GB of storage — while its US store answers the launch with a 404 page.
Insta360
Insta360 X6 Launches At $699.99 A Day Before DJI's Osmo 360 II, And Only One Can Reach US Shelves
Insta360's X6 arrives August 12, 2026 with dual 1/1.1-inch Sony sensors, 8K50fps and in-camera Dolby Vision at $699.99. DJI answers 23 hours later with the Osmo 360 II, on every storefront except the American one.
FAA
Three Legal Ways To Fly A Drone Above 400 Feet, And The One Mistake That Brings Big Fines
Most new pilots think 400 feet is a hard ceiling. It isn't. Greg Reverdiau of Pilot Institute walks through the structure rule, FAA waivers, and CBO fixed sites, plus the LAANC mistake that trips up Part 107 pilots.
FAA
Vic Moss Drops The Diplomat Act On The FCC Drone Ban Ahead Of The September 2 Deadline
DSPA co-founder Vic Moss abandoned six years of measured advocacy to attack FCC Docket 26-189. Under the anger is a filing deadline three weeks out.
Reviews
DJI Osmo Pocket 4P vs Insta360 Luna Ultra: The Differences That Actually Matter
I expected a blowout between DJI's Osmo Pocket 4P and the Insta360 Luna Ultra. Instead, the real separation came down to D-Log 2, slow motion in log, two very different remotes — and where you can actually buy one.
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