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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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Oct 30

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Aerial view of the Pentagon building in Arlington, Virginia, seen from a helicopter

DJI

Alibaba Says a Pentagon Law Cost It Every Lobbyist. DJI Kept Two Firms

A judge blocked the Pentagon's lobbyist rule for Alibaba, which says it cost it every lobbyist. DJI's filings show two outside firms working for it.

Haye KestelooOct 27

Skydio X10 drone hovering above its rooftop docking station with the San Francisco skyline and Salesforce Tower behind it

Police

SFPD's Proposed Drone Rules Stop Short of Sonoma's Court Settlement

San Francisco advanced rules for 98 police drones with a narrow warrant clause and no resident notice. Sonoma's ACLU settlement requires both.

Haye KestelooOct 27

Brown ceramic insulator on a wooden utility pole, outlined by a blue box labeled Flashed Insulator, with a power line wrapped across its top

Percepto

Percepto Opens Its Inspection AI to Rival Drones Under a New CEO

Percepto's Axion sells its inspection AI as software for other makers' drones and sensors, under new CEO Julien Bellanger. Its own drones stay.

Haye KestelooOct 27

Amazon

Amazon Drones Fly Over Chicago Suburbs. The FAA Still Shows a Draft

Amazon says 21 MK30 drones are flying from Markham, Illinois. The FAA's Chicago file, updated October 14, still ends at a July draft with no decision.

Haye KestelooOct 26

A small FPV quadcopter hovers in front of a red course flag while two Chinese soldiers in camouflage and FPV goggles hold controllers on a grass field

China

China's 48-Volt Drone Motor Rule Is Narrow. Its Propeller Rule Is Not

Spec sheets show China's drone motor test misses Hobbywing and T-Motor's flagships, its propeller test catches 62-inch blades, and 'rated' is undefined.

Haye KestelooOct 26

US Army sergeant in camouflage body armor lowering white Fat Shark FPV goggles over his eyes in a field of heather

Europe

NATO Needs Drones to Become '32 Ukraines,' Ex-UK Defense Chief Says

Ullman and Lord Richards want tens of thousands of NATO drones to ease US troop demand. NATO's commander wants cheap drones alongside the high end.

Haye KestelooOct 26

U.S. Army AH-64E Apache attack helicopter flying low past a line of pine trees, with two crew visible in the cockpit

Counter-Drone

Army Apaches Train to Kill Shaheds, but the Newest Ones Outrun Them

Army Apache crews downed target drones over Germany in Skyfall II, cued by a ground radar. Russia's jet Geran-4 flies faster than an Apache can chase.

Haye KestelooOct 26

Aerial view of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, its red seating bowl empty around a green football field, with the white arched peristyle, Olympic rings and torch cauldron in the foreground.

Counter-Drone

FEMA's Olympic Counter-Drone Money Gives Host California 46% Less

The White House Olympics task force hosts a counter-drone forum Nov. 9, a week before states apply for FEMA's next $250M. California gets $18.7M.

Haye KestelooOct 26

Red Tekever remove-before-flight tags hang from the antennas of a white fixed-wing drone fuselage, with the background out of focus.

Department of Defense

Tekever Sells Drones to US Special Operations but Won't Say Which

US Special Operations Command bought Tekever drones after acceptance testing. Tekever won't name the model, quantity or price. Its record points to one.

Haye KestelooOct 26

British Airways Boeing 777-300ER in flight against a blue and grey cloudy sky

United Kingdom

BA's 'Four Toasters' Drone Is an Unknown Object in the Airprox Report

The UK Airprox Board could not identify the silver object a BA 777 crew reported near Guildford, withheld its drone finding and rated it Category A.

Haye KestelooOct 26

U.S. Army soldier in camouflage crouching behind a large gray quadcopter with folding arms and a camera pod, preparing it for flight on a gravel range

Department of Defense

Army Calls Its Drone Demand 'Artificial.' Makers Want A Year Of Orders

An Army official says the Pentagon is artificially inducing drone demand. PDW's CEO wants 12,000 drones a year. No Gauntlet I order reached half.

Haye KestelooOct 26

Antigravity A1

Antigravity A1 on a Watch and Ring, Plus the New RC the US Can't Buy

A month flying the Antigravity A1 from the Follow Me Bundle's watch and ring: gesture control, 12 modes, a wooded trail, and an RC the US can't buy.

Russ 51 DronesOct 26

Black Upgrade Energy Dark Lithium Red Series drone battery pack with a red arrow label reading Manufactured in the USA, with red and black power leads and a balance connector, on a white background

Industry

Unusual Machines' New Battery Unit May Use Cells From China's Tenpower

Unusual Machines closed its Upgrade Energy deal, worth up to $52M, on Oct. 19. Upgrade's store says some packs may use cells from China-based Tenpower.

Haye KestelooOct 26

Black quadcopter with a Livox Mid-360 LiDAR dome on top and MARS lettering on its frame, hovering in front of blurred mountains

Analysis

Purdue's "From Scratch" Drone Flies on a Hong Kong Lab's Planner

A Purdue lab says it built its viral forest drone from scratch. Its telemetry names SUPER and FAST-LIO, open-source code from the University of Hong Kong.

Haye KestelooOct 26

Two Joby electric air taxis parked on marked landing pads on the roof of a parking garage, with charging stalls at street level

EVTOL

FAA Vertiport Draft Flattens Air Taxi Approaches It Won't Protect

FAA draft AC 150/5390-4 replaces EB 105A: new pad sizes, a fixed downwash zone and 15:1 powered-lift approaches the FAA won't evaluate.

Haye KestelooOct 26

Gray DJI Matrice 4TD dock drone with a multi-camera gimbal flying above a solar farm at dusk, with snow-capped mountains behind

Fact Check

DJI Matrice 5TD's Native 1280 Thermal Has a US Drone Maker Alarmed

A viral X post says DJI's Matrice 5TD has native 1280 by 1024 thermal. DJI's spec sheet agrees. The Mavic-sized and US lead-time claims hold up less well.

Haye KestelooOct 26

White blueflite Cobalt cargo drone on a wooden launch pad with six people standing behind it and a blue water tower in the background

Drone Delivery

Michigan Medicine Will Test Drone Organ Flights in $1.7M State Round

Michigan's $1.7M round funds 12 drone projects: blueflite organ flights for Michigan Medicine, Battle Creek police DFR, and eight Detroit pilots.

Haye KestelooOct 26

White DJI Matrice 4TD drone with twin spotlights and a speaker mounted on top, hovering in front of a sunlit forest

Search & Rescue

White County's New Rescue Drone Is a DJI Matrice 4TD It Didn't Name

White County, Georgia, bought a rain-capable DJI Matrice 4TD with SPLOST money. Neither Georgia ban bill became law, and federal rules allow it.

Haye KestelooOct 26

An orange-sailed Saildrone Voyager uncrewed sailboat, hull number SD-2015, heads out across grey water past a forested island shoreline

Sweden

Sweden Pays Saildrone for Baltic Sea Data, Not the Boats Collecting It

Four Saildrone Voyager sea drones began a year-long Baltic patrol for the Swedish Navy. Sweden buys their data and leaves the boats to Saildrone.

Haye KestelooOct 26

Helsing AD-2 Ambush rocket interceptor and shorter AD-1 Inferno jet interceptor side by side against a black background

Counter-Drone

Helsing Prices Jet-Drone Interceptors Under €100,000, None Before 2027

Helsing's Contra pairs two interceptors priced under €100,000 each against Russia's jet-powered Geran drones. Earliest deliveries: Q2 2027.

Haye KestelooOct 26

A blue dragon with spread wings and lightning breath formed by thousands of drone lights over a dark Texas field at night

United States

Sky Elements Flies 10,183-Drone Dragon, Lands Two Guinness Records

Sky Elements and Damoda America set two Guinness World Records in Texas: a 10,183-drone dragon and 71,207 drones launched in a week, on Chinese hardware.

Haye KestelooOct 26

A DJI Matrice 350 drone with a yellow YellowScan LiDAR sensor sits on an orange landing pad on bare sandstone, with archaeologist Jacob Bongers crouching beside it

Archaeology

Drone LiDAR Finds Three Aboriginal Shelters Missing From NSW Register

A DJI Matrice 350 with a YellowScan LiDAR flagged three Aboriginal rock shelters absent from NSW's heritage register. Bushwalkers had already seen them.

Haye KestelooOct 25

Gray DJI Avata 360 drone hovering in front of a blurred rocky hillside

FIRMWARE

DJI Avata 360 Waypoints Arrive, and the RC Pro 2 Needs Its Own Update

DJI's October 20 release notes give the Avata 360 Waypoint Flight, FocusTrack zoom and RC Pro 2 support. Here is every version number the update touches.

Haye KestelooOct 25

Close-up of the original DJI Avata's camera and propeller guards against a blurred desert sky

FIRMWARE

DJI Avata Firmware Returns After Nearly 3 Years to Fix 'Known Issues'

DJI's first Avata firmware since December 2023, v01.06.0000, lands with Goggles 2, Goggles Integra and DJI Fly 1.21.16 updates and a one-line changelog.

Haye KestelooOct 25

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