Robotics
US Marines Build HANX, The First NDAA Compliant 3D Printed Drone
The U.S. Marine Corps has quietly crossed an important threshold in military drone development by creating its first fully NDAA compliant
NDAA
The defense bill that decides which drones American agencies may fly — Section 1709, the Covered List, and the compliance fight.
78
Articles
32
Beats covered
5
Reporters on beat
Sep 7
Last updated
Skydio
FCC Chairman Reveals New Drone Exemptions at CES 2026, Outlines Path to “American Drone Dominance”
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr revealed three new drone exemption pathways at CES 2026, including Blue UAS list approval, 65% domestic content threshold, and a case-by-case petition process. Here's what commercial operators need to know about avoiding Covered List restrictions.
Department of Defense
DJI Responds to FCC Ban: ‘Not Grounded in Evidence’
DJI has issued its first official response to the FCC’s decision to add foreign-made drones to the Covered List, calling the action “disappointing” and accusing the administration of protectionism rather than legitimate security enforcement. In a statement provided to DroneXL, a DJI spokesperson confirmed that existing DJI products are not affected by yesterday’s FCC action…
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…
Blue sUAS
Take a Look at the First NDAA-Compliant Fiber-Optic FPV Drone!
The Neros Archer is the first fiber-optic FPV drone that is NDAA-compliant, and that’s not the only reason it’s turning heads. The Archer is a newly announced fiber-optic FPV drone from Neros Technologies (US) and Kela Technologies (Israel). A growing percentage of FPV drones used on the frontline are beginning to move in reverse; armies…
DJI
NDAA 2026: Local Police to Gain New Powers to Take Down Your Drone
We’ve tracked counter-drone legislation for years, but the FY 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) changes everything for every drone pilot in America. The bill passed the House 312-112 on December 10 and awaits final Senate action this week before President Trump’s expected signature. For the first time, it creates a federal framework allowing certain…
Department of Homeland Security
DJI Makes Final Push for Security Audit Before Automatic Ban Triggers
We’ve been tracking DJI’s fight for a fair security review since Congress passed Section 1709 of the 2025 NDAA last December. Today, with just 13 days remaining until the December 23 deadline, DJI shared with DroneXL what may be its final appeal: two letters sent December 1 to top federal officials, urging them to actually…
Drone Companies
Croatian Drone Maker Orqa Scales Up for Pentagon Demand
Orqa, a leading drone maker from Croatia, has opened a larger production facility in the city of Osijek, as Defence-Blog reports. The company says the upgraded plant can now build as many as 280,000 NDAA compliant drones every year, a major increase aimed at meeting the rapid rise in Western military demand. The company explains…
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