US Government

Washington and the drone industry: legislation, procurement, security reviews, and agency policy beyond the FAA.

1,480

Articles

147

Beats covered

Reporters on beat

Oct 27

Last updated

A gray DJI Matrice 4 drone with a speaker module on top and a thermal camera gimbal, on a white display table at a trade show booth beside a second Matrice 4

FCC Ban

FCC Files Pentagon's Sealed DJI Letters, Says Ban Didn't Rely on Them

The FCC filed the Pentagon's Section 1709 letters on DJI under seal and says it did not rely on them. The public pages name DJI and no specific threat.

Haye KestelooOct 15

Mike Yoder of nuWay Ag beside an FAA remote pilot certificate stamped SUSPENDED in red

FAA

nuWay Ag's Yoder Takes FAA Drone Suspension Over Deer and Sled Lifts

nuWay Ag's Mike Yoder says he settled for a 180-day FAA remote pilot suspension after videos of heavy-lift drones hauling a deer, logs and a sled.

Haye KestelooOct 15

Soldiers in camouflage stand beside a green military utility vehicle on a dirt road along a tall steel border wall, with a gray quadcopter drone resting on the ground in the foreground.

Department of Homeland Security

CBP Logged 37,000 Border Drone Flights In FY2026, Down From 42,000

CBP counted 37,000 near-border drone flights in FY2026, down from 42,000. Its February data suggests the 42,000 included the Canadian border.

Haye KestelooOct 15

Skydio

Skydio Says ISR Command Can Send X10D Target Grids to F-16s

Skydio's new ISR Command lets one soldier fly two X10D drones and, Skydio says, pass target locations to platforms from strike drones to F-16s.

Haye KestelooOct 14

Amazon

Amazon's Westborough Drones Need Own FAA Review, Markey and Warren Say

Markey, Warren, McGovern and Trahan asked Amazon and the FAA for a Westborough-only review of the drone hub, with answers requested by Oct. 29.

Haye KestelooOct 14

Nose and cockpit of a gray US Air Force B-1B Lancer bomber taxiing across a concrete flightline

United Kingdom

MI5 Chief: Iran Hasn't Shown the UK Drone Reach That Sent B-1s Home

MI5 chief Ken McCallum says Iran's UK operations have been nowhere near the drone capability feared at RAF Fairford, where the US pulled its B-1s.

Haye KestelooOct 13

Greg Reverdiau beside a gray folding drone and the words 90+ day plan

Drone Service Providers

Drone Pilots Who Don't Adapt Won't Last Two Years: A 90-Day Plan

Part 2 with Amy Wiegand: how drone service providers handle regulation they can't control, build a 30, 60, 90-day plan, and what will separate survivors.

Greg ReverdiauOct 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

US Government

The drone industry moves fast. Stay ahead of it.