Drone Crashes at Mine, GA Bill to Ban Drones, ND Rejects Drone Ban, & New DJI Products

Welcome to your weekly UAS news update! We have five stories for you this week: a drone crash into a uranium mine, a Georgia bill to ban Chinese drones, the North Dakota Senate rejecting a Chinese drone ban, the Sumas Police Department performing a remarkable rescue, and lastly, some new DJI products. Let’s get started!

Don’t Be That Guy: Drone Crash at Uranium Mine

First up, in our “Don’t Be That Guy” segment, an alleged Drone Collision with mine equipment occurred at the Pinion Plain Uranium Mine in Arizona, causing the mine to temporarily close operations. While the size and type of the drone are unknown at this point, it reportedly struck a safety wire used to transport personnel into the 1,400-foot deep mine, according to the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office. After crashing into the equipment, the suspect, Bobby Mason, allegedly fled in an F-150, leading to a series of incidents, including two hit-and-run events near and inside Grand Canyon National Park. The Coconino County Sheriff’s Office has charged Mason with offenses including unlawful operation of an unmanned aircraft, aggravated DUI, criminal damage, hit-and-run, reckless driving, and harassment. The moral of the story remains the same: please don’t be that guy.

Georgia Bill Targets Chinese Drones

Next up, a Georgia bill would require the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency to create an approved drone list for public safety and government use. The bill would give agencies a three-year compliance window to acquire new aircraft from the approved list. If you live in Georgia, please let your legislators know what you think about this and how it might affect your operations. This is House Bill 205.

North Dakota Rejects Drone Ban

On the opposite side of the fence, the North Dakota Senate rejected a portion of a bill that would enact a replacement program for state-owned and operated Chinese drones. State Senator Cal Davidson led the motion to strip the text from the bill, citing the significant cost difference between Chinese and American-made drones. According to Senate testimony, the Matrice M30, currently used by state agencies, costs around $7,500, while an NDA-compliant alternative costs between $20,000 and $50,000. The Senate also preserved a $1 million allocation to support beyond-visual-line-of-sight operations in the same bill.

Drones for Good: Sumas Police Rescue

In a “Drones for Good” story this week, multiple agencies in Northern Washington State responded to a report of an elderly woman who had gone missing during the night. After several hours of searching, the Sumas Police Department arrived on scene and launched an M3T, locating the missing person in under three minutes. The woman had fallen down a steep slope near her residence and was becoming hypothermic. Fortunately, she was rescued and transported to the hospital. A big shout-out to the Sumas Police Department—great work, and thank you for all that you do!

New DJI Products Unveiled

Lastly, DJI has released two new gimbals this week—yes, not one, but two! First, we have the Osmo Mobile 7 with Active Track 7.0, hand motion control, 10 hours of runtime, a built-in tripod, and magnetic mounting for accessories. The Osmo Mobile 7 comes in two price tiers: the entry-level model is $89, and the 7P model costs $149, which is surprisingly affordable for what you’re getting. DJI also released the RS4 Mini, and we’ve had our hands on one to test for the last couple of weeks. It offers 13 hours of runtime, a 4.4-pound payload, an Active Track module, and native vertical shooting. You can check out our full Review right here.

Community Updates and Contests

In other news, we have two photo contests running in the community, each with over $600 in prizes! Share your drone photo of the Great Outdoors in the Drone Photo Contest, or submit a selfie from the cockpit in our Airplane Photo Contest for your chance to win. Head over to the community’s content space for all the details. If you’re not in the community, it’s easy to join—just register for any free course at PilotInstitute.com to get access. Join us later today for happy hour in the community, plus a live Q&A on Monday and Postflight in the premium community. We’ll see you then!