Drone News: GAO Report, Officials Say Stop Using DJI, Axon Acquires Dedrone, & Record Drone Show

We have four stories this week:

GAO report on foreign-made drones
Officials telling Fairfax County to stop using DJI
Axon acquires D-Drone
New record drone show

Let’s get to it!

GAO Report on Foreign-Made Drones

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report on the Department of Interior’s (DOI) stance on foreign drones.

Currently, the DOI does not allow foreign drones to be used except for emergency situations such as Search and Rescue and wildfires.

The GAO studied the effect of these policies after the DOI asked them to do so, covering the four most active departments: Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), National Park Service, and U.S. Geological Survey.

Findings from the GAO are somewhat predictable. The majority of drones are nearing their end of life, and replacing them with compliant drones is much more expensive. Due to the reduction in fleet size, bureaus have not been able to expand their drone use and no longer have enough drones even for emergencies.

Even for bureaus that have purchased approved drones, delivery times are six months or longer after purchase. The GAO provided examples: In April 2024, the DOI purchased 98 drones for fiscal year 2024, but only 46 had been delivered.

The National Park Service purchased drones for wildlife management in March, but they were not expected to arrive until October, nearly missing the entire 2024 fire season.

The GAO also noted that compliant drones are not as capable in carrying payloads nor as reliable.

Due to these problems, not only have emergency flights decreased, but non-emergency flights for research, surveys, training, and post-storm recovery have become nearly non-existent.

Examples of canceled projects include stream bank restoration in Alaska, monitoring of boatings in Florida‘s Biscayne National Park, and smaller projects showcasing park visitor centers and documentaries.

For more information, a link to the full report will be provided in the description.

Of course, all this should come as no surprise. We have been very vocal against outright drone bans without doing any kind of proper studies first.

Lobbying organizations such as AUVSI have been behind a lot of these drone bans. Especially under the newly appointed CEO, Michael Robbins, who admitted in the past to not having done any kind of research on current manufacturers capabilities, leading to supply issues as we see here.

Officials Urge Fairfax County to Stop Using DJI Drones

Federal lawmakers John Moolenaar and Raja Krishnamoorthi from the House of Representatives have urged Fairfax County to stop using DJI drones.

In a letter to the County Board of Supervisors, the representatives stated that PRC-made UAS platforms and sensors currently used by Fairfax County collect high-resolution imagery of facilities and individuals, putting them at risk of being collected by the CCP.

This is the first time we’ve seen representatives attempting to influence a particular public safety department on drone usage. Fairfax County is located southwest of Washington D.C. along the Potomac River. We don’t know how the county will respond yet, but we’ll keep you updated.

Axon Acquires D-Drone

Axon has finished the acquisition of D-Drone, a counter-UAS system that uses RF detection, radar, and cameras. The system can be expanded for defense in an area, including jammers, drone takeover, and kinetic means to stop rogue drones.

It’s important to note that currently, only the federal government is allowed to utilize these tools to stop drones. We’ll keep you updated on any developments from D-Drone or Axon.

Sky Elements Breaks Drone Show Record

Sky Elements broke the record this week for the most number of drones launching pyrotechnics. The City of Mansfield, Texas partnered with Sky Elements to break the world record with 1,164 drones in a free drone show for residents.

If you haven’t seen or been to any drone shows, we highly recommend attending one. They’re incredibly impressive and completely different from traditional fireworks displays, especially those that combine drones with fireworks.

That’s all for this week. We’ll see you later in the community happy hour and on Monday for our post-flight extended version of this news update, available to our premium members.