DJI Drones in the US Senate's Move and Future Uncertainties

TapTechNews July 11th news, according to DroneDJ reports, the US Senate Armed Services Committee released its version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2025. Notably, this version does not contain a clause prohibiting new DJI drones from entering the US market.

TapTechNews previously reported that last month, the US House of Representatives passed its version of the NDAA for Fiscal Year 2025, which included the so-called 'Counter-China Drone Act', further restricting the Chinese drone manufacturer DJI Innovation and requiring DJI Innovation to be listed on the restricted list of the US Federal Communications Commission and prohibiting future products of DJI Innovation from operating in the US.

The Senate's decision to exclude the ban from its version of the NDAA for Fiscal Year 2025 reflects their more cautious and pragmatic attitude towards this issue. DJI drones are widely used in multiple fields such as agriculture, infrastructure, and public safety. A sudden ban may disrupt ongoing projects and hinder progress in key areas.

Recently, representatives from more than 6,000 public safety agencies, police, and fire departments in the US with drone projects wrote to members of the Senate Armed Services Committee, opposing the inclusion of the 'Counter-China Drone Act' in the NDAA.

Although there is currently a respite, the future of DJI drones in the US remains uncertain. The Senate version will now be submitted to the full Senate for review. If passed, the Senate and the House will need to reconcile their respective versions of the NDAA. In the reconciliation process, the ban may be reintroduced, or a compromise plan to restrict DJI drones may be reached.

According to The New York Times, currently about 58% of US drone operators are using DJI drones. DJI has also continuously denied accusations regarding data security risks and emphasized the measures it has taken to address security issues, and even completely disabled the option for US drone pilots to synchronize flight records to its servers. DJI stated that DJI drones 'by default do not collect flight logs, photos, or videos', and called for the establishment of an industry-wide drone safety standard 'based on technology rather than country of origin'.