FCC Bans Sale Of All Foreign Drones In The U.S.

The FCC has prohibited the sale of all new foreign-made drones and drone components in the U.S., ostensibly as a matter of national security. As FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said on X, “Criminals, terrorists, and hostile foreign actors have intensified their weaponization of these technologies, creating new and serious threats to our homeland.” It is certainly true that drones are redefining the shape of modern conflict. But the question here is, if foreign drones get banned, why wouldn’t all these bad guys just buy American drones instead? It’s not clear how the prohibition solves the purported problem.

To be clear, this ban only affects any future drone models designed outside the U.S. In other words, anything you can buy right now will continue to be on sale. It’s just that any newer models will not be certified, so going forward, only old foreign drones and new domestic ones will be available. Take that, terrorists! However, the military and homeland security services can still request waivers for specific models they want. And given that many first responders use drones these days, it wouldn’t be surprising if they get waivers, too.

Read More: https://www.jalopnik.com/2063860/fcc-bans-sale-foreign-drones/