FCC BANS CHINESE DRONES FOR “NATIONAL SECURITY” – EXCEPT 80% OF US LAW ENFORCEMENT ALREADY RUNS ON THEM
FCC just blacklisted Chinese drone maker DJI, blocking all future models from U.S. approval. Official reason: “unacceptable risks to national security” including surveillance, data theft, and potential attacks.
One problem: DJI already won. Completely.
DJI dominates 80%+ of state and local law enforcement drone programs in America. Fire departments, police, emergency response – they’re all flying Chinese drones right now. And the ban doesn’t touch them.
What the ban actually does (and doesn’t do):
Existing DJI drones? Still legal
Current models already approved? Still for sale
Drones already in use by police and fire departments? No change
Future DJI models? Banned
So the “national security threat” is apparently fine as long as it’s already here. Just don’t let them sell newer versions.
That’s not security policy. That’s admitting you lost the market and trying to slow-walk the defeat.
Here’s the real situation:
American drone manufacturing barely exists at commercial scale. DJI spent 15 years building better, cheaper drones while US companies focused on military contracts.
Now law enforcement infrastructure is Chinese, and ripping it out would cost billions nobody has budgeted for.
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said the ban will “unleash American drone dominance.”
Dominance in what?
The market that’s already 80% Chinese?
The timing’s almost funny. Mysterious drones have been flying over New Jersey and New York for weeks.
Government says they don’t know what they are or who’s flying them. Then bans future Chinese drones while admitting current ones are everywhere.
Trump’s executive order from June called for reducing dependence on Chinese drones.
6 months later:
– Banned future sales
– Did nothing about current dependence
China’s response: you’re discriminating against our companies.
They’re not wrong.
This is protectionism dressed as security—except it’s protectionism that comes 10 years too late, after the competitor already captured the entire market.
What happens next:
U.S. companies get a few years to try matching DJI’s price and performance
They won’t.
Law enforcement keeps flying aging Chinese hardware.
In 2028, someone quietly lifts the ban because there’s no alternative.
The horse left the barn in 2015.
This is locking the door in 2025 and calling it security.
Source: @ZeroHedge, Epoch Times