Greenville, Ill.-based Ag Technology Solutions Group (ATSG) addressed concerns and misconceptions about the status of DJI products in the U.S. on the heels of a recent FCC vote to “approve new safeguards against untrustworthy gear."
ATSG shared the following message with its customers and staff amidst reports of a potential ban on future products from DJI.
Anyone who has researched the actual legislation around this (Chinese drone imports) and the opinions given by the FCC, it may put their minds at ease. While the new ruling to allow the FCC to retroactively ban or block drones, the FCC has explicitly stated it has no intention to deactivate or remove access to currently owned and operated drones.
"The FCC insists it won’t confiscate or deactivate drones already in consumers’ hands, and each ban will involve a 30-day public comment period. So, your current gear is safe, at least for now.”
It looks like they are mainly focusing on shell companies that DJI and other large Chinese tech companies are using to circumvent U.S. laws. Also, this ruling is targeted toward companies such as Hylio and Revolution Drones that are importing Chinese tech and radio/communications components to assemble either here or in non-banned countries to circumvent our current legislation.
Summary is that while there is a possibility that there may be an outright ban, it will not be targeted toward a specific manufacturer, it will be wide sweeping. If they do decide to retroactively ban products it will be on a case-by-case basis for specific models (not wide sweeping ban of entire brands currently in use) with their biggest concern being smaller camera drones that could be used for covert use.
