Senators Urged to Adopt Anti-China Drone Measure

Florida Senator Rick Scott proposes an amendment to the 2025 National Defense Authorization Act that would effectively ban new sales of drones made in China.

Jack Daleo

Tuesday, July 30, 2024 at 01:56 PM ET

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Edited By: tccjeremy

DJI’s Mavic 3 drone is one of the most popular models among U.S. hobbyists. [Courtesy: DJI]

Key Takeaways:

U.S. lawmakers are attempting to pass the "Countering CCP Drones Act" to effectively ban new Chinese-manufactured drone sales in the country, citing national security concerns and espionage allegations.
While the act passed the House version of the FY25 NDAA, it was initially dropped from the Senate's version due to strong opposition from over 6,000 public safety agencies that rely on these drones.
Despite its removal, the ban has been reintroduced as a Senate amendment and could still pass through committee discussions or reconciliation between the House and Senate, targeting companies like DJI and Autel.

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American lawmakers have not tried to hide their contempt for drones manufactured in China. Some have even gone so far as to call them “TikTok with wings” in reference to allegations of spying by the Chinese social media app.

Conspicuously missing from the Senate’s fiscal year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (FY25 NDAA), though, is an amendment that would effectively ban new Chinese drone models from flying in U.S. skies.