https://www.wsj.com/politics/national-security/congresss-plan-to-outlaw-chinese-drones-met-with-protest-c95cf1fe?mod=latest_headlinesBy Heather SomervilleFollow
Aug. 7, 2024 8:30 am ET
The U.S. isn’t ready to wean itself from Chinese drones.
Search-and-rescue worker Kyle Nordfors flew a drone made by a Silicon Valley company into the rugged Wasatch Range in Utah. No one was lost in the backcountry—he was trying to make a point.
The drone couldn’t make it up the mountain. Its radio lost connection, causing it to turn around and fly back.
“I could not even physically get the American drone to the top of the mountain to begin the search,” he said.
Nordfors, head of air operations for Weber County Sheriff Search and Rescue, was trying to re-create a rescue he had successfully completed a few weeks earlier with a Chinese drone from SZ DJI Technology. He has tested dozens of drones in the mountains, and DJI works the best, he said.
Now he is worried Washington is about to hamstring his searches for lost climbers and hikers.
Enthusiasts like Nordfors have proven crucial in DJI’s fight against a proposed ban from Congress that would effectively outlaw new DJI sales in the U.S. Throngs of loyal users, from mountain-rescue squads to police departments and farmers, have drummed up resistance, calling their elected officials, writing opinion columns and signing letters in support for Shenzhen-based DJI.
A DJI drone aids in a mountain rescue by the Weber County Sheriff Search and Rescue team in Utah’s Wasatch Range. KYLE NORDFORS
DJI has been labeled a national-security risk by Republicans and Democrats, military officials and federal regulators. The U.S. government has placed tariffs on the drones and largely prohibited federal agencies from using DJIs.
Yet DJI accounts for around 70% to 90% of the American commercial, local government and hobbyist drone market. Real-estate agents, movie producers, firefighters, roof inspectors, utilities and law enforcement have all come to depend on the brand. The Secret Service bought more than 20 of them in 2022 just before restrictions were put in place, according to federal purchasing records.
DJI says a ban could cost the U.S. billions of dollars and impact thousands of jobs.
“It would also leave a vacuum in the U.S. drone ecosystem by removing the largest manufacturer from the market,” the company said in a letter to Congress.
Small drones have become essential tools in U.S. commerce and emerged as critical weapons in modern combat, handing the world’s largest supplier—DJI—enormous power. National-security experts say reliance on Chinese drones creates a dangerous dependency that China could exploit in a conflict.
Ukrainians have relied on DJI, while American models have often failed on the front lines—although soldiers have had to contend with security vulnerabilities.
The latest attempt to block DJI drones is a bill to prohibit new models of DJI drones from receiving the license necessary to fly on American communication networks. Drones that users are flying today would be allowed. The bill passed in the House.
“The United States must end its reliance on Communist China and build the U.S. drone industrial base,” said Rep. Elise Stefanik (R., N.Y.), who sponsored the bill.
Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York is sponsor of a bill to prohibit new models of DJI drones from being licensed to fly on American communication networks. Photo: Annabelle Gordon/CNP/Zuma Press
The Senate last week introduced its version of a Chinese drone ban, which also covers Chinese drone maker Autel Robotics and includes a grant program to help first responders buy American drones.
DJI said it has encouraged lobbying to block the ban and helped fund the Drone Advocacy Alliance, a collection of organizations that oppose Stefanik’s bill. Senators were inundated with concerns from public-safety representatives and farmers.
Filling the void
The national-security debate around DJI goes back years. Lawmakers and law-enforcement officials accuse DJI of aiding in human-rights abuses in the far-western Chinese region of Xinjiang, and say DJI drones can send sensitive data back to Beijing, although security reviews have had mixed findings.
Concerns have amplified in recent months after a government lab issued new findings on the security risks posed by DJI, according to people briefed on the findings. Federal officials have cautioned utility operators against using DJI drones to inspect dams and power grids.
DJI said it “categorically refutes” human-rights abuses allegations. Its users can fly the drones without an internet connection, the company said, and independent reviews have found its drones are secure.
The Lawrence, Kan., police department has used its fleet of 20 DJI drones, together with other Chinese brands, to find missing children and capture violent criminals trying to escape arrest, said Sgt. Drew Fennelly, drone-team coordinator at the department.
Top, a DJI M30 drone in training action; the Lawrence, Kan., police department says it has used its fleet of drones to find missing children and capture violent criminals.
“We just want the best technology that keeps our citizens safe for the most reasonable price,” he said. “The technology in the U.S.-made drones has not caught up with the Chinese-manufactured drones.”
Drone users fretting about the possibility of a DJI ban say American drones often can’t fly far enough, have inferior cameras and radios and can cost five times the price of DJI drones.
U.S. drone makers say they have closed the technology gap with China, and costs will come down once they have enough demand and funding to manufacture at a larger scale. Some U.S.-manufactured indoor drones are as good as DJIs, industry experts say.
Adam Bry, chief executive at Skydio—the maker of the drone that failed to reach the mountaintop in Utah—said his drones are used by more than 400 public-safety agencies, including for mountain rescues, because they are “easy to fly, hard to crash and capable.”
DJI accounts for 90% of the drones used by U.S. public-safety agencies, according to a 2020 data analysis by Bard College in New York.
Silicon Valley company Skydio says its drones are used by more than 400 public-safety agencies. Photo: Clara Mokri for WSJ
Skydio recently posted a video of a successful flight of its drone in an area near where search-and-rescue worker Nordfors’s test flight of a Skydio drone had failed.
In a blog post accompanying the video, Skydio said it had upgraded its communications system so its drones would perform better when flying behind obstacles or long distances.
“They are making good changes,” Brandon Karr of the Law Enforcement Drone Association said about American drone makers. “The one thing they cannot adjust for are supply chains.”
American drones are in short supply with long wait times. Drone buyers say they sometimes have to wait close to five months for a U.S. drone, while DJIs are available immediately.
“Are American drone companies ready to fill the void?” said Trevor Perrott, chief executive of Florida drone maker Censys Technologies. “No, we’re not ready. But DJI may very well be a Band-Aid we need to rip off for long-term gain.”
The Lawrence Police Department says its drones from Chinese makers are more reliable than some U.S.-made drones. Photo: Arin Yoon for WSJ
Cpl. Skyler Richardson does some maintenance on a DJI Mini drone. Photo: Arin Yoon for WSJ
At least seven states have passed bans on the use of Chinese drones for publicly funded agencies, as local politicians have moved to take action against DJI.
After Florida passed a law banning DJI drones last year, some counties that had come to depend on drones suddenly had none to fly. The Miami-Dade Police Department bought five American drones after losing its DJI fleet, a spokesman said. “We do not have the same capabilities with the American drones,” he said, although they have seen improvements.
In Kansas, the Lawrence Police Department welcomed Gov. Laura Kelly’s veto of the state bill that prohibited the use of Chinese drones by public agencies. Kelly said the restrictions would “end up placing significant burdens” on law enforcement.
“Ideally, we would like to be supporting U.S.-made drones,” said Fennelly, the drone-team coordinator. “But that is just really difficult for us right now to do that.”
Brett Forrest contributed to this article.
Write to Heather Somerville at heather.somerville@wsj.com
