This is the script for my national network radio report yesterday
calling on drone giant DJI to restore the geofencing flight blocking
features in their "FlySafe" system, that they recently removed, making
potentially dangerous incursions by DJI drones into restricted U.S.
airspace far more likely. I also call for the system to be improved
and mandated for all non-toy drones flying in U.S. airspace,
irrespective of manufacturer. As always, there may have been some
minor wording variations from this script as I presented my report
live on air.
- - -
Yeah, why would Chinese drone giant DJI choose now to remove the part
of their FlySafe system that helps block flying drones in restricted
U.S. airspace? They say this was long planned and wasn't political.
It's true that they began the FlySafe warning and blocking system
voluntarily in 2013, it never has been a legal requirement, and they
already had ended the geofence-based blocking parts of it in the EU.
And yes, legally the responsibility for obeying flight restrictions
and flying safely are the pilot's and not the manufacturer's. And true
the system has never been perfect. It doesn't block every flight that
shouldn't occur and it sometimes is too aggressive and blocks flights
when they should be permitted, but it still has been very useful.
You might assume that everyone in the drone community would be
thrilled at the removal of flight blocking, but actually not. Many are
pleading with DJI to restore the flight blocking part of FlySafe --
and not just give warnings as FlySafe is now doing after DJI's change.
Even DJI's own former head of global policy is very concerned about
this major change, that he feels has eliminated an important and
useful safety system.
Irrespective of DJI's EU experience with FlySafe, the political and
regulatory climates here in the U.S. are very different. The clock is
ticking on a DJI ban that Congress passed on a bipartisan basis,
unless DJI can somehow prove it's not a national security risk. A
proposed DJI ban from the Commerce department also was recently
initiated. I've been clear that I haven't seen evidence of national
security risks in DJI drones (or TikTok for that matter) and that I've
opposed both of those bipartisan bans.
But the big concerns obviously are that these FlySafe changes now,
especially right after that recent apparently DJI drone hit on an L.A.
firefighting plane forcing it down, could result in many more
accidents and safety risks. They could also trigger massive blowback
from politicians in both parties, and a whole new push to restrict
drones in ways that might not only effectively destroy the hobby, but
much more importantly a vast number of important business uses and
life-critical law enforcement, search and rescue, agriculture, and a
multitude of other important applications as well.
There's fear that there will be more drone flights into restricted
areas like airports, prisons -- it's a long possible list -- given
that FlySafe is no longer trying to block those flights. And even if
most drone pilots are careful and follow all the rules, it only takes
a small percentage of them who either don't care about those rules or
are new to flying drones and don't understand those rules, to cause
serious incidents that could have major negative repercussions.
I feel that DJI's change to FlySafe so that it longer even attempts to
block flights in restricted areas is a very big mistake. I suggest
that the right approach is to immediately restore the FlySafe blocking
system as it was before their recent change, then work to improve the
system in ways that better synchronize with FAA real time data, and
make it easier for law enforcement, search and rescue organizations,
etc. to quickly get appropriate exceptions to restrictions as needed.
And frankly I'd like to see this standardized and made a requirement
for ALL non-toy drones flying in the U.S. regardless of manufacturer
or country of origin.
Right now, DJI is by FAR the leader in the drone industry in the U.S.
and this requires they they show an additional level of
responsibility.
Drones in this country are at an inflection point, and the
alternatives to my suggestion are likely to be more drones creating
dangerous situations by flying where they shouldn't be, and reactions
that could decimate the industry and cripple a wide range of important
applications where these devices have become key to many businesses,
our food supply, and much more, including saving lives.
And that should matter to us all.
- - -
L
- - -
--Lauren--
Lauren Weinstein
lau...@vortex.com (https://www.vortex.com/lauren)
Lauren's Blog: https://lauren.vortex.com
Mastodon: https://mastodon.laurenweinstein.org/@lauren
Founder: Network Neutrality Squad: https://www.nnsquad.org
PRIVACY Forum: https://www.vortex.com/privacy-info
Co-Founder: People For Internet Responsibility
_______________________________________________
pfir mailing list
https://lists.pfir.org/mailman/listinfo/pfir
