Shortly more than a year ago, the US Army ordered its members to stop using drones made by Chinese manufacturer DJI Technology because of “cyber vulnerabilities” in the products. DJI, of course, took the fifth and said it was surprised and disappointed at the Armys restriction. I wasnt surprised, nor were many members I know who feel that DJI doesnt need to have as much information as they do, and it kept getting worse with every update. Now, thanks to the FAA, DJI is authorized to allow customer flights In controlled airspace. Some think of this as a win, I think of this as a catastrophe waiting to happen.
DJI has a history of failing to request permission, and then asking forgiveness later. By yielding control of our airspace to a Chinese based company, controlled by a Chinese national man who doesnt even speak English at press conferences, and whose companies infrastructure seems like it's a throwback to the Ming dynasty, we are opening ourselves to the possibility of negative consequences that might be irrevocable to our nations security. My first question is why give that power to DJI? Why not an American based company who design and operate drones such as Lockheed, who has decades of trust and loyalty to the US government?
Anyone who has been frustrated by DJI's service, warranty repair, tech support, or design flaws is well aware of the problems this could have on our air traffic system that relies on communication and understanding, 2 things that DJI has proven itself to be terrible at in the past.
One last question. If you were a commercial airline pilot, would you want DJI controlling your airspace? As a private pilot, I would say unequivocally NO.
DJI has a history of failing to request permission, and then asking forgiveness later. By yielding control of our airspace to a Chinese based company, controlled by a Chinese national man who doesnt even speak English at press conferences, and whose companies infrastructure seems like it's a throwback to the Ming dynasty, we are opening ourselves to the possibility of negative consequences that might be irrevocable to our nations security. My first question is why give that power to DJI? Why not an American based company who design and operate drones such as Lockheed, who has decades of trust and loyalty to the US government?
Anyone who has been frustrated by DJI's service, warranty repair, tech support, or design flaws is well aware of the problems this could have on our air traffic system that relies on communication and understanding, 2 things that DJI has proven itself to be terrible at in the past.
One last question. If you were a commercial airline pilot, would you want DJI controlling your airspace? As a private pilot, I would say unequivocally NO.
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