POLICE DRONE PROGRAMS HIT 6,000 NATIONWIDE AS LEGAL CHALLENGES MOUNT

[mavic3usa]

It's a new year, 2026, and it didn't take long for law enforcement departments to greatly expand their use of drones. As I predicted, there are problems and issues that must be addressed and this article gives us insight into some of them. I thought it would be great to start a new thread about police drones so we can be aware of what's happening, what are our rights, and where this is going in 2026 because this year is prime for change in so many ways.

POLICE DRONE PROGRAMS HIT 6,000 NATIONWIDE AS LEGAL CHALLENGES MOUNT​

Police Drone Programs Hit 6,000 Nationwide As Legal Challenges Mount

I've been tracking police drone expansion all year, and the Wall Street Journal just confirmed what we've been reporting: this technology is spreading faster

dronexl.co

 

[Daniel NZDF]

It's a new year, 2026, and it didn't take long for law enforcement departments to greatly expand their use of drones. As I predicted, there are problems and issues that must be addressed and this article gives us insight into some of them. I thought it would be great to start a new thread about police drones so we can be aware of what's happening, what are our rights, and where this is going in 2026 because this year is prime for change in so many ways.

POLICE DRONE PROGRAMS HIT 6,000 NATIONWIDE AS LEGAL CHALLENGES MOUNT​

Police Drone Programs Hit 6,000 Nationwide As Legal Challenges Mount

I've been tracking police drone expansion all year, and the Wall Street Journal just confirmed what we've been reporting: this technology is spreading faster

dronexl.co

Drones are absolutely essential for tracking criminals, as well as a whole host of other uses, such as surveillance.

 

[mavic3usa]

Drones are absolutely essential for tracking criminals, as well as a whole host of other uses, such as surveillance.

Agreed and this is probably the best statement in the article:

"Police drones absolutely have legitimate uses. Search and rescue, barricaded suspects, active shooter response. We’ve covered these applications extensively. But when departments start using surveillance capabilities for revenue generation, treating property owners as ATMs, public support erodes fast."

 

[jaja6009]

It's a new year, 2026, and it didn't take long for law enforcement departments to greatly expand their use of drones. As I predicted, there are problems and issues that must be addressed and this article gives us insight into some of them. I thought it would be great to start a new thread about police drones so we can be aware of what's happening, what are our rights, and where this is going in 2026 because this year is prime for change in so many ways.

POLICE DRONE PROGRAMS HIT 6,000 NATIONWIDE AS LEGAL CHALLENGES MOUNT​

Police Drone Programs Hit 6,000 Nationwide As Legal Challenges Mount

I've been tracking police drone expansion all year, and the Wall Street Journal just confirmed what we've been reporting: this technology is spreading faster

dronexl.co

Thank you for sharing!

Also along these lines is that the FAA Emerging Technologies section has fine tuned and released new waivers and authorizations for both Part 91 and Part 107 in 2025 that give public safety entities new advanced operations to get the most out of their programs.

Under Part 91, you can now fly under a Certificate of Authorization with waivers to various elements of Part 91 along with air space authorizations for operations in controlled air space. These new documents nicknamed COWA's allow for operations over people/moving vehicles, operations in controlled air space without using LAANC and no longer use the cumbersome FAA CAPs for application or reporting.

The above can also be obtained for flying under Part 107 with various sections of Part 107 being waived and this is for entities that cannot meet the legal requirement of flying under Part 91 and its governmental functions need.

These new FAA documents open up new possibilities for agencies to now operate true DFR (Drone as a First Responder) programs.

 

[JLA956]

It's a new year, 2026, and it didn't take long for law enforcement departments to greatly expand their use of drones. As I predicted, there are problems and issues that must be addressed and this article gives us insight into some of them. I thought it would be great to start a new thread about police drones so we can be aware of what's happening, what are our rights, and where this is going in 2026 because this year is prime for change in so many ways.

POLICE DRONE PROGRAMS HIT 6,000 NATIONWIDE AS LEGAL CHALLENGES MOUNT​

Police Drone Programs Hit 6,000 Nationwide As Legal Challenges Mount

I've been tracking police drone expansion all year, and the Wall Street Journal just confirmed what we've been reporting: this technology is spreading faster

dronexl.co

If they start a new thread just dealing with law enforcement/first responder drone operations, that would be a great idea.