As remote i.d. broadcasting(drone i.d. and operator location )is being proposed/released by DJI,I have a question concerning activation of this software.
Is this new capability being pushed through new firmware updates? Is this new capability automatic in that it detects ANY drone signal?
As I find the proposed FAA/DJI proposal dangerous for operators,I want to disable this feature until clarification is made concerning operator location and ability of Joe Public to access this info.Any input would be appreciated.
First we have to separate what exists today and what is being proposed because they are very different.
Newer DJI drones, all Mavics included, transmit the live location of the operator and the drone as well and telemetry information for the drone. This signal is transmitted, as far as we know, by both the remote and the aircraft but only by means of radio frequency to the local area. This information is encoded and is very difficult to break except by DJI’s own hardware. To receive this information DJI sells a system called AeroScope to law enforcement, airports, and Government agencies. It is expensive and DJI has tight controls on who can purchase this equiptment. The important detail about this method is that once the drone and the remote is turned off there is no longer a means to detect the presence of drones in the past. Someone has either received this information or they haven’t. The likelihood of someone other than an authorized user of AeroScope equipment being in range of your drone is very very low if not non-existent. There is no easy or public method to turn off DJI’s currently used implementation of remote ID.
Now the FAAs proposal for Remote ID is quite different. The FAA proposes that drones in the future must transmit the location and individually identifiable information of both the operator and drone in near real time to local area through RF in a to be determined but presumably open source protocol. This means that Joe Public would be able to pick up the location of any drone and operator within his RF range in real time. Additionally, the FAA proposes that any drone flown outside of a few hundred feet from the operator must also send his or her near real time location, the drone’s location, telemetry, and individually identifiable information through the internet to a service provider which would, according to the FAAs proposal, be required to make that information accessible to the public in real time and also allow the public to gain access to historic information about a person’s location and their Drone’s location up to a certain length of time (I think it’s a month.)
The proposal by the FAA to make the information about a pilots location past and present public seems to solve no safety issue but creates new safety hazards. Someone could track your location and confront you while you are flying.
The FAA has not, to my knowledge, made any attempt at an explanation for this dangerous proposal which goes far beyond its mandate from Congress. We have already seen violent acts by members of the public towards drones operating perfectly legally go unpunished and the FAA has shown no desire to protect UAS pilots and our equipment.
