Remote ID - Air 2s?

[djmoll]

I'm a new member, and I'm very interested in purchasing a first drone. I apologize if this has already been discussed.

What are the implications of the new remote ID requirements on the Air 2s. Has DJI committed to making this model compliant with the upcoming remote ID requirements in the US? Are there known options available for remote ID modules that will work with the Air 2s?

Basically, is it wise to purchase a drone like the Air 2s now? Or would it be prudent to wait until compliance options are for sure available?

I don't want to purchase a drone like the Air 2s, and then lose the ability to operate it legally within a couple years.

David

 

[Jay241]

Djmoll welcome and enjoy the forum. I think you will find this link useful. They don't list the 2S but I am sure if the other ones are already compatible I am sure the 2S should be as well. Hope this help.

 

[brett8883]

Djmoll welcome and enjoy the forum. I think you will find this link useful. They don't list the 2S but I am sure if the other ones are already compatible I am sure the 2S should be as well. Hope this help.

Sorry but the author of that article is clueless. The FAA hasn’t finalized remote RID so no drones are compliant because we don’t know what compliance looks like yet.

 

[djmoll]

Jay241, thanks for sharing that article. It is interesting and helpful. The comments at the end, however, raise questions about the articles conclusions.

It seems like DJI, with the remote ID laws apparently now finalized(?), would make a statement themselves about the compliance (or future compliance capability) of their products, especially one which they just launched today. Has DJI made any public statements about the Air 2s? It seems like they are amazingly silent on the issue in their promotional materials that came out today?

Am I missing something? Am I the only person worried about this?

David

 

[brett8883]

I'm a new member, and I'm very interested in purchasing a first drone. I apologize if this has already been discussed.

What are the implications of the new remote ID requirements on the Air 2s. Has DJI committed to making this model compliant with the upcoming remote ID requirements in the US? Are there known options available for remote ID modules that will work with the Air 2s?

Basically, is it wise to purchase a drone like the Air 2s now? Or would it be prudent to wait until compliance options are for sure available?

I don't want to purchase a drone like the Air 2s, and then lose the ability to operate it legally within a couple years.

David

We honestly don’t know. Remote ID hasn’t been finalized so DJI has no way of knowing if it can make these drones compliant or not. There almost assuredly will be a module you can on later but at what cost I don’t know because none exist since it’s not finalized

 

[djmoll]

Thanks to all of you for your responses. It looks like the remote ID situation for the Air 2s (and other drones) is still uncertain. I guess is it a situation of buyer beware, at least until the regulations are final and drone compliance statements are made.

Unfortunately I think I will hold off on a purchase until the situation matures.

 

[Macinfo]

Thanks to all of you for your responses. It looks like the remote ID situation for the Air 2s (and other drones) is still uncertain. I guess is it a situation of buyer beware, at least until the regulations are final and drone compliance statements are made.

Unfortunately I think I will hold off on a purchase until the situation matures.

You could be waiting a real long time for that, and in the mean time, gets lots of flying in,

 

[Yeunglings]

An option that may work for you would be to get a Mini2. At $600 vs the $1300 for the Air2s( pretty much always go for the Fly More Combo, especially if you're just starting out) you have a new drone that's under the 250g limit for RID. It has similar overall features like range( 10k vs 12k for Air2s), 4k recording instead of 5.4k, a max speed of 35mph vs 42 and 31 minutes of flight time for both. Close enough, in my opinion, for someone just starting out to get their feet wet while waiting on the FINAL final rules to be implemented. Granted the rules once they ARE final won't kick in for another 2 years for us consumers so if you wanted to jump on the Air2s now you're not really going to be hurting yourself other than maybe as a 2 year old drone the add on module may not be easy to come by. But DJI is the market leader and the Mavic line in general is well supported both oem and 3rd party so that might not be an issue.
Oh, and the Mini2 batteries are only $55 vs $115 for the Air2s and can be recharged in the drone or in the charging hub via usb c, the Air2 and 2s need a proprietary charger because of their specs. Something to consider

 

[Deleted member 137163]

You could be waiting a real long time for that, and in the mean time, gets lots of flying in,

Do not let the FAA dictate your life!! As Macinfo state "You could be waiting a real long time..." You money and your call. I just purchased my "first drone" and it is a MA2. "Relatively" inexpensive and fits my business needs. Purchase a Mini2 or a MA2 and learn/enjoy! Let us know what you purchase.

 

[djmoll]

Thanks to all of you for your comments. Your excitement about drones is contagious!

I'll probably think for a little bit, but perhaps not too long. You are all having so much fun!!!

David

 

[Yeunglings]

Thanks to all of you for your comments. Your excitement about drones is contagious!

I'll probably think for a little bit, but perhaps not too long. You are all having so much fun!!!

David

I went through the article posted above a few times to make sure I had a grasp of it and as I understand things that article is utter nonsense. Just because DJI and a few others decided to offer a means of assigning your FAA number to the craft and it broadcasts it DOES NOT mean that they are compliant with what the FAA deems required and appropriate. One of the things that are still being discussed/ refined is whether/ how the RC has to broadcast its location as well as the aircraft doing so along with who should have access to said information. So they put out the 'final' rules only for people and industry to point out problems like why any Joe shmo who wants to can track the location of the pilot as well as the aircraft. For the sake of argument I'm buzzing your house with my drone you should be contacting your local Leo just like if I was casing your house on foot, not take matters in to your own hands. Alternatively what is to stop someone who wants a drone of their own without paying for it to download an app that would show them exactly where I'm standing while I fly.
In the mean time if you pick up a Mini2 you don't have to worry about remote ID even once they do make things truly official. Or if you go the MA2 or Air2s route it's 2023 at the earliest before you have to worry. By then you're likely going to want to upgrade to the newer, faster better anyway that WOULD be compliant. Manufacturers have to comply this year( could possibly be pushed off again) but we have another 2 years after that.

 

[brett8883]

I went through the article posted above a few times to make sure I had a grasp of it and as I understand things that article is utter nonsense. Just because DJI and a few others decided to offer a means of assigning your FAA number to the craft and it broadcasts it DOES NOT mean that they are compliant with what the FAA deems required and appropriate. One of the things that are still being discussed/ refined is whether/ how the RC has to broadcast its location as well as the aircraft doing so along with who should have access to said information. So they put out the 'final' rules only for people and industry to point out problems like why any Joe shmo who wants to can track the location of the pilot as well as the aircraft. For the sake of argument I'm buzzing your house with my drone you should be contacting your local Leo just like if I was casing your house on foot, not take matters in to your own hands. Alternatively what is to stop someone who wants a drone of their own without paying for it to download an app that would show them exactly where I'm standing while I fly.
In the mean time if you pick up a Mini2 you don't have to worry about remote ID even once they do make things truly official. Or if you go the MA2 or Air2s route it's 2023 at the earliest before you have to worry. By then you're likely going to want to upgrade to the newer, faster better anyway that WOULD be compliant. Manufacturers have to comply this year( could possibly be pushed off again) but we have another 2 years after that.

Yea pretty much. One thing you have to understand about the FAA is a “final rule” is anything but final.

Also, RID as it stands in the final rule requires the FAA to approve a means of compliance. You can’t just say you are compliant and go about your business. The FAA has to approve it so that’s the biggest misstep for this article because the FAA hasn’t approved any means of compliance yet so nothing is compliant. It’s just a boneheaded claim that the drones on that list are compliant. Completely inaccurate.

The Mini 2 won’t require remote ID so you are pretty safe picking one of those up. It’s a good drone to start off with.

 

[djmoll]

Great comments and information. Thanks to the last few comments in particular.

I find it interesting that DJI launched the Air 2s only about a week before the proposed new FAA regulations "supposed" will become final on April 21. It would be an act of low credibility for DJI to launch a product that doesn't have a credible route to become compliant once the rules have been finalized.

We'll see what happens on April 21 -- both by the FAA and also DJI.

Regardless, I really appreciate the suggestion to consider the Mini 2. The Air 2s sounds really great, but the Mini 2 might be a good lower cost alternative with limited risk of becoming obsolete in a couple years. As a newbie with limited cash, I really prefer a drone that can be used for quite awhile.

Thanks again, everyone, for your very helpful posts.

 

[Yeunglings]

Great comments and information. Thanks to the last few comments in particular.

I find it interesting that DJI launched the Air 2s just 10 days before the proposed new FAA regulations "might" become final. We'll see what happens on April 25.

Regardless, I really appreciate the suggestion to consider the Mini 2. The Air 2s sounds really great, but the Mini 2 might be a good lower cost alternative with limited risk of becoming obsolete in a couple years. As a newbie without unlimited cash, I really prefer a drone that can be used for quite awhile.

Thanks again, everyone, for your very helpful posts.

If you do go with the Mini2 I'd highly recommend the Fly More. At an additional $150 it's not a cheap upgrade but $400 less than the MA2 FMC and $700 less than the A2s FMC which gives you 2 additional batteries($110 retail value alone) and an extra hour of flying, the 2 way charging hub( about $40), the case is roughly $40 and more than big enough for you to store everything and lastly a full extra set of props instead of just an extra pair of CW and CCW.
Something that I picked up that I've found useful is this

https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B001DRMKSO/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_glc_fabc_ZHE2DQV2ZHSJVZ6H2JE3?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

It fits quite well inside the bag and will hold the extra cables, spare joysticks, props, screws and screwdriver all in one little box so you don't have to search and dig in the pockets.

 

[PAI1]

I'm a new member, and I'm very interested in purchasing a first drone. I apologize if this has already been discussed.

What are the implications of the new remote ID requirements on the Air 2s. Has DJI committed to making this model compliant with the upcoming remote ID requirements in the US? Are there known options available for remote ID modules that will work with the Air 2s?

Basically, is it wise to purchase a drone like the Air 2s now? Or would it be prudent to wait until compliance options are for sure available?

I don't want to purchase a drone like the Air 2s, and then lose the ability to operate it legally within a couple years.

David

This is my question also...

 

[PAI1]

Great comments and information. Thanks to the last few comments in particular.

I find it interesting that DJI launched the Air 2s only about a week before the proposed new FAA regulations "supposed" will become final on April 21. It would be an act of low credibility for DJI to launch a product that doesn't have a credible route to become compliant once the rules have been finalized.

We'll see what happens on April 21 -- both by the FAA and also DJI.

Regardless, I really appreciate the suggestion to consider the Mini 2. The Air 2s sounds really great, but the Mini 2 might be a good lower cost alternative with limited risk of becoming obsolete in a couple years. As a newbie with limited cash, I really prefer a drone that can be used for quite awhile.

Thanks again, everyone, for your very helpful posts.

I would like to think being this close to remote ID being finalized DJI has some compliance plan. I understand the rules are not finalized but I find it hard to believe DJI has to wait for the FAA to tell them what's required and then figure out if they can comply. I would guess they already are aware, question will be IF they care which models will be compliant.

 

[djmoll]

Here is sort of an official statement by DJI regarding potential compliance of DJI's drones with the new rules.

FAA Remote ID: What it Means for You and Your DJI Drone

This is encouraging, but DJI is still quite vague about which of their current drones will be able to be updated for compliance. It is disturbing to me that even though the Air 2s was launched just days before the April 21 date when the new regulations became official, they still have not said specifically whether or not even the Air 2s will be updateable.

Somehow I don't feel warm and fuzzy about DJI's love and support for their customers who already own their products. "Maybe" your product will be updateable . . . keep buying and just trust us.

 

[Yeunglings]

I would like to think being this close to remote ID being finalized DJI has some compliance plan. I understand the rules are not finalized but I find it hard to believe DJI has to wait for the FAA to tell them what's required and then figure out if they can comply. I would guess they already are aware, question will be IF they care which models will be compliant.

The problem as I see it, and I very well could be wrong, is that I don't think the FAA really knows what it wants or how best to implement it or else everything would have been laid out for us to be armchair lawyers and engineers to pick apart. Instead they put forth a general concept of what they want and expected everyone to 'just get it'. I think thats why even DJI isn't guaranteeing that they meet the requirements and so many other companies are focusing on sub250g drones. With the Air2s I think they probably hoped as the industry leader for consumer drones that what they had already installed for the MA2 and Air2s was going to be good enough to comply. Take these 2 statements from DJI
'This careful phase-in period gives time for the drone industry to develop standards for the Remote ID radio broadcast, and for the FAA to confirm that these methods comply with the rules' and 'Most likely, that means drones will send a Bluetooth or WiFi signal that can be received by a smartphone'. How can DJI be sure that what's already in place will meet standards that haven't been fully developed yet and if its' most likely' wifi or Bluetooth that doesn't mean it is, just that DJI sees it as the easiest or cheapest way. Add in to that is DJI having said that our drones ADS-B( an existing aviation standard) recieves signals from aircraft but makes no reference( that I've seen at least) to what standard it broadcasts our FAA registration info or whether it's Aeroscope technology for detecting the signals that some current drones do broadcast meets US or international standards. I'm torn between being very worried about the bigger drones I do have needing to be upgraded or permanently parked and on the other hand feeling like well I've already upgraded from a MM to an MA2 in less than a year AND bought a Mini2 just because so I'm likely going to be on drones 5 and 6, ready for 7 and 8 by the time the laws are fully in place.

 

[flatline42]

you have a new drone that's under the 250g limit for RID.

Are you positive about that? What I read from the FAA new rules the 250g limit doesn't apply. That's just to register it with the FAA. They want *all* drones to broadcast their ID. I could be wrong though.

 

[Yeunglings]

Are you positive about that? What I read from the FAA new rules the 250g limit doesn't apply. That's just to register it with the FAA. They want *all* drones to broadcast their ID. I could be wrong though.

Per the FAA :All drone pilots required to register their UAS must operate their aircraft in accordance with the final rule on remote ID beginning September 16, 2023, which gives drone owners sufficient time to upgrade their aircraft.
Since the sub250g category does not require you to register unless flying part 107 you are exempt.