So what now?...

[RadioFlyer]

I wanted to get some some thoughts how how other other drone pilots are are planning to handle the near certain ban of Chinese drones.

There's so much confusion out there as to exactly what happens after 12-23-25. I mean the questions are endless...

Should I buy more of what's available now? Stock up on batteries & parts for existing gear?

Some say everything on the approved list is safe others say no. Some even say DJI may not support the fly & Go4 apps anymore? In that case we're all screwed so what alternatives (even if rudimentary) can get a real estate photographer by until viable option reappear which will likely be a looong time.

I mean I have an old zerotech pocket drone from 10 yrs ago called Dobby that may allow me very limited capabilities to at least get some low res exterior 50ft shots but wow, I can't even believe the tools that butter our bread is being stripped away with no backup plan other than 'pound sand'!

 

[msinger]

The possibilities are endless, and nobody really knows what's going to happen. That's why there are so many different opinions, with some people sharing every idea they can think of just so they can come back later and say they were right about 1 of the 30 wild guesses they made.

 

[Rchawks]

One day at a time.

 

[Jim Martin]

Because the situation looks pretty bleak for the short term, I decided to pull the trigger on a Mavic 4 Pro creator from S Korea, so I can get it registered with the FCC before a probable cut off on 12/23. I am not going to "stock up" or buy spares, but given the lack of clarity going forward, I can certainly understand why someone would choose to purchase several spares. I expect that we will still be able to acquire and fly smaller sub 250g drones after 12/23.

My personal crystal ball says a DJI ban will be temporary and eventually DJI will return to the US, but that could take years, and I could be completely wrong.

Do you best to analyze the situation and make rational decisions that are in your best interest.

 

[Cafguy]

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[GadgetGuy]

I wanted to get some some thoughts how how other other drone pilots are are planning to handle the near certain ban of Chinese drones.

There's so much confusion out there as to exactly what happens after 12-23-25. I mean the questions are endless...

Should I buy more of what's available now? Stock up on batteries & parts for existing gear?

Some say everything on the approved list is safe others say no. Some even say DJI may not support the fly & Go4 apps anymore? In that case we're all screwed so what alternatives (even if rudimentary) can get a real estate photographer by until viable option reappear which will likely be a looong time.

I mean I have an old zerotech pocket drone from 10 yrs ago called Dobby that may allow me very limited capabilities to at least get some low res exterior 50ft shots but wow, I can't even believe the tools that butter our bread is being stripped away with no backup plan other than 'pound sand'!

Words to live by:

1. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
2. Two birds in the hand are better than one in the hand!
3. Retention is easier than acquisition, should everything go south.
4. CCP will aid in retention!
5. Smoke 'em if you got 'em!

 

[Starz]

IF a ban occurs, I don’t believe you will find hordes of people hunting for illegal flying cameras. They’re busy hunting for people that don’t have the proper credentials to live in this country.

 

[GadgetGuy]

IF a ban occurs, I don’t believe you will find hordes of people hunting for illegal flying cameras. They’re busy hunting for people that don’t have the proper credentials to live in this country.

No, but there might be hordes looking to relieve others of their great flying surveillance tools, much like acquiring stolen firearms in a burglary, or stealing a getaway car before a robbery!

 

[Starz]

No, but there might be hordes looking to relieve others of their great flying surveillance tools,

That’s been going on much longer than I care to think about. Certainly longer than suits trying to determine what to to about cyber crime.

 

[KB9Radio]

But don't you feel much safer?

 

[halifax]

But don't you feel much safer?

Say it, Brother.

I make a sizeable portion of my living by flying drones and sh*ts about to get real.

I also believe that the real reason we are getting screwed is that the FCC is ready to hand over our airspace to Amazon and its peers for package delivery. Banning DJI knocks out the vast majority of <400' AGL-airspace drone users in one simple stroke of the pen. Next up, a ban on RC flying in general, relegating any such flying to "qualified" RC-club fields.

 

[JoeShmoe]

Easiest thing for FCC to do is to revoke all licenses ever issued to DJI, Autel, Fimi etc, citing some Natl Secty concerns (classified ofc). A prudent consumer would thus stock up on Skydio's, or get into DIY FPVs...

 

[Oceanlines]

Because the situation looks pretty bleak for the short term, I decided to pull the trigger on a Mavic 4 Pro creator from S Korea, so I can get it registered with the FCC before a probable cut off on 12/23. I am not going to "stock up" or buy spares, but given the lack of clarity going forward, I can certainly understand why someone would choose to purchase several spares. I expect that we will still be able to acquire and fly smaller sub 250g drones after 12/23.

My personal crystal ball says a DJI ban will be temporary and eventually DJI will return to the US, but that could take years, and I could be completely wrong.

Do you best to analyze the situation and make rational decisions that are in your best interest.

Just to clarify, you don't register your drone with the FCC. DJI already has approval for the frequencies used by that and most, if not all, its other drones. If DJI is added to the "Covered List," they would no longer be permitted to register new drone frequencies and DJI (and Autel and likely any other Chinese-made drone) drones would not be permitted for use with any governments in the U.S. (already coming true via independent state and local legislation). Despite the way the FCC's latest decision to give itself "retroactive ban" powers is being interpreted, the likelihood of that is low-to-nil, mainly because it will be appealed instantly and then held up in courts for a long time). Buy your drone, if you can, and if you use it for any commercial work in the U.S., register it with the FAA.

 

[Jim Martin]

Just to clarify, you don't register your drone with the FCC. DJI already has approval for the frequencies used by that and most, if not all, its other drones. If DJI is added to the "Covered List," they would no longer be permitted to register new drone frequencies and DJI (and Autel and likely any other Chinese-made drone) drones would not be permitted for use with any governments in the U.S. (already coming true via independent state and local legislation). Despite the way the FCC's latest decision to give itself "retroactive ban" powers is being interpreted, the likelihood of that is low-to-nil, mainly because it will be appealed instantly and then held up in courts for a long time). Buy your drone, if you can, and if you use it for any commercial work in the U.S., register it with the FAA.

I meant to say registered with the FAA (drone zone), which I was able to do without a problem.
I agree that a retroactive ban doesn't seem likely and would certainly be challenged in court.
People are understandably worked up with all these doom and gloom videos on YouTube predicting the worst, but that is to be expected. You don't gain subscribers, comments and views by telling everyone to chill out. Fear drives engagement. It may take several years, but I expect the craziness will subside.

 

[mavic3usa]

Words to live by:

1. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
2. Two birds in the hand are better than one in the hand!
3. Retention is easier than acquisition, should everything go south.
4. CCP will aid in retention!
5. Smoke 'em if you got 'em!

Don't forget my favorite: Two is one and one is none. At this point, the more drones you have, the better. I have 5 unopened (planning to buy #6 later this month) ready for 2026 and beyond. I'm on the 5 year plan.

 

[qadsan]

Don't forget my favorite: Two is one and one is none. At this point, the more drones you have, the better. I have 5 unopened (planning to buy #6 later this month) ready for 2026 and beyond. I'm on the 5 year plan.

Do you recommend keeping extra new drones sealed, or opening them and registering / binding them through DJI so their firmware can be updated to the latest before Dec 23?

 

[mavic3usa]

Do you recommend keeping extra new drones sealed, or opening them and registering / binding them through DJI so their firmware can be updated to the latest before Dec 23?

Unless I hear otherwise, I'm going to keep my equipment sealed in the box until next Spring. No one knows what will happen but this video might provide some additional information:

(not me, not my video)

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[halifax]

The lack of clarity by the regulators is so GD frustrating.

 

[mavic3usa]

Couple of suggestions:

If you have DJI drones still NIB or not yet flown or activated, I would go to this DJI page and capture a screenshot of the details just in case the page is blocked or goes away. That way you at least have the information about when you activated the affected drone and maybe warranty or service information/dates if you need it particularly those drones that might be impacted in December (or later) by the FAA or FCC.

https://repair.dji.com/device/search?re=US&lang=en

In addition I would go ahead and add your drone details to the FAA database and get the required drones registered (if that's your plan); do it now while the registry is still open and available. You never know when it might be frozen or locked down or if some sort of cutoff date is applied in the future possibly grandfathering or exemption certain drones. Even if you don't fly the drone, you have the serial number to create the new entry. We live in weird times where processes are made up overnight; time to think ahead.

 

[Wreckhunter]

I wanted to get some some thoughts how how other other drone pilots are are planning to handle the near certain ban of Chinese drones.

There's so much confusion out there as to exactly what happens after 12-23-25. I mean the questions are endless...

Should I buy more of what's available now? Stock up on batteries & parts for existing gear?

Some say everything on the approved list is safe others say no. Some even say DJI may not support the fly & Go4 apps anymore? In that case we're all screwed so what alternatives (even if rudimentary) can get a real estate photographer by until viable option reappear which will likely be a looong time.

I mean I have an old zerotech pocket drone from 10 yrs ago called Dobby that may allow me very limited capabilities to at least get some low res exterior 50ft shots but wow, I can't even believe the tools that butter our bread is being stripped away with no backup plan other than 'pound sand'!

I myself would not spend the money on any DJI product,at least not for a while yet to see how this mess plays out in the end.I have an older DJI and Autel product which are both working fine right now.