The U.S. FCC announced a blanket ban on all new drones and critical components made abroad on Monday, while also targeting communications and video-surveillance equipment from DJI and Autel Robotics. According to the Federal Communications Commission (PDF), the White House made a National Security Determination that uncrewed aircraft systems (UAS) and their critical components made in foreign countries pose a threat to the United States.
DJI is the world's largest drone manufacturer, accounting for around 85% of drones sold in the U.S. This latest announcement will effectively kill its business, however, as the company can no longer introduce new drones in the United States. Existing models aren’t affected by the ban, so far, although the FCC retains the capability to restrict their operations in the future, too.
