About 6,000 U.S. law enforcement agencies now fly drones, and the Law Enforcement Drone Association estimates that 80% to 90% of them use drones made by the Chinese company DJI, which it says are generally cheaper and more capable than American-made models. The Trump administration has banned many new foreign-made drones from entering the U.S. market and announced tariffs of 15% to 100% on some foreign drones, and the Federal Communications Commission is considering reclassifying drones with features such as thermal imaging as “military grade,” which would effectively ban many Chinese models. Police say comparable American drones often cost two to three times as much (NPR compared a roughly $10,500 DJI Matrice 400 with a $21,000 American-made Inspired Flight IF800 TOMCAT), and agencies in states such as Florida, Texas, Mississippi and Tennessee have already had to end or shelve drone programs after state bans on foreign drones. The administration says DJI drones pose a national security risk, while DJI denies sharing data with the Chinese government.
Image: DJI Matrice 600 Pro drone at the Schneider Springs Fire, Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest. U.S. Forest Service, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.