Drone News: New Congress Drone Act, Aloft Adds SGI, DAC on Stadium TFRs, & New DJI Agras

Welcome to your weekly UAS news update, we have 4 stories for you this week: New Drone Act in Congress, Aloft adds SGI, the DAC recommends Changes for Stadium TFRs, and the new DJI Agras!

First up, is the soon-to-be proposed "Drones for First Responders Act". Not to be confused with DFR: Drones AS first Responder, which is actually something useful. This bill is introduced by Elise Stefanik, NY republican, who was being the proposed full DJI ban we discussed a few weeks ago. So you know we're in good capable hands here. The new act aims to transition public safety operations away from Chinese-made drones by increasing tariffs, providing grants to purchase US-made drones, set a limit on when imported drones must not contain Chinese parts (2030), and provides grants to US manufacturers. There's no word though on if US manufacturers will be able to produce the same amount of drones and what will happen if production is limited. The act claims that drones manufactured in China have a risk of potential data vulnerability. So I'm gonna ask the same question I've been asking for the last few years: if they are a threat, why are we allowing them to be used for the next 6 years under this proposal? Keep in mind, this is NOT a bill nor a legislative proposal yet and is subject to change. We don't have a bill text at this time, but we'll let you know when we see one. https://dronelife.com/2024/04/21/new-legislation-balances-national-security-concerns-with-support-for-u-s-drone-industry-drones-for-first-responders-act/ Second up, Aloft has added automated SGI waiver requests into Air Control! In case you don’t know what an SGI waiver is, it stands for Special Government Interest. SGI waivers allow for public safety and other UAS operators to fly in emergency operations that may require entering a no-fly zone or flying beyond visual line of sight. To get an SGI waiver, a department or operator had to call the FAA’s SOSC. Aloft Air Control is now approved to provide these waivers as needed. This should help all those public safety agencies and those who operate as volunteers. https://www.aloft.ai/blog/aloft-introduces-automated-sgi-waivers-in-aloft-air-control-streamlining-access-to-restricted-airspaces/ Next up, the DAC is recommending changes to stadium TFRs! Stadium TFRs close over 125,000 square miles of airspace annually and impact thousands of legitimate UAS operations. The DAC’s recommendation includes a drone-specific TFR that would be limited to the fence line of the stadium, reducing the restriction by 99% to just 11 square miles. Pretty cool for those operators who fly in cities! https://www.einpresswire.com/article/704774366/drone-advisory-council-announces-recommendation-to-modernize-airspace-restrictions-at-sporting-events Last up, DJI is continuing to release new drones! The Agras T25 and the Agras T50 were released this week. Along with these new Agras, DJI released Smart Farm, which allows for plot management and daily operations. The new T50 comes with Active Phased Array RADAR, a four-sprinkler Kit, and 9-minute fast charging batteries. The T50 has a maximum payload of 50kg of spreading payload or 40kg of spray payload and can spray 50 acres per hour. We’ll keep you updated if we see more from DJI! https://dronexl.co/2024/04/22/dji-agras-t50-agricultural-drone/ Alright, that’s it, have a great weekend and we’ll see you next week on Monday for the live!