Drone Security and Competitiveness: August 30, 2024

Spotlight on Secure Technology Solutions

1?? Colorado law enforcement's use of drones

• Law enforcement use case: The Grand Junction, Colorado Police Department is using drones for search and rescue, traffic crash photography, and crime scene photography.
• The technology: GJPD’s fleet of 16 drones includes a mix of foreign-made, U.S. made, and NDAA compliant platforms—including the Skydio X10.

2?? NYPA granted FAA waiver for BVLOS drone operations

• Utilities use case: The waiver expands NYPA’s use drones to monitor and inspect transmission, generation and canal assets throughout the state.
• The technology: The waiver is specific to the Skydio Dock and X2—which is Blue UAS approved, NDAA compliant, and designed, assembled, and supported in the U.S.

3?? Unusual Machines Sells 6,700 Rotor Riot Brave F7 Flight Controllers In One Week Following Blue UAS Framework Approval

• DOD use case: Unusual Machines 's Rotor Riot Brave F7 Flight Controller is specifically designed for First-Person View (FPV) flight.
• The technology: The controller has been added to the Blue UAS list, is NDAA compliant, and is made in the U.S.

4?? Precision drone LiDAR imaging study

• Mapping/survey use case: Inspired Flight Technologies Inc. deployed LiDAR payloads to perform a high-precision environmental monitoring study.
• The technology: The IF1200A is Blue UAS approved and is designed, engineered, and built in the U.S. using American components.

5?? Draganfly’s new distributorship to Australian government and enterprise

• Government and enterprise use cases: Draganfly Inc. 's partner has a customer base spanning government, enterprise, and public safety sectors in Australia.
• The technology: Draganfly’s Commander 3XL is currently in process for Green UAS certification and is undergoing compliance testing. The platform is manufactured in the U.S.

AUVSI interview with Don Redmond, BRINC

AUVSI recently caught up with Don Redmond , VP of Advanced Public Safety Projects at BRINC Drones , and retired Chula Vista Police Captain with over 25 years of law enforcement experience.?

• BRINC drones are NDAA compliant, manufactured in the U.S., and purpose-built for first responders.

Q: What’s top of mind for you right now about the importance of U.S. and allied drone industry competitiveness?

A: There is a reason police departments drive Fords, Chevys, and Dodges. There is a perception that the communities we police expect us to rely on American-made products. Drones are no different.

Police agencies provide critical services to their communities, and they secure purpose-built tools to do their jobs effectively.

BRINC is engineering drones specifically built for public safety. We were founded following the 2017 Las Vegas shooting, and, today, we’re working directly with agencies to respond to their needs. That’s why our drones are designed with 2-way phone communication, life-saving medical payloads, and emergency lights and sirens that clearly identify them as emergency response devices.

Q: Beyond drone platform capabilities, what about the importance of cybersecurity and supply chain security for drones being used by first responders?

A: What does the community expect of law enforcement? They expect that law enforcement are choosing tools that are secure and specially built to keep communities safe. They expect that our data is secure and does not reach outside the scope of law enforcement.

If the vendors agencies use have been identified as a concern, that resonates with the community, and we need to be responsive to that.

Q: Autonomy capabilities for UAS are advancing. What do you see as the impact of increasing levels of autonomy on DFR operations?

A: Almost all existing DFR programs use visual observers, which isn’t scalable for widespread DFR operations. BRINC’s integration with Echodyne radar matters because it provides a path forward for airspace awareness without visual observers, which can be scalable for all public safety agencies nationwide.

BRINC doesn’t see the future of DFR operations as fully autonomous but rather autonomy-enabled. An officer or dispatcher should always be in the loop and focused on making critical decisions, while autonomy aids in improving efficiency and safety.?

Q: What is BRINC doing to make DFR operations more accessible to public safety agencies?

A: At BRINC, we want to make it easy for public safety to integrate drones into their daily operations. Public safety officers have full time jobs serving their communities. BRINC's mission is to develop technology to improve the officers' capability and efficiency.

Integration is key. Our solutions are fully inclusive and made in-house. Beyond NDAA-compliant drone hardware, we provide all integrations, software, and warranties as an easy solution for agencies to scale their DFR operations under one vendor.

As a former DFR program manager, I know that working with different vendors to provide multiple software and hardware products makes it very challenging for agencies to make the technology work together seamlessly. Our solutions enable DFR program managers to know exactly what their entire drone programs will cost every year, not just what the drone hardware costs. And that if something goes wrong, they can remain operational without breaking the bank.

Last Q: Looking broadly at the uncrewed systems industry, what’s a public safety use-case that interests you?

A: We’re starting to see agencies value drones beyond getting first eyes on scene with the ability to get emergency deliveries to those in need. This is common with emergency flotation devices, EpiPens, and Narcan.?

We’re seeing a growing use of drones to deliver flotation devices to swimmers. It’s interesting to see drones used not just by large, urban police departments but also by public safety agencies in rural areas like beaches.

Regulatory Updates We’re Tracking

House Select Committee on the CCP Questions Anzu

• What’s new: Committee leadership sent letters to 1) Anzu Robotics with questions about the company’s relationship with DJI, and 2) to the Secretary of Commerce requesting that Department consider steps to address the possibility that Anzu and Cogito Tech Company are passthrough companies selling white labeled products.
• Read more from the Committee on the CCP, Washington Post, or The Hill.

Rubio, Moolenaar Oppose DOD Use of Chinese Batteries

• Signal from adjacent industry: Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) and U.S. Representative John Moolenaar (R-MI) sent a letter to the Department of Defense requesting that Contemporary Amperex Technology Limited (CATL) be placed on the Section 1260H list.
• Why it matters: The 1260H list identifies Chinese military companies operating directly or indirectly in the U.S. The list currently includes DJI, Huawei, and Hesai.
• What they’re saying: “Reliance on, and use of, CATL batteries threatens U.S. national security as it makes our nation dependent on Communist China for energy infrastructure.”