In addition, the F.C.C. is weighing stiff restrictions on common drone technology
such as thermal imaging and aerosol spraying.
·
The Trump
administration has imposed tariffs
of up to 100% on foreign-made drones and components, targeting reliance
on Chinese drone technology.
·
100% tariff applies to drones weighing over 55 pounds or equipped
with thermal imaging,
while smaller drones face a 25%
tariff.
·
Drones
from U.S. allies also face tariffs: EU,
Japan, South Korea, Switzerland and Taiwan – 15%, and UK – 10%.
·
The policy
follows a Commerce Department
investigation that identified dependence on foreign drones and components
as a national security risk.
·
Chinese
company DJI is estimated to
manufacture more than 70% of the world’s commercial drones, highlighting
China’s dominant position.
·
Critics
argue that U.S. manufacturers currently cannot
replace foreign supply, potentially increasing costs for businesses,
police, firefighters and other users.
·
The FCC is considering classifying drones using
technologies such as thermal imaging and aerosol spraying as “military grade,”
which could restrict imports of existing civilian models.
·
The proposed
FCC rules could effectively ban
thousands of drones already used by businesses and public-safety agencies,
according to industry representatives.
·
The measures
have raised concerns about higher
costs, reduced technology availability and disruption to commercial drone operations.
·
The policy
could undermine efforts to build a broader
allied supply chain capable of competing with China, as allied-country
drones would still face tariffs.
·
The administration’s
drone policy is part of a wider effort to promote U.S. domestic manufacturing and reduce dependence on
China for strategic technologies.
·
Potential
conflicts of interest
have also drawn attention because President Trump’s eldest sons have investments
or advisory roles connected to U.S. drone companies.
[ABS News Service/03.09.2026]
The Trump administration imposed tariffs of up to 100 percent
on drones on Thursday, continuing its long-running
campaign to thwart the Chinese drone industry and promote domestic manufacturing.
A 100 percent tariff applies to drones that weigh more than 55 pounds
or use thermal imaging. Those drones, the vast majority of which are made in China,
have become essential for many law enforcement officials, as they’re used to track
wildfires and find lost people. Smaller drones have a tariff of 25 percent.
President Trump, whose two eldest sons have ties to the U.S. drone
industry, announced the levies last month after a Commerce Department investigation
deemed reliance on foreign drones and components a national security threat.
The Trump administration argued that the United States must be weaned
off its reliance on China for drone technology. It is estimated that a single Chinese
company — Shenzhen-based DJI — manufactures more than 70 percent of the world’s
commercial drones.
But critics say that the domestic drone industry cannot fill the
gap and that the administration’s abrupt policy changes will do more harm than good.
Scott Mlakar, chief of the Lake County Drone Unit, which is made
up of police officers and firefighters outside Cleveland, said the new tariff was
financially onerous and would put thermal drones out of reach for communities that
needed them the most.
“Most of this, in our humble opinion, is lobbying by U.S. manufacturers
to eliminate foreign competition,” he said. “This is not national security. It’s
protectionism.”
His unit uses thermal drones daily to search for lost children and
crime suspects at night, he said.
The move has dampened hopes that the United States could work with
allies to build a supply chain that competes with China’s drone industry. Drones
made by allies get a break on the tariffs, but don’t escape them completely. Those
produced by the European Union, Japan, South Korea, Switzerland and Taiwan have
levies of 15 percent, while those produced in Britain have a levy of 10 percent.
At the same time, the Federal Communications Commission has proposed reclassifying
drones that use common technologies such
as thermal imaging and aerosol spraying as “military grade.” Industry experts said
that would amount to a retroactive ban on drones used by thousands of American businesses
and public safety officials.
In December, the F.C.C. effectively banned the sale
of new models of foreign-made drones without a
special waiver. At the time, the agency said previously authorized models could
continue to fly and be imported, but the current proposal would prohibit the import
of many old models as well.
Many drone pilots hold out hope that the tariffs will eventually
be lowered, as many other tariffs have been. But the F.C.C. proposal has caused
deep anxiety and dominated conversations at a commercial drone expo in Las Vegas
this week, attendees said.
“It’s an industry-killing ban, if it goes through as written,” said
Vic Moss, an aerial photographer who attended the expo. “There are zero domestic
alternatives.”
The proposal attracted more than 3,000 comments from the public.
Many warned that the policy would prohibit Americans from having access to technology
that has become standard around the world, devastating thousands of businesses.
Justin Jones, a drone pilot with W.M. Jordan, a Virginia-based company
that uses drones to monitor construction sites, wrote that the proposed F.C.C. policy
would affect models in the company’s current fleet.
“The economics of this change will end up costing our business potentially
hundreds of thousands of dollars in the short term and potentially millions in the
long run,” he wrote.
Dale Hylton of Blue Skies Drones in Centralia, Wash., which rents
out industrial drones, said the F.C.C. plan “will cause irreversible disruptive
harm to an established, necessary and productive commercial industry as well as
negatively impact public safety.”
“The F.C.C.,” he wrote, “should evaluate the actual risk presented
by a system, not classify equipment as military grade simply because it contains
a sensor that is widely used in civilian transportation, robotics, surveying, construction
and industrial applications.”
Mr. Trump’s eldest sons, Eric and Donald Trump Jr., are shareholders
and advisory board members of Dominari Holdings, which
has invested in Powerus, a Florida-based drone
maker. Donald Trump Jr. also sits on the
advisory board of Unusual Machines, the top manufacturer of drone components in
the United States.