UAS First Conditional Approvals
The FCC’s Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau announces that four specified UAS or UAS-related product sets received Department of War conditional approvals and are therefore excluded from the FCC Covered List through December 31, 2026.
What it does This Public Notice updates the Covered List’s UAS entry under the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act and sections 1.50002(a) and 1.50003 of the FCC’s rules. It recognizes DoW’s individual determinations as “specific determination[s]” that the identified devices do not pose risks to U.S. national security, and publishes the revised list in Appendix A and the approved devices in Appendix B. The revised UAS entry also retains exclusions for items on the DCMA Blue UAS Cleared List and qualifying domestic end products, each until January 1, 2027.
Who it affects The conditional approvals cover SiFly Aviation’s Q12 UAS; Mobilicom’s SkyHopper Series, M Band, Tactical Data Link, various controllers, and ICE/OS3 Security Software; ScoutDI’s Scout 137 UAS; and Verge’s X1 UAS. They also affect equipment authorization applicants, testing laboratories, and telecommunications certification bodies that rely on the Covered List.
Why it matters The notice creates a targeted path out of the UAS Covered List while preserving the broader inclusion of foreign-produced UAS and critical components. The approvals are time-limited, so the listed devices remain exempt only through the end of 2026 unless further action occurs.
Key dates and numbers
- March 18, 2026: Notice released and Covered List updated.
- March 17–December 31, 2026: Conditional-approval period for each listed device or product set.
- January 1, 2027: Existing Blue UAS and domestic-end-product exclusions expire.
- December 22, 2025: Foreign-produced UAS and critical components were initially added to the Covered List.
- Four entities received conditional approvals:
- SiFly Aviation’s Q12 UAS;
- Mobilicom’s SkyHopper Series, M Band, Tactical Data Link, various controllers, and ICE/OS3 Security Software;
- ScoutDI’s Scout 137 UAS;
- Verge’s X1 UAS.