U.S. Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.) on June 8 introduced bipartisan legislation aimed at preventing foreign-produced drones from flying over American skies.
Known as the “Stemming The Operation of Pernicious and Illicit (STOP Illicit) Drones Act,” the bill (pdf) would ban the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) from buying or using drones produced in China as well as a string of other nations including Russia, Iran, North Korea, Venezuela, and Cuba.
The bill does grant an exemption for cases where drones are used for detection or counter-UAS (Unmanned Aircraft Systems) testing and warfare analysis and operations.
Under the legislation, the FAA would also be prohibited from providing federal funds to certain foreign drone companies from China and several other countries….