Protecting the United States From Certain Unmanned Aircraft Systems
Executive Order 2021-01646
|Signed on January 19, 2021
45th Presidency
What it means
This executive order aims to protect U.S. national security by restricting government procurement of drones made by foreign adversaries. Federal agencies must review their drone fleets and plan to replace equipment from countries like China and Russia with domestically produced alternatives.
Expected impact
- Enhanced cybersecurity and protection of sensitive data collected by government drones
- Growth opportunity for the domestic drone manufacturing industry
- Increased costs for federal agencies as they replace existing drone fleets
- Tighter restrictions on drone use near critical infrastructure and sensitive sites
- Potential challenges for agencies that rely heavily on foreign-made drones for operations