DJI Mavic 2, Phantom 4 Pro users need not ground drone over Remote ID

So, the FAA has finally delivered the news that users of DJI Mavic Air 2, Mavic 2 Zoom, Mavic 2 Pro, and Phantom 4 Pro V2 were eagerly waiting for! The agency has extended the enforcement deadline for its Remote ID rule, giving these legacy DJI drones a fresh lease of life until the tech giant drops a compliance firmware package later this year.

New: Firmware brings Remote ID support for DJI Phantom 4, Mavic 2 Enterprise series drones

Remote ID is a feature that allows a drone in flight to provide its identification and location information to other parties. The FAA likens it to a “digital license plate” for a drone. Most drones operating in the US airspace are required by law to have this capability.

As of today, there are 21 DJI drone models that have been approved by the FAA for adequate compliance with its Remote ID rule. The Mavic Air 2, Mavic 2 Zoom, Mavic 2 Pro, and Phantom 4 Pro V2 will join the list, but not until later this year.

Also read: Leaked photos reveal powerful new DJI drone Matrice 3D

According to the timeline shared by the tech giant, a Remote ID firmware upgrade for the Mavic Air 2 might not drop until the end of this month. On the other hand, users of Mavic 2 Zoom, Mavic 2 Pro, and Phantom 4 Pro drone models may have to wait until the end of December for their firmware updates.

Naturally, this wasn’t going to work out for users had the FAA decided to stick to its original Remote ID compliance deadline of September 16, 2023. But today, the agency announced it was extending the enforcement date by six months, meaning operators would not face fines and suspension or revocation of pilot certificates for not equipping their aircraft with Remote ID capabilities until March 16, 2024.

The FAA says it has made this decision because of the unanticipated issues that some operators are experiencing in finding broadcast modules. But now some DJI users don’t need to go hunting for a module anyway. Happy flying!

Also read: Drone Remote ID enforcement delay is ‘discretionary’: What does that mean?