The FCC asked on 1 April how drones should get radio spectrum at scale. Seven months on, the notice has produced one final rule and one large test, while its other ideas have not moved.
The rule comes first. On 29 October the commission voted 3-0 to let drones use the 800 MHz cellular band, unlocking 50 megahertz of licensed, nationwide, low-band spectrum for their control links and payload data. Airborne use of the band had been barred since a 1984 policy; the draft order kept the ban for airline passengers’ phones.
The mobile industry backed it. AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, the trade group CTIA, Ericsson and Qualcomm were listed in support in the draft order, alongside Skydio, Lockheed Martin and drone industry groups.
The test came on 11 September. The FCC gave the Department of Transportation a waiver to try up to 200 drones and 2,000 general-aviation pilots on mobile networks until 1 October 2029.
The notice had asked about much more. It floated a dedicated experimental licence for drones, pre-cleared test ranges and blanket authorisations, and listed bands from 450 MHz for long-range links to 24 GHz for radar. Comments closed on 18 May, and no order has been published on any of those ideas.
The agency has kept count of its own approvals. Since January 2025 it has granted 227 experimental licences for drones and, for the first time, eight for counter-drone systems, it said in April.
