DJI has removed its geofence that prevents US users from flying over restricted areas such as nuclear power plants, airports and fires, the company wrote in a blog post on Monday. Starting January 13, the areas previously called “restricted zones” or no-fly zones will be shown as “enhanced warning zones” corresponding to designated Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) areas. DJI’s Fly app will show a warning about the areas but will no longer prevent users from flying inside them, the company said.

In the article, DJI wrote that “in-app alerts will notify operators flying near FAA-designated controlled airspace, putting control back in the hands of drone operators, in accordance with the principles of regulation of the operator who bears the ultimate responsibility.” It added that technologies like Remote ID (introduced after DJI implemented geofencing) give authorities “the tools needed to enforce existing rules,” DJI’s head of global policy Adam Welsh said. said. The Verge.

However, the update is a surprise, as DJI is already on shaky ground in the US and can be banned from selling its products stateside as early as next year. DJI’s former head of policy, Brendon Schulman, criticized the move on Twitter in a series of posts. “There is ample evidence over the years that automatic drone geofencing, implemented using a risk-based approach, contributes significantly to aviation safety,” he wrote.

There is also an issue with drones weighing less than 250 grams. Those models were previously geofenced by GEO in restricted areas to prevent accidental flight to restricted locations. However, the update will eliminate geofencing, and Remote ID can be flicked to lightweight drones.

In fact, that’s exactly what happened last week with DJI’s sub-250-gram model the wing is damaged of a Canadair Super Scooper plane battling the Los Angeles wildfires, temporarily out of commission. That drone may not have transmitted a remote ID, so the FBI said it had to use “investigative methods” instead to find the pilot.

DJI first implemented geofence (called GEO) around airports in 2013, and added new zones in 2015 and 2016after a drone crash-landed on the White House lawn. This is done voluntarily, because the FAA only requires that operators be warned about restricted areas where flying is prohibited. Now, however, the responsibility will be 100 percent on the operator to avoid flying in no-fly areas.

“DJI reminds pilots to always ensure that flights are conducted safely and in compliance with all local laws and regulations. No Drone Zone resource for more information,” it wrote.