FCC to vote on opening 50 MHz of spectrum for commercial drone operations

TLDR

• The FCC will vote October 29 on an order to open 50 MHz of low-band spectrum in the 800 MHz cellular band for commercial drone operations.¹²
• Chairman Brendan Carr announced the plan in an October 7 blog post titled "Hammer Down," calling the current restriction an unintended barrier to drone operations.¹
• The same meeting will also vote on new restrictions barring electronics-testing labs in countries that don't give reciprocal recognition to U.S. labs.¹²
• The spectrum order addresses connectivity, not FAA flight rules; operators would still need separate FAA authorization for operations like BVLOS flights.¹

The Federal Communications Commission plans to vote October 29 on an order that would remove a restriction preventing drones from operating in the 800 MHz cellular band, opening 50 MHz of low-band spectrum for commercial drone use nationwide.¹² Chairman Brendan Carr announced the plan in an October 7 blog post titled "Hammer Down," describing the existing rule as an unintended barrier: "This item advances the FCC's efforts to promote U.S. drone leadership by modernizing a rule that has unintentionally prevented drones from operating in the 800 MHz band."¹

Lower-frequency spectrum generally carries farther than higher-frequency bands under comparable conditions, so the change could give commercial drone operators more reliable connectivity options, something particularly relevant for flights beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS).¹² The FCC's order addresses spectrum access only; operators would still need to comply separately with FAA flight rules and authorizations.¹

The same October 29 meeting will also take up new restrictions barring electronics-testing and certification labs in countries that don't offer reciprocal recognition to U.S. labs, a rule Carr said would take effect by December 1, 2028, and apply to equipment-authorization testing, including for drones and their communications hardware.¹² Carr said 82% of electronics were tested in a single non-reciprocal country in 2025, and that less than 4% of all electronic devices are currently tested inside the U.S.¹² The two measures sit alongside a broader FCC "spectrum abundance" agenda that also includes a planned auction of 25 MHz of midband spectrum for direct-to-device services.²

Why it matters: this would hand U.S. commercial drone operators a dedicated, nationwide low-band spectrum allocation for the first time, removing a connectivity bottleneck that has constrained BVLOS and other advanced operations, while the paired lab-testing rule could reshape which countries' certification labs manufacturers can rely on to sell drones into the U.S. market.