For years, I worked in a forest outside of Phoenix, Arizona, as a guide for youth trips into the mountains. As I took on a role managing the safety for the groups that came through our organization, I would dream up fantastic ideas of how to get items to them or do checks on the safety of our various groups and ultimately came up with the idea that a zeppelin or blimp would be perfect for accomplishing these tasks.
How could I possibly imagine that in just a few years a better solution would come along and be more affordable, faster, safer, and efficient.
We found this solution in drones.
You would think that America – traditionally proud of our ability to innovate – would be at the forefront of drone production and usage, but that is not the case. Our drone technology has lagged behind that of other nations due to little innovation and far too much regulation. Meanwhile the country that was built from the hard work of adventurers, explorers and frontiersmen lacks the basic technology that much of the world has access to. These tools that could be used to help the millions of Americans who journey out into our beautiful mountains, deserts, and rolling hills could be readily available to first responders and others . . . if only our laws would allow it.
The world leader in drone manufacture is actually DJI, which has come under political fire because it is based in China. While DJI makes drones cheaper, better, and more technologically advanced, there are some in Congress that want to forbid them from bringing them into our country due to fear of the place where they are made – the same place that coincidentally makes the phones and computers, and even many of our car parts we use every day.
The lawmakers that have chosen to restrict us from using these life-saving devices claim that because of where they are made in China, they are unsafe, but to all of us who venture into the outdoors these devices actually would make us safer. They have longer range and battery life than many US made drones. These drones when equipped with thermal cameras can find lost hikers, children that have wandered off alone, even pets - faster and easier than we can now.
The use of these drones is a force multiplier for first-responders that often have a small staff of people that cover unbelievably large tracts of land. Now one person, armed with the right equipment, can quickly and efficiently search thousands of acres of wilderness. All for a lower cost than other available brands.
Capitol Hill has made it clear that they prefer the crony capitalism that stops devices from DJI from being imported due to the threat of the CCP, despite the company being privately owned and the largest share owners being the founders who still control 96% of the voting rights and 72% of the company shares. The company, started in a college dorm, is reminiscent of many of our own favorite company success stories from the United States.
This scrappy kind of entrepreneurship used to be something we praised and encouraged. Here in California, drones like these have also played an amazing role in capturing images for our film industry that we never could have otherwise gotten.
Many of the fears used by Congress to support the ban are unfounded. The drones are able to be flown without any internet connection and users are in total control of their data, flight plans, video and pictures. They are also compatible with 3rd party software, so you could use a US company's operating system if you so desired.
Imagine the ability of a team of firefighters, to quickly pinpoint a hot spot or small fire before they begin their trek, certain they are headed to exactly the right location as they load their packs with the heavy tools of their trade. Now consider how much they are able to save, not having to pay a helicopter team to fly over and report back to them. They can get all the information they need in real time for a just a fraction of the cost of conventional means.
So the next time you are enjoying our incredible outdoors, wouldn’t you hope, that if something were to go wrong, search and rescue would have the best possible equipment to find you and then get you the help you need? Shouldn’t first responders have the right tools to safely help you and also them? Shouldn’t safety outweigh politics?
Christian Bond is a DC-based financial analyst who has worked on Wall Street for myriad brokerage house. He has a degree in recreation management from BYU.
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