The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will issue a vote on October 29, 2026 on an order that would allow drones to operate on the 800 MHz cell spectrum (824-849 MHz and 869-894 MHz). President Brendan Carr announced the initiative on October 7.
The current rule, originally designed to prevent the use of mobile phones on aircraft, would be modified to expressly exempt unmanned aircraft. Drones already use other cellular bands (700 MHz and 1.9 GHz PCS) that do not have that restriction. Opening additional 50 MHz low frequency spectrum would improve communication options for commercial operations.