---
title: "FAA Reminder: Don’t Fly a Drone With a Weapon Attached to It"
description: "Don't fly a drone with a weapon attached to it, stupid, warned the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration in a notice released publicly last week."
date: "2019-08-26"
modified: "2019-08-26"
authors:
  - name: "Victor Tangermann"
    job_title: "Senior Editor"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/faa-notice-drones-weapons"
categories:
  - "Drones"
  - "Robotics"
  - "Robots and Machines"
tags:
  - "drone"
  - "drones"
  - "FAA"
  - "quadcopter"
  - "the digest"
---

# FAA Reminder: Don’t Fly a Drone With a Weapon Attached to It

![Don't fly a drone with a weapon attached to it, stupid, warned the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration in a notice released publicly last week.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/faa-notice-drones-weapons.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: FAA\</em\>*

## Weaponized Drones

Don't fly a drone with a weapon attached to it, stupid!

That's the latest warning by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, which it made in a [notice](<https://www.faa.gov/news/updates/?newsId=94424>) released publicly last week.

https://twitter.com/FAANews/status/1164614393776287745

"Perhaps you’ve seen online photos and videos of drones with attached guns, bombs, fireworks, flamethrowers, and other dangerous items," reads the notice. "Do not consider attaching any items such as these to a drone because operating a drone with such an item may result in significant harm to a person and to your bank account."

In fact, getting caught mounting your [Boring Company Flamethrower](<https://futurism.com/elon-musk-flamethrowers-dumb>) to a drone is not only dangerous — you could be facing civil penalties of up to $25,000.

## Don't Bring a Drone to a Knife Fight

And the agency might have a point: the internet is filled with videos of weaponized drones, like [this one with a flamethrower](<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3_eEO0Cvwg>) attached to it, or [this one slicing fruit](<https://youtu.be/JVFrTTHp3bk>) with a sharp blade attached to its underbelly.

And in case you're wondering what the FAA's definition of a dangerous weapon is, it's anything that can be "used for, or is readily capable of, causing death or serious bodily injury."

So think twice before you decide to mount a chef's knife to the front of your quadcopter and, say, fly it into a room full of balloons.

**READ MORE:** [FAA warns you not to put a flamethrower on that drone](<https://www.cnet.com/news/faa-warns-you-not-to-put-a-flamethrower-on-that-drone/>) \[*CNET*\]

**More on drones:** *[These Guys Built a Flying Saucer That Actually Flies Pretty Well](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/flying-saucer-flies-pretty-well>)*

## Author
I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/vtanger.bsky.social>)