For drone pilots seeking an affordable, American-made drone flight controller, here’s a new product that checks all sorts of boxes. Rotor Riot this month announced the launch of its Brave F7 Flight Controller. And though it’s technically not yet ready for shipping, it’s set to be a super-compelling option.
The Rotor Riot Brave F7 Flight Controller fits the bill for many DIY drone pilots, with a focus on FPY drone flying. It’s U.S.-made. It’s fully-NDAA compliant. And, it’s affordable at just $58.
Though it’s clearly not something you can just send in the air. You’ll need the rest of the drone parts to do that. Though, there’s luckily no soldering required if that’s not your jam.
The Rotor Riot Brave F7 Flight Controller entails a STMF722RET6 processor equipped with Bosch accelerometer and barometer, and has 16Mb of built in Blackbox Memory.
The 37mm x 37mm controller has 30mm x 30mm mounting holes that have plug options for GPS, HD VTX, Analog VTX, Camera, RX, and ESC. And while you don’t technically have to do any soldering, there are solder pads. For those who prefer direct soldering, the pads sit in front of each plug.
Ideal for FPV pilots who demand light equipment to maximize flight time and speed, it weighs just 8 grams.
It sells for $58 directly from the Rotor Riot store. But, you can’t get it just yet. It’s not expected to ship until early August. But, it is available for pre-order now — and there’s a benefit to being a first adopter. The pre-order price is just $49.50. That introductory deal expires on Aug. 15, upon which the price goes abck up to $58.
Brave F7 emphasizes calls for American made drones
Not only is the Rotor Riot Brave F7 Flight Controller made in America, but it’s NDAA-compliant. That means it avoids using certain Chinese-made telecom and video surveillance equipment in its systems. It’s also in the midst of going through the Blue UAS approval process. Blue UAS-approved drones indicate products that have been explicitly approved for use by the U.S. Department of Defense.
Pilots on the Rotor Riot team, which focuses on drone racing and other types of FPV drone flying, designed this product. But though designed by FPV pilots for FPV flying — which is primarily considered a hobbyist-oriented, recreational activity — it could have much broader appeal. That includes uses among enterprise and military customers who have higher security standards.
“This underscores our commitment to supply chain transparency and regulatory compliance.” said Allan Evans, CEO of Unusual Machines, which is the parent company of Rotor Riot. “This U.S. based production is our first step in providing a more secure and reliable supply chain to our consumer, commercial, and government customers.”
In fact, this marks the first U.S.-made component for Unusual Machines.
“The Brave F7 Flight Controller represents a significant milestone for our company and is the first step on our ambitious roadmap of having a suite of American-made components,” said Drew Camden, COO at Unusual Machines.
The news comes in light of heavy emphasis on American-made drone products — or at least a major disdain among some politicians and drone pilots for Chinese-made products. Proposals like the Countering CCP Drones Act seek to ban DJI drones. The Countering CCP Drones Act has already passed the House of Representatives in a narrow vote. Though, it’s not clear whether that specific Countering CCP Drones Act will actually pass. After all, it still must go to the Senate and ultimately get presidential approval. Still, other laws also seek to promote American products, like the Brave F7 Flight Controller.
For example, the proposed Drones First Responders Act, would create a 30% tariff on drones made in China. Meanwhile, the proposed American Security Drone Act of 2023. That act which would specifically prohibit federal agencies from purchasing drones made by Chinese government-linked countries.
(None of the three proposals cited above have passed yet.)
What to know about Unusual Machines
Unusual Machines is a compelling player in the drone space. It made its initial public offering in February 2024. As of now, it encompasses both Rotor Riot and another FPV-oriented drone company, Fat Shark.
Puerto-Rico based company, Red Cat formerly owned the two companies. Red Cat then sold the two companies that made up its consumer division to Unusual Machines in late 2022. They sold for $18 million.
When the companies were sold off, Red Cat CEO Jeff Thompson specifically said a big reason to ditch the two FPV companies from its portfolio was to erase any Red Cat connections to China. (As low-cost drone part makers, both companies have relied on China for manufacturing. Thompson specifically said he chose to spin off Fat Shark “because it has parts made in China, and we can’t have any connection with China” in an earlier statement.
Given that, it’s compelling to see Unusual Machines embrace American manufacturing.
Of course, Unusual Machines — and its emphasis on American-made products like the Brave F7 — is not the only company to lean on consumer-oriented DIY drones that are made stateside. 3D Robotics, the American drone company known for building the Iris and later Solo consumer drones has made somewhat of a return. But unlike products touted as ready to fly like the Solo (which spectacularly crashed and burned), 3DR has leaned into building individual parts geared toward DIY pilots. It’s not unlike the Unusual Machines route.
These days, Unusual Machines has its sights set on dominating the market of making drone parts.
According to Fact.MR, the global drone accessories market is currently valued at $17.5 billion. Further, it’s set to top $115 billion by 2032, and Unusual Machines seeks to lead it.
“Unusual Machines seeks to be a dominant Tier-1 parts supplier to the fast-growing multi-billion-dollar U.S. drone industry,” according to a corporate statement.
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