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One of Skydio's other military drones, the RQ-28A, has already been trained <br /> with the US military to drop live grenades from it. In a podcast interview, <br /> Skydio CEO and co-founder Adam Bry was asked, "Can you put a gun on <br /> that thing?" <br /> Bry laughed and responded, "Well, in the US it is illegal to put any kind of <br /> weapon on a drone and fly it in civilian airspace. But you should talk to our <br /> friends at Axon about the possibility of putting a taser on it." <br /> Skydio spokesperson Annie Aleman stated that the company has no <br /> comment at this time. <br /> The staff report submitted to council by SAPD Chief Robert Rodriguez, states <br /> that the drones will be used to implement a new program: Drone as a First <br /> Responder (DFR). The report reads, "The research conducted...concluded <br /> that integrating Axon's [DFR] system with Skydio X10 drones will improve the <br /> Department's ability to serve the community by leveraging modern, <br /> commonly used drone technology. The DFR system will enable the Police <br /> Department to respond...by deploying strategically placed, dock-based <br /> drones throughout the city. The strategically placed drones will directly benefit <br /> the community by providing expedited call-for-service response times and <br /> gathering critical real-time information about the incident as it develops." <br /> The staff report also states that SAPD formed a drone committee to <br /> determine which drone system the department should pursue. <br /> DFR is marketed as a way to reduce 911 response times and keep physical <br /> confrontations from happening, it is one of the latest trends in policing <br /> programs. However, the tech build up in cities across the US — at the hands <br /> of police and police foundations — that enables DFR and other surveillance <br /> operations, and the tech companies' partnerships with each other, signal a <br /> powerful surveillance state that underlies any message from a local police <br /> department saying the drones are to combat "illegal fireworks." <br /> There is no indication that the drones requested by SAPD will be used to <br /> directly harm residents, but the proliferation of Skydio's drones throughout the <br />