Blue UAS

Trusted, Secure Drone Technology for U.S. Defense

Blue UAS is the U.S. Department of Defense program that vets commercial drones and drone components for government use. Started by the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), it checks small unmanned aircraft systems, and the parts, sensors and software used to build and repair them, for supply-chain integrity, cybersecurity, and mission readiness. Approved products go on the Blue UAS list, which gives defense and federal buyers a faster, lower-risk way to buy trusted technology instead of Chinese-made drones. As the U.S. pushes to build a secure domestic drone industry, Blue UAS approval has become a key credential for suppliers serving the defense market.

Blue UAS Companion Computer SOM Listing

DCMA-vetted and NDAA-compliant, the Open-Q 8550CS SOM lets drone OEMs skip months of compliance and validation work and build on a compute platform already cleared for U.S. defense and government programs

Lantronix Open-Q™ 8550CS System-on-Module (SOM) has been added to the Blue UAS Framework, the U.S. Department of War’s (DoW) list of vetted, NDAA-compliant components for unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), giving drone OEMs a high-performance AI compute module already cleared for U.S. defense programs.

Lantronix Open-Q™ 8550CS SOM Added to Blue UAS Framework

The Open-Q 8550CS SOM utilizes the Qualcomm® Dragonwing™ QCS8550 SoC, enabling on-device AI processing for edge applications including drones and unmanned systems. The module delivers up to 48 INT8 TOPS of AI performance and includes hardware security features such as secure boot, storage security, key provisioning and debug protection. Qualcomm’s integrated security layer helps authenticate software at boot, isolate sensitive workloads, and protect critical keys and data from unauthorized access. Designed for production environments, the module is backed by a controlled bill of materials and a 10-year lifecycle, giving drone OEMs a high-performance compute platform with the supply-chain stability that defense and government programs require.

“We opened everything up for this review: the hardware, the bill of materials, the software and firmware, the data flows and the supply chain. Then we invited DCMA to probe all of it for vulnerabilities and sourcing risks. That kind of scrutiny takes months, but the result is a listing that gives our customers a compute module that’s already cleared before they start designing. For Lantronix, being on the Blue UAS list removes procurement friction, solidifying us as a trusted partner for OEMs building secure, NDAA-compliant unmanned systems.”

Saleel Awsare, president and CEO of Lantronix

The Blue UAS Framework, administered by the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA), lists interoperable, National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA)-compliant components and software — including companion computers, flight controllers, radios, subcomponents, cameras and other sensors integral to unmanned systems — cleared for use in U.S. government and defense drone programs. The Framework gives government and industry partners a growing pool of vetted options and reduces supply-chain risk for government customers.

For drone OEMs and integrators selling into U.S. defense and government programs, Blue UAS compliance can be a significant qualification hurdle. Without a listed module, each OEM must independently validate the compute module’s cybersecurity, supply chain and hardware pedigree as part of its own platform approval process. With the Open-Q 8550CS SOM now listed on the Blue UAS Framework, OEMs can start with a Blue UAS-vetted compute module , helping reduce program risk, shorten qualification timelines and accelerate deployment.

The listing also carries broader implications for Lantronix and its customers:

Validates Lantronix’s resilient, trusted supply chain

Expands access to U.S. DoW and government programs

Strengthens Lantronix’s position in the autonomous and defense drone markets

Creates a foundation for additional Blue UAS-ready platforms

To earn the listing, Lantronix submitted a complete hardware bill of materials for the Open-Q 8550CS SOM and completed a DCMA cybersecurity assessment covering encryption, authentication mechanisms, and data-at-rest and data-in-transit protections. The review required more than six months of work beyond the standard certifications and regulatory approvals the product already holds. Like all Blue UAS Framework components, the Open-Q 8550CS SOM is approved for use with Blue UAS platforms when properly configured.

The Blue UAS Framework listing gives Lantronix independent, government-backed validation of the Open-Q 8550CS SOM’s security and supply chain. It also arrives amid growing policy momentum: Executive Order 14307, “Unleashing American Drone Dominance,” and the Department of War’s accompanying memo, “Unleashing U.S. Military Drone Dominance,” both direct federal agencies to expand the Blue UAS list and reduce dependence on foreign drone hardware. The Open-Q 8550CS SOM is positioned to serve OEMs building systems for the Department of War, federal civilian agencies, public safety organizations and other government end-users.

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