The FAA's Remote ID rule (14 CFR Part 89) gives manufacturers and operators two hardware paths: Standard Remote ID, built into the unmanned aircraft, and a Remote ID broadcast module, an add-on transmitter. Both can make a flight identifiable. They are not the same product, and they do not unlock the same operations.
This page is general information for manufacturers and operators, not legal advice. Confirm current Part 89 text and any later Part 108 rule with counsel or the FAA before you design or fly against it.
Standard Remote ID
Standard Remote ID is designed into the aircraft at manufacture. The airframe broadcasts a compliant message while it is powered and in flight, typically over Wi-Fi and/or Bluetooth. The message includes a unique identifier, the aircraft's position and altitude, a timestamp, and live control-station (operator) location when the system is working as designed.
For manufacturers, this is the production path for most unmanned aircraft built for the U.S. market after the 2022 production deadline. The work starts before first customer delivery: manufacturer identity and serial-number issuance (including ICAO and ANSI/CTA-2063-A style codes), radio and message design, testing, and an FAA Declaration of Compliance.
Zing consults with OEMs on that full path. See UAS Manufacturers.
Remote ID broadcast module
A broadcast module is a separate, FAA-accepted transmitter attached to an aircraft that does not have Standard Remote ID built in. It is how many legacy, custom, and retrofit fleets meet Part 89 without replacing the airframe.
The module broadcasts identity and aircraft position, but it generally reports takeoff location rather than a live control-station position. Under Part 89, module operations also carry visual-line-of-sight limits: the person manipulating the flight controls must be able to see the aircraft. That is a regulatory limit, not a radio-range suggestion.
Zing's Z-RID Lite is an FAA-, EASA-, and CAAS-accepted broadcast module for that retrofit job. It is the right tool when the aircraft already exists and the mission stays inside those module rules.
Side-by-side
- Where it lives. Standard Remote ID is in the aircraft. A module is attached to it.
- Who it is for. Standard Remote ID is a manufacturer production decision. A module is usually an operator or fleet decision on an existing airframe.
- Operator location. Standard Remote ID is designed to broadcast live control-station location. A module typically broadcasts takeoff location.
- How you can fly. Standard Remote ID does not add a Remote ID-specific VLOS limit. A module generally keeps the flight inside VLOS of the person at the controls.
- After 2022. New production for the U.S. market is expected to ship with Standard Remote ID, or be designed to operate with a module. Selling a new aircraft with only a loose promise to "add a module later" is not a complete manufacturer plan.
Is Standard Remote ID required for Part 108 operations?
Treat Part 108 as not yet a published final rule. In August 2025 the FAA issued an NPRM to normalize low-altitude BVLOS operations (the industry shorthand is Part 108). As of September 2026 the final rule is still in interagency review and has not appeared in the Federal Register. Until it does, routine BVLOS still runs on Part 107 waivers and exemptions.
The NPRM and the current Part 89 module limits point the same direction: a broadcast module is a poor fit for BVLOS. Module rules expect the person manipulating the controls to keep the aircraft in sight. Beyond-visual-line-of-sight operations, by definition, do not. Standard Remote ID, with live control-station location and no module VLOS limit, is the identification path manufacturers should design to if the aircraft is meant to fly under a future Part 108 permit or certificate.
Do not treat this as a guarantee that the published final rule will use those exact words. Design for Standard Remote ID if BVLOS is on the roadmap. Confirm the final Part 108 text when it publishes. If you only need VLOS compliance on an existing airframe, a module can still be the correct, cheaper answer.
What manufacturers should do now
- Decide whether the airframe is a new production aircraft for the U.S. market or a legacy type that will keep flying VLOS with a module.
- If it is new production, plan Standard Remote ID before you freeze the electrical and serial-number design. Identity work (ICAO / manufacturer code) comes first.
- If customers are asking about Part 108 or other BVLOS frameworks, do not ship them a module-only story and hope the rule loosens.
- If you need a partner from ICAO identity through a Standard Remote ID implementation, use the UAS Manufacturers consulting form.