- Since its transfer from the Defense Innovation Unit, the Defense Contract Management Agency has helped expedite the Blue List
- A vendor program manager said that their experience with DCMA involved transparency and collaboration
- The Blue List is a qualification process for the military purchase and use of unmanned aerial systems
The Defense Contract Management Agency has helped speed up the process for unmanned systems vendors seeking a spot on the Blue List, the government’s registry of unmanned aircraft systems and components cleared for military purchase and use, according to Jason Kaneshiro, DCMA public affairs officer.
Kaneshiro on Monday wrote about the contributions of the DCMA to Blue List processing since it was transferred from the Defense Innovation Unit in 2025.
What Is the Blue List?
The Blue List serves as a central reference point that helps the Department of War, other government agencies, and industry partners identify unmanned aerial systems and components that meet federal compliance standards. First established by the Defense Innovation Unit in 2020 to give the department a continuous, streamlined method for evaluating commercial drone technology, oversight of the list shifted to the Defense Contract Management Agency following a July 2025 memorandum on strengthening U.S. military drone capabilities. DCMA rolled out the program’s initial portal in December 2025, completing the first stage of a broader six-phase plan to build out the system’s capabilities.
The Blue List is organized into three components: a ‘cleared list’ of approved drones ready for government purchase and operation, a ‘select’ tier reserved for platforms brought on through partner-driven or competitive processes and maintained under an existing authority to operate, and a framework covering NDAA-compliant components and software that support developers building smaller unmanned systems while reducing risk for government buyers.
Under the current framework, a vendor looking to join the Blue List submits a checklist packet through the Blue List portal, then engages a recognized assessor to evaluate the vendor’s systems and components against National Defense Authorization Act compliance standards. Once the assessor files its report through the portal, the vendor can be added to the list.
How Did the DCMA Help in the Blue List Qualification Process?
As a testament to DCMA’s effectiveness in expediting Blue List qualification, Kaneshiro cited the case of a vendor company guided through the process by the agency’s Unmanned Systems-Experimental contract management office.
Paul Ginsburg, a program manager at the vendor company, said his organization filed its initial Blue List packet in September 2025 and was among the first to work through the new third-party assessor model established under DCMA’s oversight. Ginsburg said that as the transition from DIU to DCMA unfolded, the vendor came to recognize that the updated process would be more transparent and collaborative.
“There were a few compliance-specific components we were unsure of, and both Recognized Assessor and DCMA were able to clarify these within days,” Ginsburg said. “Throughout the process, technical compliance specifications became clearer to us…We appreciate the personal availability of the government’s team.”
According to Ginsburg, appearing on the Blue List reassures customers of the company’s stability and its commitment to the future of domestic manufacturing in the U.S.
