getty image / dhs / fbi / faa / dod
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) reports that it has received tips on over 5,000 drone sightings over the past few weeks. So, to address the many questions these drone sightings have created amongst the American population, they and other federal agencies issued a joint statement.
In addition to the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and Department of Defense (DoD), wrote the following:
“There are more than one million drones lawfully registered with the FAA in the United States and there are thousands of commercial, hobbyist and law enforcement drones lawfully in the sky on any given day. With the technology landscape evolving, we expect that number to increase over time.
“FBI has received tips of more than 5,000 reported drone sightings in the last few weeks with approximately 100 leads generated, and the federal government is supporting state and local officials in investigating these reports. Consistent with each of our unique missions and authorities, we are quickly working to prioritize and follow these leads. We have sent advanced detection technology to the region. And we have sent trained visual observers,” the federal agencies’ statement continued.
“Having closely examined the technical data and tips from concerned citizens, we assess that the sightings to date include a combination of lawful commercial drones, hobbyist drones, and law enforcement drones, as well as manned fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and stars mistakenly reported as drones. We have not identified anything anomalous and do not assess the activity to date to present a national security or public safety risk over the civilian airspace in New Jersey or other states in the northeast.
“That said, we recognize the concern among many communities. We continue to support state and local authorities with advanced detection technology and support of law enforcement. We urge Congress to enact counter-UAS legislation when it reconvenes that would extend and expand existing counter-drone authorities to identify and mitigate any threat that may emerge.
“Additionally, there have been a limited number of visual sightings of drones over military facilities in New Jersey and elsewhere, including within restricted air space. Such sightings near or over DoD installations are not new. DoD takes unauthorized access over its airspace seriously and coordinates closely with federal, state, and local law enforcement authorities, as appropriate. Local commanders are actively engaged to ensure there are appropriate detection and mitigation measures in place.”
Also on Tuesday, Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder spoke to the media about the sudden increase in drone sightings.
“We take all of those [reports] seriously,” he said. “Typically, when we detect them, we attempt to classify them and take appropriate measures. Is it possible that some of those are surveillance? Absolutely. Can you make that assumption in every case? Not necessarily so.”
Ryder added, “The thing is, I think we’ve all recognized the fact that unmanned systems are here to stay. They are a part of modern warfare, whether it’s here in the homeland or overseas. We want to make sure that we’re doing due diligence to protect our forces and protect our equities from a national security standpoint. You will see us continuing to look at that, and it’s something we’re going to continue to take seriously.”