Agencies say they “have uncovered no such malicious activity or intent at this stage.”
by DRONELIFE Staff Writer Ian J. McNabb
In an update to the ongoing reports of drones flying above New Jersey, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Homeland Security have released a joint statement attributing most of the reports to misattribution, claiming that the reported UAVs were more likely manned aircraft or other objects.
New Jersey Drone Sightings “Not Corroborated with Electronic Detection”
“We have no evidence at this time that the reported drone sightings pose a national security or public safety threat or have a foreign nexus. The FBI, DHS and our federal partners, in close coordination with the New Jersey State Police, continue to deploy personnel and technology to investigate this situation and confirm whether the reported drone flights are actually drones or are instead manned aircraft or otherwise inaccurate sightings.“Historically, we have experienced cases of mistaken identity, where reported drones are, in fact, manned aircraft or facilities. We are supporting local law enforcement in New Jersey with numerous detection methods but have not corroborated any of the reported visual sightings with electronic detection. To the contrary, upon review of available imagery, it appears that many of the reported sightings are actually manned aircraft, operating lawfully. There are no reported or confirmed drone sightings in any restricted air space.
“We take seriously the threat that can be posed by unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), which is why law enforcement and other agencies continue to support New Jersey and investigate the reports. To be clear, they have uncovered no such malicious activity or intent at this stage. While there is no known malicious activity occurring in New Jersey, the reported sightings there do, however, highlight the insufficiency of current authorities.”
This corroborates the theory recently advanced in DroneLife by Dr. Will Austin, President of Warren County Community College and a recognized expert in drone technology, who had cast doubts on reports of unauthorized UAVs near military facilities and other sensitive infrastructure.
“After analyzing numerous videos shared by concerned citizens, I’m inclined to believe that many of the reported ‘large drones’ were actually manned aircraft mistakenly identified as drones,” Austin explained in a recent DRONELIFE interview.
In addition to cell tower lights and other stationary infrastructure, he noted that smaller drones, such as DJI Mavics, have also been observed and are likely being operated legally.
Dr. Austin expressed concerns that, in an effort to stop these “phantom drones” from unsettling the public, regulators might overreact at the expense of the developing American drone economy.
“My greatest fear right now is that in an effort to make sure these drones are not secretly malicious machines from an adversary, we stifle our already struggling drone industry,” he said.
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Read more:
- Understanding the New Jersey Drone Sightings: Separating Fact from Fiction
- Congressional Hearing Reveals Gaps in Counter-Drone Readiness Amid Concerns About N.Y./N.J. Drone Sightings
- Drone Sightings Disrupt Swedish Airport: A Growing Need for Global Counter-Drone Technology
Miriam McNabb is the Editor-in-Chief of DRONELIFE and CEO of JobForDrones, a professional drone services marketplace, and a fascinated observer of the emerging drone industry and the regulatory environment for drones. Miriam has penned over 3,000 articles focused on the commercial drone space and is an international speaker and recognized figure in the industry. Miriam has a degree from the University of Chicago and over 20 years of experience in high tech sales and marketing for new technologies.
For drone industry consulting or writing, Email Miriam.
TWITTER:@spaldingbarker
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Yes, there are some drones but mostly eVTOL craft that are currently flying in restricted air space above Picatinny Arsenal military base, and as the official statements concede, these are “lawfully operated manned craft”.
Picatinny Arsenal is a USAF research facility and the USAF AFWERX division is currently running Operational Testing Sorties for the Agility Prime Intiative with several dozen craft from commercial contractors in order to develop next gen military aircraft. Sightings of “helicopter looking drones that shapeshift and fly off” are the Joby Airtaxi. The ones that “are as big as a car that hover in place then float sideways and then zip off in a random direction or disappear” is the Pivotal Blackfly, which just started a 2 year contract for access to test facilities, resources, and multiple sites under restricted airspace.
All of this is public knowledge that has been released on official .gov/.mil, and various news sites, as well as there being lots of videos of various people flying these eVTOLs and others that the USAF ahas already taken delivery of in the last year.
The only thing that the Feds and the USAF isn’t saying is “Hey everybody, come look at our new tech and tactics and don’t forget to bring your telephoto lenses if you also happen to be employed by a foriegn adversary!”
Although, I think all want to say “STFU and start actually paying attention.”
https://afwerx.com/divisions/prime/agility-prime/