A large number of mysterious drones have been reported flying over parts of New Jersey, New York and the East Coast in recent weeks, sparking speculation and concern over who sent them and why. The FBI is among several agencies investigating and has asked residents to share videos, photos and other information they may have about the unusual night flyers.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy wrote to President Joe Biden asking for answers and the state’s new senator, Andy Kim, spent Thursday night on a drone hunt in rural northern New Jersey, and posted about it on X.
Murphy and law enforcement officials have stressed that the drones don’t appear to be a threat to public safety, but many state and municipal lawmakers have nonetheless called for stricter rules about who can fly the unmanned aircraft.
What are drones?
‘Drone’ is a general term for an unmanned aerial vehicle. These are now are popular across the US and are divided between recreational and commercial use in numerous areas including photography, agriculture and law enforcement.
A total of 791,597 drones are registered with the FAA.
What’s with the drones in New Jersey?
According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) the sightings began on November 18 near Morris County, New Jersey and CNN reported that New Jersey Assemblyman Paul Kanitra said Friday that there had been drone sightings every night since then. Residents have frequently reported seeing drones hovering overhead, sometimes travelling in clusters.
Initially they were spotted flying along the scenic Raritan River, which feeds the Round Valley Reservoir, the state’s largest aquifer, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) west of New York City.
Sightings were reported statewide, including near the Picatinny Arsenal, a military research and manufacturing facility, and over Donald Trump’s golf course in Bedminster.
They have also recently been spotted in coastal areas.
Meanwhile in New York …
Drone sightings have now been reported in New York, where a permit is required, and Mayor Eric Adams said the city was investigating and collaborating with New Jersey and federal officials.
New York State Police said Friday in a post on X that they had received “numerous reports of drone sightings over the past 24 hours” and they were investigating the reports. “We have no evidence at this time that any of the reported sightings pose a public safety threat.”
Staten Island Borough President Vito Fossella said the drones, often seen flying at night, have been spotted hovering over Port Liberty New York near the Goethals Bridge, the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge and Fort Wadsworth, one of the oldest military installations in the country.
The runways at Stewart International Airport — about 100 kilometers (60 miles) north of the city — were shut down for about one hour Friday night because of drone activity in the airspace, said Gov. Kathy Hochul.
“This has gone too far,” she said in a statement.
The governor called on Congress to strengthen the FAA’s oversight of drones and give more investigative authority to state and local law enforcement.
“Extending these powers to New York State and our peers is essential,” she said. “Until those powers are granted to state and local officials, the Biden administration must step in by directing additional federal law enforcement to New York and the surrounding region to ensure the safety of our critical infrastructure and our people.”
Feds assure public – Not foreign. No threat.
The growing anxiety among some residents is not lost on the Biden administration, which has faced criticism from Trump for not dealing with the matter more aggressively.
In a call with reporters Saturday that was organized by the White House, senior officials from the FBI, Pentagon, FAA and other agencies sought to assure people that the drones are not a national security or public safety threat or the handiwork of a malicious foreign source.
An FBI official, who spoke on condition of anonymity under ground rules set by the White House, said the public concern is understandable but added, “I think there has been a slight overreaction.”
Pentagon spokesperson Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said Thursday that the military’s initial assessment after consulting with the Department of Homeland Security and the National Security Council — that the drones are not of foreign origin — remained unchanged.
Are they all drones?
The White House has said that a review of the reported sightings shows that many of them are actually manned aircraft being flown lawfully, echoing the opinion of officials and drone experts.
Assemblywoman Dawn Fantasia, who was briefed by the Department of Homeland Security, said the reported drones have been up to 6 feet (1.8 meters) in diameter and sometimes travel with their lights switched off. This is much larger than those typically flown by drone hobbyists, and she said they appear to avoid detection by traditional methods such as helicopter and radio.
Who sent the drones?
Authorities say they do not know.
The FBI, Homeland Security and state police are investigating the sightings. Authorities say they don’t know if it is one drone that has been spotted many times or if there are multiple aircraft being flown in a coordinated effort.
The federal Homeland Security Department and FBI also said in a joint statement they have no evidence that the sightings pose “a national security or public safety threat or have a foreign nexus.”
No surprise. The internet is abuzz
Speculation has raged online and elsewhere, with some expressing concerns that the drone or drones could be part of a nefarious plot by foreign agents.
Officials stress that ongoing state and federal investigations have found no evidence to support those concerns, but New Jersey Rep. Chris Smith on Saturday echoed such speculation.
“The elusive maneuvering of these drones suggests a major military power sophistication that begs the question whether they have been deployed to test our defense capabilities — or worse — by violent dictatorships, perhaps maybe Russia, or China, or Iran, or North Korea,” he said.
Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said Wednesday that the aircraft are not US military drones.
What have officials said about the sightings?
Smith said a Coast Guard commanding officer told him a dozen drones closely followed a Guard lifeboat near Barnegat Light and Island Beach State Park in Ocean County over the weekend. Smith urged the Pentagon to authorize the use of force to bring down one or more drones to try to figure out who deployed them.
The objects could be downed over the ocean or in an unpopulated area on land, Smith said Saturday at a news conference.
Rep. Jeff Van Drew, another Jersey Shore-area congressman, has also called for the military to shoot down the drones.
Trump has said he believes the government knows more than it’s saying. “Let the public know, and now. Otherwise, shoot them down!!!” he posted on his social media site.
Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut said Thursday that the drones should be “shot down, if necessary.”
“We should be doing some very urgent intelligence analysis and take them out of the skies, especially if they’re flying over airports or military bases,” Blumenthal said.
Experts, however, warn not to shoot at anything in the sky.
Earlier last week, national security spokesman, John F. Kirby, said the investigation had not yet turned up any illegal activity.
“To the contrary, upon review of available imagery, it appears that many of the reported sightings are actually manned aircraft that are being operated lawfully,” Kirby said.
Are drones allowed in New Jersey and New York?
The flying of drones for recreational and commercial use is legal in the state, but it is subject to local and Federal Aviation Administration regulations and flight restrictions.
In New York City, a permit is required to take off or land an unmanned aircraft and operators must be FAA-certified.
Local governments can impose their own restrictions on drone use in the US, however, it is generally not illegal to fly drones in most locations, with the exception of certain restricted zones like some military sites. People are also restricted from flying drones above 400 feet and cannot cause property damage.
Have drones been spotted anywhere else?
Drone sightings have been reported in at least six states: New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and Virginia.
Two people said they spotted an aircraft Thursday night near Virginia Beach that was unlike any other they’ve seen.
The object was over the ocean, and they watched as it slowly moved over an Army National Guard facility, John Knight told The Virginian-Pilot.
“It was definitely different,” said Knight, who took videos of what he thinks was a drone the size of a small truck. “It flew like a helicopter but made no noise.” Knight submitted the videos to the FBI tip line.
The Virginia National Guard did not have any aircraft operating in the area Thursday night, according to spokesperson A.A. “Cotton” Puryear. Its leadership is aware of the incident and it’s under investigation.
Another military installation in the area is Naval Air Station Oceana Dam Neck Annex. NAS Oceana, the East Coast master jet base in Virginia Beach, is aware of recent reports of sightings in the area and is coordinating with federal and state agencies to ensure the safety of its personnel and operations, Katie Hewett, public affairs officer, said Friday by email.
In Massachusetts, 10 to 15 drones were reported hovering over a home Thursday night in Harwich on Cape Cod. A resident told police they were bright and she observed them for more than an hour.
Earlier that evening, an off-duty police officer in the same town noticed similar activity near a public safety complex, police said. The information was forwarded to the FBI and Massachusetts State Police.
And across the pond …
Drones were also spotted last month in the U.K. The US Air Force said several small unmanned aircraft were detected near four military bases in England that are used by American forces.
LATEST UPDATE: Now a possible explanation:
Outgoing DHS secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said a new Federal Aviation Administration rule may be behind the sudden drone sightings across New Jersey and the East Coast.
Addressing the issue with the press on Sunday, he said, “In September of 2023, the Federal Aviation Administration, the FAA, changed the rules so that drones could fly at night. And that may be one of the reasons why now people are seeing more drones than they did before, especially from dawn to dusk.”
The FAA already imposes restrictions on nighttime operations. Most drones are not allowed to fly at night unless they are equipped with anti-collision lights that are visible for at least 3 miles
After receiving reports of drone activity last month near Morris County, New Jersey, the Federal Aviation Administration issued temporary bans on drone flights over a golf course in Bedminster, New Jersey, that is owned by Donald Trump, and over Picatinny Arsenal Military Base.
The FAA is responsible for the regulations governing their use, and Congress has written some requirements into law.
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