US says no national security threat after 5,000 drone sightings

In recent weeks, residents in New York, New Jersey, Maryland, and Virginia have reported sightings of drones.

The United States government has reassured the public that there is no threat to national security or public safety following the recent surge of reports concerning unidentified drones in several northeastern states.

“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,” a joint statement from the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Defense, the FBI, and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said on Tuesday.

In recent weeks, residents across multiple northeastern states, including New York, New Jersey, Maryland, and Virginia, have reported sightings of unidentified drones, prompting widespread concern. There have been speculations of potential foreign involvement, with some questioning whether the US government was concealing information regarding the sightings.

The statement confirmed that the FBI has received over 5,000 tips about drone sightings, leading to approximately 100 leads being followed. To investigate further, the government has deployed advanced detection technology to the affected areas, alongside trained visual observers.

The FAA highlighted that there are over 1 million drones lawfully registered in the US, with thousands of commercial, hobbyist, and law enforcement drones operating in US skies daily. Despite this, the appearance of larger-than-usual drones, filmed at night and circulating on social media, has fuelled speculation. Some have even suggested that the objects could be UFOs or foreign surveillance aircraft from countries such as China or Iran.

Drone sightings have also been reported near several military sites in the UK, but these have not been classified as hostile by the US Air Force.

Notably, drones have been spotted near President-elect Donald Trump’s golf course in Bedminster, New Jersey, and the Picatinny Arsenal, a US military research and manufacturing facility also in the state.

Although drones are legal to fly, the FAA enforces strict regulations on their size, weight, and operational zones, particularly around civil aviation and sensitive government installations.

On Monday, Trump called for greater transparency from the government regarding the drone activity, asserting, “the US government knows what is happening.”