Drones latest: Biden insists flying objects pose ‘no danger’ as FBI issues urgent firearm and laser warning
The bureau has warned New Jersey residents to avoid shooting down or shining lasers at suspect unmanned aircraft systems after complaints from pilots
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Your support makes all the difference.President Joe Biden insisted that there is “no sense of danger” surrounding the mysterious spate of drone sightings across the US.
“Nothing nefarious apparently, but they’re checking it all out,” he told reporters at the White House on Tuesday amid growing public demands for an explanation. “We’re following this closely, but so far no sense of danger.”
The FBI also issued a warning to New Jersey residents, urging them not to shoot down or shine lasers at suspected drones flying overhead. The bureau, along with state police, noted an increase of pilots being hit in the eyes with lasers, after those on the ground have mistaken planes for unmanned aircraft systems (UAS’s).
“There is also a concern with people possibly firing weapons at what they believe to be a UAS,” the agency added in a statement.
Members of Congress were briefed on the potential origins of the drones in a classified House Intelligence Committee meeting on Tuesday by Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Major General Pat Ryder.
Officials continue to brush off claims that the UAS’s are linked with anything more clandestine, with Ryder telling reporters: “Completely understand the concerns, completely will reinforce we’re taking it seriously.”
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Mapped: All the locations of mass drone sightings in the last week
New York police got 120 calls about drones last weekend
Police in New York told The New York Times that they received 120 calls about drones last weekend.
However, most of the reports were not really about the drones at all, Rebecca Weiner, the department’s head of intelligence and counterterrorism, noted.
At least one person called about the planet Venus.
Weiner added that there has not been a marked increase in the number of actual drones spotted by the police.
Some 500 drones will fly above Central Park on New Year’s Eve
Around 500 drones will fly above Central Park on New Year’s Eve, in place of the annual fireworks.
The decision was made due to drought in the region and following late-year fires in New York City.
The region has seen some relief since then and is no longer under a drought warning, but the watch remains.
The drones will project images that have to do with running, The New York Times reported. The spectacle coincides with the New York Road Runners’ Midnight Run.
Tennessee GOP congressman says drones aren’t flying over his state for this reason
Tennessee Republican Rep. Tim Burchett said Wednesday that he believes China is tied to recent drone sightings and that the aerial vehicles don’t fly over his state because people would shoot them down.
“There’s a reason you don’t see them flying over Tennessee, at least where I live, because everyone’s got a dadgum 12-gauge, brother. And, I hear they taste a whole heck of a lot like chicken,” he told The Benny Show.
New Jersey Republican slams comments from White House spokesman on drone situation: It’s either ‘incompetence or cover-up’
New Jersey Republican Rep. Jefferson Van Drew is blasting comments from White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby regarding the ongoing drone sightings.
“For John Kirby to stand before the American people, red-faced and sputtering excuses, and claim there is nothing out of the ordinary going on here after weeks of mounting concern is either sheer incompetence, willful ignorance, or a cover-up,” he said. “People are reporting drones, some the size of SUVs, and instead of addressing those legitimate concerns, the administration is brushing them off and treating Americans like they are delusional. It is unacceptable.
New York official calls on Biden administration to address drone concerns
Westchester County Executive George Latimer has called on President Biden to take immediate action to address “fear and concern” regarding recent drone sightings over New York.
“Residents are worried that their government is unable to identify these drones; they express trepidation over holiday travel to see and receive family, particularly from the Westchester County Airport, after Stewart International Airport in Orange County was shut down for an hour due to concerns over these drones,” Latimer wrote in a Monday letter. “Our residents are in need of more information regarding these drones.”
He also expressed his support for Sen. Chuck Schumer’s proposal to deploy advanced drone detection technology.
Monmouth County sheriff identifies current concerns about drones over New Jersey
“The sum concern are the visual confirmed sights by military and first responders,” Monmouth County Sheriff Shaun Golden told CBS Mornings in a clip that aired on Wednesday.
“The bigger concern over that is [that] we don’t have any identification on any of it,” he added.
GOP congressman pins drone ‘hysteria’ on White House
Iowa Republican Rep. Zach Nunn is pinning drone “hysteria” on the Biden administration.
“I think that there’s a real hysteria around here, but I blame that right back on the White House,” he told ABC News.
“At this point, we need resolution and, clearly, we need leadership coming out of the White House to provide real answers that are clear, that are transparent and that are responsible for folks...” Nunn, who serves as a colonel in the Air Force Reserves, said.
Mapped: All the locations of mass drone sightings in the last week
Residents of New Jersey were confused and worried when a group of mysterious drones began to be seen flying in the skies above the state starting late last month. Now residents in New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Florida, California and other states are experiencing the same thing.
Over the last few weeks, local, state and federal law enforcement officials in a string of states have been collecting and investigating reports of unexplained drone sightings
A cluster of drones, seemingly commercial grade, has consistently emerged over communities and even some restricted airspaces after sunset – first in northern New Jersey and now across the country.
Ariana Baio has the story.
Mapped: All the locations of mass drone sightings in the last week
Officials have no explanation for where the drones are coming from or what their purpose is
House Speaker Mike Johnson on government’s response to drones: ‘People are not buying the answers'
House Speaker Mike Johnson said Wednesday that the Biden administration is not providing lawmakers with answers about the origin of drones recently spotted in the Northeast.
“Look, I’m the speaker of the House. I have the exact same frustrations that you do and all of us do. We don’t have the answers. The administration is not providing them,” Johnson told Fox News.
“They just say ‘don’t worry about it, it’s not foreign entities, there’s not a vessel offshore doing this, and they’re not collecting any data.’ OK, then what is it?” Johnson said.
“You heard Mayorkas, who no one believes, we impeached him in the House as you know, the DHS secretary, he said in an interview a couple days ago, well because they changed the regulations to allow drones to fly at night, that’s why everybody’s seeing them now. They’ve always been there. I mean, look, people are not buying the answers,” Johnson said.
Shooting drones could be dangerous, expert warns
Shooting down drones seen across the US could come with consequences.
“If people start shooting, things have to come down,” Jeffrey Wells, a visiting fellow at the National Security Institute at George Mason University, told The Hill.
Wells told the outlet that it was vital for the nation to address gaps between local officials and the federal government.
“Making those kind of more direct feeds to local government to inform citizens, that over your neighborhood really those are airplanes, those are helicopters, those are things that are being operated by your local utility company,” he said.
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