Over the past month, there’s been a rash of drone sightings in the northeast U.S., with the FBI receiving over 5,000 reports and aviation authorities enacting drone flying restrictions.
But is this all much ado about nothing?
Driving the news: The FBI, Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Defense, and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) released a statement saying there was nothing fishy about recent sightings. In fact, they said that many of the flying objects weren’t even drones.
- Things that concerned citizens have been mistaking for drones include small planes, military cargo aircraft, helicopters, the planet Venus, and the Goodyear Blimp.
Yes, but: This came after panic had already set in, with politicians calling for action. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called for "special detection systems," while president-elect Donald Trump posted on Truth Social imploring people to shoot at the drones.
- While no shots have been fired, folks have flashed lasers at what they thought were drones but turned out to be piloted aircraft. The FAA is warning people to knock it off.
- Plus, drone anxiety isn’t entirely unfounded. This month a man was detained before boarding a flight to China for flying a drone over a California space force base.
Why it matters: The reality is that drone detection is difficult. And as access to them proliferates, the U.S., and Canada for that matter, are working to improve systems.—QH