Drones latest: Mysterious flying objects reported in New Jersey and nearby states as federal officials investigate – UK Times

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called for Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to deploy “special drone-detection tech across NY and NJ.”

“And I’m working to pass a bill in the Senate to give local law enforcement more tools for drone detection,” Schumer added in a Sunday social media post.

Schumer wants the DHS to employ technology like Robin Radar Systems, a Netherlands-based firm specializing in drone tracking, CBS reports.

“If the technology exists for a drone to make it up into the sky, there certainly is the technology that can track the craft with precision and determine what the heck is going on,” Schumer said. “And that’s what the Robin does today.”

Officials in Morris County, New Jersey are calling on the federal government to “marshal all federal resources at its disposal, including the military, to end the unauthorized flight of drones over our county and other parts of New Jersey.”

The County Board of Commissioners called the ongoing sightings a “matter of national security” in a statement late last week.

“Our federal government has a duty to the people of New Jersey and the rest of the nation to identify the source of this incursion, be completely transparent about what is happening, put an end to the drones that have so alarmed our communities and implement the appropriate safeguards to protect our air space and our people, now and in the future,” the statement reads.

MAGA Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene has claimed that the US government is “in control of the drones” that have been spotted over New Jersey and New York in recent weeks, which officials have so far been unable or unwilling to account for.

Greene, who is well known for amplifying online conspiracy theories, wrote on X late on Saturday night: “The government is in control of the drones and refuses to tell the American people what is going on. It really is that bad.”

The congresswoman offered no evidence to support her claim but followed up with a second post, which went viral when it was shared by podcaster Joe Rogan, featuring a video from drone manufacturer John Ferguson.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul said Sunday that federal authorities will deploy a “state-of-the-art drone detection system” in her state after she demanded action on the mysterious drone sightings.

“This has gone too far,” Hochul said on Saturday after New York’s Stewart International Airport shut down for an hour the night before due to reported drone activity.

Hochul revealed she “directed the New York State Intelligence Center to actively investigate drone sightings and coordinate with federal law enforcement to address this issue.”

She also called on Congress to pass the Counter-UAS Authority Security, Safety, and Reauthorization Act, a bill that would reform drone policy and hand more authority over to states.

“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,” Hochul added.

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Residents have reported mysterious flying drones in at least eight states over the last month.

While the sightings began last month in New Jersey, others have come out of California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia.

These reports began to arouse suspicion after drones were spotted in two New Jersey locations: the US military research facility Picatinny Arsenal and President-elect Donald Trump’s golf course in Bedminster. These sightings even prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to issue temporary flight restrictions over the areas.

Federal officials have emphasized they are not aware of any security threat.

“We know of no foreign involvement with respect to the sightings in the northeast,” Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said on Sunday. “And we are vigilant in investigating this matter, the Department of Homeland Security, with the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the lead.”

At least one airport was forced to shut down or restrict activity late last week due to reported drone activity.

New York’s Stewart International Airport – about 60 miles outside New York City — closed its runways for an hour on Friday night after drones were reported overhead, according to CNN.

Officials at Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio were forced to close their airspace because of drone activity at the same time, local outlet WHIO reports.

“To date, installation leadership has determined none of the incursions impacted base residents, facilities, or assets,” said Bob Purtiman, Chief of Public Affairs for the base.