(Bloomberg) -- The US Defense Department denied its involvement in the mysterious drone activity that’s confounded officials in New York and New Jersey, prompting skepticism among some local leaders.
Major General Pat Ryder told reporters Tuesday that none of the drones spotted in those areas are being flown by the Pentagon or are part of secret government tests, saying they’re most likely a combination of commercial or hobbyist drones.
While top department officials take seriously any cases of drones flying near or over US military sites, he said this wasn’t a new concern given the volume of daily drone flights.
“Is it possible that some of those drones could be up to malign activity? It’s entirely possible, but the vast majority, that is not the case,” Ryder said. “In the case of drones flying near or over US military installations, that in and of itself just given the volume of drone flights we see on a given day, is not something that’s new.”
The comments came as speculation abounded about the source of the drones and state officials, as well as President-elect Donald Trump, demand information from federal authorities. The White House hosted a call Monday with politicians and lawmakers from New Jersey — where sightings began mid-November — and on Tuesday President Joe Biden said there was no sense of danger.
“I’m skeptical,” Belleville Mayor Michael Melham, who isn’t affiliated with a political party, said of Ryder’s remarks. He said of the call with the White House that authorities “spent 45 minutes telling us we’re nuts, that we’re seeing things, and there’s nothing to see here.”
“For four weeks we were besieged and had a swarm of drones hovering over our heads here, and the federal government has been telling us literally nothing,” Melham said.
The reports include nighttime sightings of drones as large as 6 feet (1.83 meters) in diameter that “operate in a coordinated manner” and travel with their lights switched off, Dawn Fantasia, a New Jersey assemblywoman, posted to X last week after being briefed by local law enforcement. Witnesses have said they’ve seen several low-hanging drones at once in the night sky, some of which hover in one spot.
White House national security spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Monday that “the sightings to date include a combination of lawful commercial drones, hobbyist drones and law enforcement drones, as well as manned fixed wing aircraft, helicopters and even stars that were mistakenly reported as drones.” He said the sightings weren’t deemed to be a national security or public safety risk.
Earlier that day, Trump — who has called for the government to provide answers or shoot the drones down — said, without citing evidence, that the military knew where the devices originated.
More than 1 million drones are registered to fly in the US, with around 8,500 in flight on any given day, a vast majority of which are recreational or hobbyist used for architectural, engineering, farming or law enforcement purposes, Ryder said Tuesday.
US Senator for New Jersey Andy Kim declined to comment on the Defense Department, while New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy referred to previous comments. Murphy has called for expanded authority to act against drones that may appear as a threat but said the state’s drone-detecting equipment has found little-to-no evidence of anything nefarious in recent days.
New Jersey state Senator Joe Pennacchio, a Republican who last week penned a letter calling on Trump to address the drones, said in a statement Tuesday that he has “zero faith in the current administration to be transparent to the American public.”
Jeff Van Drew, a congressman representing New Jersey’s coastal 2nd District, is also skeptical. The Republican, who last week suggested Iranian involvement — an assertion the Pentagon has denied — said the administration is providing a “bureaucratic runaround while they hope that the public moves on and forgets.”
“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,” he said in a statement. “It is unacceptable.”
Meanwhile, the Newark office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and New Jersey State Police have reported an increase of pilots in manned aircraft being hit in the eyes with lasers by people on the ground mistaking them for drones. The statement followed reports that a laser was pointed at a United Airlines plane flying over New Jersey. United confirmed the incident.
A representative for the Federal Aviation Administration said the agency has received “multiple laser reports” from pilots in airspace around New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania.
“Aiming a laser at an aircraft is a serious safety hazard and a violation of federal law,” the regulator said. Pointing a laser at an aircraft is a federal crime that carries up to $11,000 per violation and up to $30,800 for multiple incidents.
The FBI said it is also concerned people may begin firing weapons at manned aircraft, mistaking them for drones, it said in a statement posted on X.
Law enforcement has “been out every night for several weeks to legally track down operators acting illegally or with nefarious intent and using every available tool and piece of equipment to find the answers the public is seeking,” the FBI said.
--With assistance from Janine Phakdeetham, Allyson Versprille and John Harney.
(Updates with reactions from officials to Defense Department and warning from FBI.)
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