Authored by Andrew Thornebrooke via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),
A sudden spike in unidentified drone sightings near sensitive government sites is unnerving residents and lawmakers alike.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced on Dec. 17 that it is banning drone flights over 22 critical infrastructure locations in response to the incidents, though the White House maintains that there is no credible threat to public safety.
The concern follows more than a month of reported drone sightings in or near the airspace of airports and military facilities in California, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Utah, and Virginia, as well as overseas bases in Germany and the UK.
In all, the FBI said it has received more than 5,000 reports of drone sightings in the last month; of which the agency said about 100 warrant further investigation.
Below is a timeline of the most notable confirmed sightings.
Dec. 16 - Hill Air Force Base, Utah
Several drone sightings are confirmed at Hill Air Force Base in Utah on Dec. 16. One drone flies close to the fuel storage at the facility.
A spokesperson for the base told local media that the base is undertaking measures to safeguard personnel, equipment, and infrastructure but that the incidents have not impacted operation.
The base houses the Ogden Air Logistics Complex, which oversees the management of a wide range of aircraft, missiles, and software for the military. It is also home to several dozen advanced F-35 fighter aircraft.
Drone encounters in this location began in 2022 and have continued intermittently to the present.
Dec. 13–17 - Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio
White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby tells reporters that drones had penetrated the restricted airspace around several military complexes, including Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio, which houses the Air and Space Forces’ national intelligence centers.
The number of drones, their type, and formation fluctuated from Dec. 13 through 17, a base spokesperson tells Stars and Stripes, a Department of Defense-managed publication.
No damage or threat is reported, but at least one incident forces the facility to close its airfields for four hours.
Dec. 14 - Logan International Airport, Massachusetts
Local police in Boston arrest two men for allegedly operating a drone “dangerously close” to Logan International Airport.
The police used drone monitoring technology to track the operators’ position on a nearby island. There, they confronted three individuals who fled on foot. Two of the three were taken into custody and charged with trespassing, while a third escaped by boat and remains at large.
Dec. 13 - Stewart International Airport, New York
The Stewart International Airport is forced to close its runways for an hour while an unidentified drone flies around the facility.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul urges Congress to pass a bill that would give state authorities the legal authority to shoot drones down, saying that a “state-of-the-art drone detection system” loaned out by the federal government is not enough.
Dec. 9–15 - Camp Pendleton, California
Unidentified drones violated the restricted airspace six times in a six-day period at Camp Pendleton, one of the U.S. Marine Corps’ largest bases and a center of its training activities.
A spokesperson for the base told The Epoch Times that there is no threat to operations at the installation, without elaborating.
“Force protection considerations restricts our ability to provide further information to ensure the operational security of the installation and the safety and welfare of the base population and the surrounding areas,” the spokesperson said.
Dec. 3 - Ramstein Air Base, Germany
Unauthorized drones fly over the sprawling Ramstein Air Base in western Germany. The facility is a major hub for the U.S. military and houses NATO’s central command for all allied air and space forces.
Local police tell Stars and Stripes that the drones had previously been tracked flying over the site of a major multinational chemical corporation, and anonymous sources have said the drones were not of a type associated with hobby use.
Nov. 30 - Vandenberg Space Force Base, California
Chinese national Yinpiao Zhou allegedly flies an unregistered drone over Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
Zhou allegedly uses the drone to photograph SpaceX rocket pads on the same day the company is launching a sensitive national reconnaissance payload from the base.
On Dec. 6, federal agents arrest Zhou at San Francisco International Airport as he prepared to board a China-bound flight, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles.
Nov. 22 - Trump National Golf Club, New Jersey
The FAA closes the airspace over the Trump National Golf Club Bedminster after reports of several drones and a fixed-winged aircraft flying along the 70-mile Raritan River in Somerset and Middlesex counties in New Jersey.
President-elect Donald Trump, who owns the golf course and maintains a home in nearby Bedminster, later said he had canceled a trip to the area because of the continued presence of the drones.
Trump added in a post on his Truth Social media platform that the drones should be shot down if the government does not know where they are coming from.
Read the rest of this insanity here...
Authored by Andrew Thornebrooke via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),
A sudden spike in unidentified drone sightings near sensitive government sites is unnerving residents and lawmakers alike.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced on Dec. 17 that it is banning drone flights over 22 critical infrastructure locations in response to the incidents, though the White House maintains that there is no credible threat to public safety.
The concern follows more than a month of reported drone sightings in or near the airspace of airports and military facilities in California, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Utah, and Virginia, as well as overseas bases in Germany and the UK.
In all, the FBI said it has received more than 5,000 reports of drone sightings in the last month; of which the agency said about 100 warrant further investigation.
Below is a timeline of the most notable confirmed sightings.
Dec. 16 – Hill Air Force Base, Utah
Several drone sightings are confirmed at Hill Air Force Base in Utah on Dec. 16. One drone flies close to the fuel storage at the facility.
A spokesperson for the base told local media that the base is undertaking measures to safeguard personnel, equipment, and infrastructure but that the incidents have not impacted operation.
The base houses the Ogden Air Logistics Complex, which oversees the management of a wide range of aircraft, missiles, and software for the military. It is also home to several dozen advanced F-35 fighter aircraft.
Drone encounters in this location began in 2022 and have continued intermittently to the present.
Dec. 13–17 – Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio
White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby tells reporters that drones had penetrated the restricted airspace around several military complexes, including Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio, which houses the Air and Space Forces’ national intelligence centers.
The number of drones, their type, and formation fluctuated from Dec. 13 through 17, a base spokesperson tells Stars and Stripes, a Department of Defense-managed publication.
No damage or threat is reported, but at least one incident forces the facility to close its airfields for four hours.
Dec. 14 – Logan International Airport, Massachusetts
Local police in Boston arrest two men for allegedly operating a drone “dangerously close” to Logan International Airport.
The police used drone monitoring technology to track the operators’ position on a nearby island. There, they confronted three individuals who fled on foot. Two of the three were taken into custody and charged with trespassing, while a third escaped by boat and remains at large.
Dec. 13 – Stewart International Airport, New York
The Stewart International Airport is forced to close its runways for an hour while an unidentified drone flies around the facility.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul urges Congress to pass a bill that would give state authorities the legal authority to shoot drones down, saying that a “state-of-the-art drone detection system” loaned out by the federal government is not enough.
Dec. 9–15 – Camp Pendleton, California
Unidentified drones violated the restricted airspace six times in a six-day period at Camp Pendleton, one of the U.S. Marine Corps’ largest bases and a center of its training activities.
A spokesperson for the base told The Epoch Times that there is no threat to operations at the installation, without elaborating.
“Force protection considerations restricts our ability to provide further information to ensure the operational security of the installation and the safety and welfare of the base population and the surrounding areas,” the spokesperson said.
Dec. 3 – Ramstein Air Base, Germany
Unauthorized drones fly over the sprawling Ramstein Air Base in western Germany. The facility is a major hub for the U.S. military and houses NATO’s central command for all allied air and space forces.
Local police tell Stars and Stripes that the drones had previously been tracked flying over the site of a major multinational chemical corporation, and anonymous sources have said the drones were not of a type associated with hobby use.
Nov. 30 – Vandenberg Space Force Base, California
Chinese national Yinpiao Zhou allegedly flies an unregistered drone over Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
Zhou allegedly uses the drone to photograph SpaceX rocket pads on the same day the company is launching a sensitive national reconnaissance payload from the base.
On Dec. 6, federal agents arrest Zhou at San Francisco International Airport as he prepared to board a China-bound flight, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles.
Nov. 22 – Trump National Golf Club, New Jersey
The FAA closes the airspace over the Trump National Golf Club Bedminster after reports of several drones and a fixed-winged aircraft flying along the 70-mile Raritan River in Somerset and Middlesex counties in New Jersey.
President-elect Donald Trump, who owns the golf course and maintains a home in nearby Bedminster, later said he had canceled a trip to the area because of the continued presence of the drones.
Trump added in a post on his Truth Social media platform that the drones should be shot down if the government does not know where they are coming from.
Read the rest of this insanity here…
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