Mayorkas says no known foreign involvement in mass drone sightings

Alejandro Mayorkas, the US homeland security secretary, has said federal authorities “know of no foreign involvement” in the apparent mass drone sightings across the nation’s north-east region, though social and political anxieties nonetheless continued surging over the weekend amid a lack of official information.

“I want to assure the American public that we are on it,” Mayorkas said.

He called for “extended and expanded” authority to shoot down drones, beyond only those that pass over restricted military airspace. And the New York governor, Kathy Hochul, announced on Sunday that the federal government was prepared to deploy a high-tech drone detection system in response to the spate of sighting there, in New Jersey and Connecticut.

Meanwhile, reports that an Iranian drone ship is patrolling off the US east coast were discarded as unfounded.

The US domestic security chief told ABC News that there are “thousands of drones flown every day in the United States, recreational drones, commercial drones”. He also pointed out that – in September 2023 – aviation regulators enacted rules allowing drones to be flown at night, leading to more such activity.

US authorities are anxious to avoid vigilantes’ responding to New Jersey’s drone invasion, fearing that innocent bystanders could be hit by falling debris or that legitimate commercial aviation could be mistaken for unexplained drones.

“We want state and local authorities to also have the ability to counter drone activity under federal supervision,” Mayorkas said.

Hoping to counter the relative impotence of officials to quell the public anxiety stemming from the drone sightings, Mayorkas said some were drones and others manned aircraft mistaken for drones.

“There’s no question … people are seeing drones,” Mayorkas remarked. “And I want to assure the American public that we, in the federal government, have deployed additional resources, personnel, technology, to assist … in addressing the drone sightings.”

A Chinese national was arrested on 9 December in California, allegedly for flying a drone over Vandenberg air force base, used for space launches and missile testing. Other military bases have also reported drone over-flights.

“If we identify any foreign involvement or criminal activity, we will communicate with the American public accordingly,” Mayorkas added.

Meanwhile, as Donald Trump prepares to begin his second presidency, he has demanded greater official transparency…