Drones Over New Jersey - National Security Threat?

[@blancolirio]

Interesting development here on the West Coast on 8 Dec. kzbin.info/www/bejne/p3KuiJSrbb6padUsi=4LwNX51VF89Y8gDg

[@Chris11249]

Wow thanks for the share Juan! I wonder if the hits on TCAS for the medavac Pilatus was a false positive?

[@ckez4724]

Cover this PLEASEEEEEE!!!!?

[@larrybueno]

I was about to suggest you cover this one. This event is even more interesting, let’s hope they publish the videos and pictures. Another pilot just told me they saw something similar on November 4th over Oregon and there were also more aircraft reporting it.

[@JamesDowningFPV]

This one seems way more legit. The flights over NJ mostly seem to be commercial or manned aircraft or helos from the images I have found. The Oregon thing was at least identified by actual pilots who can tell the difference.

[@kurtv4946]

Wow! Interesting stuff. Hopefully this will make the news with the pics and videos.

[@MontanaMedic13]

The fact that the drones are using FAA compliant navigation and position lights along with additional lighting clearly shows that these drones aren't trying to be unnoticed. Its easy enough to fly a drone with all of the lights off so they are either legitimate flights for a reasonable purpose or they are making this huge ruckus on purpose. If they wanted to fly around covertly we wouldn't even know they were there.

[@chrisbrown8602]

We're being lied to by the government. Why would anyone attempting covert operations have FAA compliant lighting on, lit up light a Christmas tree, while flying around at night?Something is very fishy and it stinks to high heaven.

[@stevee7774]

Agreed 💯%

[@fredbrackely]

No, I've been watching them myself. Just because they have some flashing lights doesn't mean they are Fed mandated nav light. Most of these UAP's have some odd combination of lights, and the go dark when you watch them. The sightings aren't limited to the US. Right now, these drones are buzzing RAF Mildenhall. They 3 F-15's up chasing them.

[@mysock351C]

These have been in operation since the lockdown (I live in NJ). If I recall they also had registration numbers of some sort on the booms from my recollection when two of them accosted me for leaving my house. We have also had twin engine planes flying grid “surveys” during the night as well for many months. Same plane flies a grid pattern going low and slow. The real question is why have the media suddenly taken an interest in covering them? That part I really want to know (But I have my suspicions.) While the cadence has increased, it’s not new.

[@jimmyschmidt14]

I've been watching them flying grid “surveys” during the night as well for many months. It’s always better to hide in plain site

[@gpaull2]

I can’t believe that the regulations applied to the law abiding hobbyists hasn’t prevented this!?!?

[@ddegn]

Exactly!

[@PeteLenz]

That may be the point. Trying to outlaw hobbyist drones.

[@SpruceSculptures]

I quit the hobby partially because of that crap. It does no good, just like gun control.

[@spurgear4]

I think he was talking about radio control aircraft, drones should never have been stuck under the same umbrella ​@PeteLenz

[@ddegn]

@@spurgear4 How would you categorize a *drone* vs a *radio controlled aircraft?* There are so many VTOL type aircraft that I think it would be hard to place *drones* and *radio controlled aircraft* in separate categories.

[@gcslade]

Does anyone else find it interesting the timing of the drone flights corresponds directly with aerial drone countermeasure legislation waiting on congress. Seems like someone / group is sending them an message.

[@igclapp]

Exactly. My guess is that this whole stunt is being done by a company that sells anti-drone systems and they're planning to make a lot of money under the new legislation.

[@majgoku]

@@igclapp I would sincerely hate to believe that a select group of lawmakers would profit from the sales of those anti-drone systems!? 🤫

[@teppo9585]

Those sending the message wont be some concerned citizens but someone closer to the government, well, more than likely so I think. A milquetoast false flag situation so to speak thats my guess.

[@kamakaziozzie3038]

Yea…very interesting

[@TeachAManToAngle]

I was thinking the exact same thing.

[@TheSuperParatrooper]

D'Esposito started out by answering a question he was not even asked, and then in the first 30 seconds of that "answer" asked for more money for a governmental agency. This told me everything I needed to know about the drone sightings.

[@spvillano]

Indeed, he discusses with CBP, FBI and DOJ, if only there was some agency, some Force of the Air, which could detect remotely objects flying around our airspace, maybe some kind of air force... Then, they could invent some kind of oh, RAdio Detection And Ranging device, maybe call it RADAR. Issue them some kind of flying machines to intercept and at least identify such airborne threats or at least verify their existence. Instead, we're as helpless as we were before the massive Martian Invasion of 1938, which wasn't halted by the presence of bacteria, but thankfully was aborted by the opening of the cafeteria. Thankfully, the tuna salad was a bit off... Instead, we get fever dreams of Iranian drone carriers (actually being observed in real time by the NRO and US Navy off of the coast of Iran, which obviously is quite close, being only 6400 miles away and yeah, I suspect someone would notice a converted merchantman into a flat top escort carrier operating right off of the US coast. I'm pretty sure that the USCG cutter Helen Keller could see a jeep carrier.

[@treasurethetime2463]

As a new jersey resident and someone who once had the fifth highest score on the top gun arcade game at a Jersey shore arcade, i can say that the response from local officials has been insufficient.

[@tigerwarsaw99]

The Peoples Champion.

[@smokeymoe842]

Give this man a counter drone with VR!

[@snuder9832]

We can’t seem to get out of our own way. Pathetic

[@brucecuratola6389]

It’s the four guys with a better score than you operating the drones!

[@bradsanders407]

I didnt realize we had a celebrity in the comments. What an honor for us that you shared you expert insight.

[@pookatim]

If someone was doing something nefarious, would they have lights on the drones? Could it be some government agency seeking an increase in their budget? Hmmmm.

[@ChadNJ]

That was my initial thought too. But, if they want the drones to be seen to cause panic, then yes I think they would have lights on.

[@BouillaBased]

This is striking me as a government solution looking for a problem.

[@RetiredEE]

War of the Worlds started by attacking New Jersey and mass panic ensued. If these drones attacked New Jersey, my first instinct would be to make some popcorn.

[@MattH-wg7ou]

Just to cause public panic?

[@Charlie1776_]

You seem to forget this current administration let a Chinese spy balloon fly undeterred across the entire country photographing sensitive nuclear sites.

[@kb9bny]

I am surprised that someone hasn’t sent up a helicopter with a flir camera to follow them on their way back to their home base. There seems to be a serious lack of imagination on how to investigate this issue.

[@laurentbarrere6530]

THey tried. "Once lit up, the craft goes dark". They cannot follow them. Why?

[@gregentclemory9285]

A helicopter and night vision for every $500 drone? K This is the future of warfare and terrorism, guaranteed. Imagine if China sent a few billion our way. Actually don't

[@zynius]

Because it's not a single type of drone. This is hysteria and a bunch of people taking a pictures of everything that flies in hope they make the news. I mean, at least one sighting has been of the BlackFly. Some are maybe amazon delivery drones. Some might be drones made in someone's garage, it's not difficult. I could make a car sized drone, it's child's play.

[@scottgarvin4411]

@@zyniusur nutz

[@kathieharine5982]

Congress hasn't even been able to get rid of the twice a year clock changes.

[@joeskis]

which is good because we can't agree on which one to stay with. I bet it would be about 50/50 for which one. Therefore the best solution is leave it alone. We can have a minor inconvenience twice a year.

[@wadepatton2433]

Unless it pay$$$, Congre$$ isn't going to do anything.

[@JoshuaTootell]

Can't blame Congress on this one. The states are to blame. The law makes changing the time optional. Either you stick to standard time, or do the swap twice a year. The problem is 1/3 of the population wants permanent daylight savings time, which is NOT legal. And as only 1/3 want it they are still the minority, but loud enough to stop the nonsense.

[@stephenp448]

Can't really complain on that. If we were on permanent DST, we wouldn't have seen sunrise til 8:45 this morning.

[@Shadow__133]

@@joeskisWhat are you talking about? Every poll done shows the majority wants to get rid of seasonal time changes. Also, most people prefer the summer times on most I've seen. I honestly don't care which, as long as I don't have to run around changing clocks all year around. It's stupid.

[@swooshdave]

These are not hobby drones. When they government won’t tell you who’s drones they are, it means it’s their drones.

[@disconductorder]

They are creating the problem to crack down on it Drones will become illegal, they are preparing us for war. If we were attacked on us soil, drones would be effective

[@DR_1_1]

Flown as PR to sell the anti-drone systems.

[@alexandergutfeldt1144]

@@DR_1_1and more restrictive legislation. Sounds paranoid, but fits the pattern

[@gewglesux]

Does anyone what kind they are? who says they're not Hobby drones.

[@swooshdave]

@@gewglesux Because they have been reported as quite large, up to an SUV size.

[@lymonguy2441]

This just happened over Vandenberg Space Force Base too, the drone was flying above one mile in altitude. Vandy has drone spotting systems that picked it up, base security located and searched the drone pilot and found the drone concealed on his person when they searched him. The drone pilot was arrested yesterday at SFO airport attempting to board a flight to mainland china. There are a number of articles about it now. Drone pilot is being charged with operating an unlicensed drone and with photographing the base's layout.

[@mrkeogh]

Yeah, he's facing 4 years in prison for this. We shouldn't forget that Chinese intelligence have been essentially crowd-sourcing intelligence gathering in the West to their own citizens who live or holiday abroad. If a Chinese national is abroad and gets photos or information on sensitive facilities, they're *strongly* encouraged to hand it over to the Chinese intelligence services. Much social credit score points! In a similar vein, Russian intelligence has been recruiting people online and paying them to commit arson attacks, daub graffiti on synagoges, mosques, etc. in order to escalate racial tensions in Europe. There's some instances of it happening in the UK, France, and Germany and they KNOW Russian intelligence were behind the attacks. It's not beyond imagination that a foreign intelligence service is paying people to buy a drone and fly it over certain areas, laughing at the hysteria and embarrassment that follows and/or collecting valuable intelligence and mapping data from the operator. They could pay multiple people to do this at the same time, none of whom know each other and might believe it's an elaborate prank.

[@Joe_VanCleave]

I noticed the lack of an FAA representative at that congressional hearing, which is strange given they have the authority and responsibility over aviation. It also seems improper to be asking the Pentagon if they know anything, because even military aviation needs to be coordinated by the FAA.

[@hagus42]

The riddles for me, as a drone operator, are: 1) We shot down a bunch of UAPs a few years ago along with the Chinese balloon (allegedly some were weather balloons? Footage was never released, crash remains never made public for most). Why was that able to be authorized in an expedited manner? 2) What is the motivation for these illegal drone operators to have no Remote ID (or disabled Remote ID) but leave their navigation lights on? Then, why is it so hard to track something that seems like it’s deliberately advertising its position? 3) we know from Ukraine that RF allows drones to be tracked, so much so that Russian operators are spooling out 10km of fiber optic cable to avoid jamming. We know law enforcement had the ability to track drones by RF even before Remote ID. Are these really operating with zero signal emissions? 4) If you really wanted to surveil national infrastructure it seems that simply removing Remote ID and navigation lights lets you do that with impunity, which seems like a crazy national security problem. How many drone flights are we completely unaware of? 5) Drones aren’t that hard to take out of the sky with some degree of safety. You can take a small drone out with a roll of toilet paper. I think you could probably offer a bounty for a private operator to recover one of these drones and they’d have it done in a week. You only need to degrade the drone’s ability RTH ability and it will likely perform an emergency landing.

[@A1FAHx]

@@hagus42 Or perhaps the military is conducting an operation, detection and interdiction exercise. Juan knows.

[@hagus42]

Also worth adding: just one drone being captured would blow the whole operation. Teardown would immediately reveal everything we'd need to triangulate country of origin and very likely have enough onboard data and firmware to ID the operator. These are advanced drones capable of (apparent) autonomous operation at high altitudes over long distances. The supply chain to build one of these devices is pretty narrow, you're not 3D printing one of these things without a pile of advanced electronics that can be traced back to the seller and the buyer. So the bar is very very low here, just take out one single drone and recover it.

[@Johnfisher12345]

#2: Passive terrorism. Sparking fear and confusion as a secondary objective, while the primary objective is surveillance. Pretty easy to understand.

[@dmdx86]

@@hagus42 These are valid points but in some cases off the shelf drones can be "hacked" to bypass the geofencing and remote ID capabilities. There was a Chinese national who was caught using a hacked drone to fly over Vandenberg with no software lockouts. That could be the case here. Doesn't require a sophisticated supply chain and assembly line, just hacked firmware.

[@hagus42]

@@dmdx86 yeah that's true but if it's an off the shelf drone that makes it even easier to track. Now you have buyers and sellers you can go and question, you can develop targeted countermeasures, you know the range, etc. My main point is that if you take down a single drone, you go from having absolutely no idea who is doing this, to a plausible set of leads for investigation.

[@BackyardDogPark9862]

Colorado nuke fields had a similar drone problem several years ago. Same pattern, large numbers of large drones doing mysterious stuff every night for several weeks at a time. IIRC it was the Dept of Energy surveying the topography around the nuke sites with LIDAR or something like that. If these drones actually were 'unknown' to an important person in DoD, they would have been shot down by now. They are known.

[@Therealchristopherjessup]

Well said

[@efflux89]

Like all those Chinese (allegedly) spy balloons that were shot down during the last administration?

[@Johnfisher12345]

If that’s true, a government spokesman should issue a statement that these are US government property being flown in the interests of national security, but I cannot provide any more info than that. That would at least stop the majority of people thinking these are russian spy drones or whatever.

[@AlbertHess-xy7ky]

By who?

[@Paul-s6e8i]

NO

[@TomSherwood-z5l]

I think spy or surveillance drones would fly dark. IF they loiter in an area for very long they should be able to detect the downlink frequency. Or trail them back to their source with another drone. Or fly over with a helicopter and knock them down with rotor wash. This makes us look as foolish as the balloon fiascos. IF they know what frequency they should be able to jam them. This is nuts.

[@pmccoy8924]

Maybe so. The military has anti drone capabilities. If it’s in Picatinny airspace, let er eat.

[@donaldgrosz6299]

These drones are most likely running INAV and are running a preprogrammed route so jamming control freqs won't do much since they are most likely beyond control link range anyhow

[@f270]

​@@donaldgrosz6299I'm guessing even with INAV or similar you could jam gps signals and make them crash.

[@Bryan-Hensley]

You can use several methods to control them. You can use the cellphone network (LTE) or ham radio repeaters (the system is called Dragon link)

[@relaxingnature2617]

bright lights = not sneaking = not spy drones

[@mikedx2706]

I call BS. It’s always better to hide in plain site and be more difficult to be recognized as a threat.

[@Crosbie85]

@@mikedx2706yep. The more u hide in plane sight the harder it is to be found because you will be called schiz for thinking it’s something bad or evil

[@dulguunjargal1199]

​@@mikedx2706 ???? Yeah be quite literally above a City acting like a lightshow to ""hide" in plain sight" where now half the world is watching because the drones are all over social media now. Not much hiding is there

[@ThrashCommand]

@@mikedx2706 That makes no sense.

[@Aeronotti]

@@mikedx2706ah yes “plain sight” because there’s millions of properly lit drones flying around critical infrastructure every night

[@xjet]

Juan, I figured you would be one of the first to point out that *many* of these so-called drone sightings are simply people seeing commercial aircraft in the skies at night. For example, take a look at the image you've showed on the left/middle of the screen @05:45 in this video and tell me that's not an airliner. I posted a video to my own channel where explain just how much of this situation is down to media-driven hysteria -- please take a look and offer your thoughts.

[@hagus42]

We'd have corroborating ADSB tracks in that case and this whole thing would be a non-issue. Airliners also don't tend to park themselves over military bases subject to TFRs …

[@Nefville]

@@hagus42 Were they picked up on radar? The reason I ask is its hard to judge distance and location from the ground, especially at night. I wonder if people are seeing lights that are either closer or further than they think and the ones that appear stationary are just moving directly towards the observer. If they're on radar then count this out.

[@KannabisMajoris]

@@Nefville it's almost always either something small way closer to the viewer (the power line ball for example) or something large way farther from the observer (commercial flights or Venus)

[@hagus42]

@@Nefville if you know the location of where the person was filming, and the time of day, it becomes trivial to pull the ADSB tracks and mystery solved. My assumption (maybe placing too much faith in the authorities) is that we wouldn't be having hearings if that were the case.

[@1718bb]

I'm going to put on my tinfoil hat here for a minute. Could this be yet another anti-RC-hobbyist propaganda push ahead of even more regulations? We can't let little Bobbie fly that rubber band airplane anymore! It's not SAFE!

[@A1FAHx]

The FAA compliant NAV lights tell all!

[@HeaanLasai]

We have a huge problem in Europe with Russian diplomats flying drones into the path of civilian airliners. Some of the drones fly dark, so the aircraft will crash into it. Other drones use very strong nav lights, the purpose of these are instead to be seen, to shut down an entire airport for hours to impact the whole transportation network.

[@HeaanLasai]

And, of course, we can't do anything about it. Even when we issue one batch of persona non grata, the Russians just send a new batch of professional saboteurs.

[@HyenaEmpyema]

So a hostile actor wouldn't know that or be able to tape 2 LEDs to the side?

[@bingbong7316]

​@@HeaanLasai"Russian diplomats"? What are you on?

[@rodcoulter997]

Exactly….clearly see the “red on the right, get uptight”. And the green to Port….how can they not figure this out? Good GooseGun would clear this up….

[@joetheairbusguy1813]

I’m a part 107 drone pilot and an Airbus captain. I’ve been watching this with great interest. In the videos I’ve seen I believe I’m seeing several different types of aircraft to include nighttime consumer type drone activity. This wouldn’t be the first time a group of pilots got together to pull a prank. The videos all show common commercial aircraft and helicopters. This all has a “war of the worlds” hysteria to it🤣

[@lyleparadise2764]

You could be right. A person sees lights in the sky at night, but no sound and they think " drone "..............But an Airbus flying at FL 320 doesn't make a sound either at ground level.

[@denyscpoyner]

Better hope it's a prank. Russian spies perhaps, sabotage reconnaissance ? Putin's rouge thugs ? Something is fishy.

[@hagus42]

The part I don't understand is that given the cellphone data (time, location, etc), it would be trivial to put this to bed with radar tracks and ADSB data. So why haven't they?

[@Parattchi]

That's exactly what I was going to comment. Every single video and photo I've seen looks exactly like a normal plane or helicopter. I haven't seen a *single" clip that actually appears to be a drone. Hell in many of them you can *hear* the engines of the aircraft. A whole lot of gullible, suggestible people suddenly looking at every light in the sky and feeding back into the hysteria.

[@MJ-zo5gb]

A prank with dozens of very large drones, staying a loft for hours, which probably means gas powered drones? And then the federal government cannot figure it out or stop it for three weeks or more? If that was going on, I think the government would’ve shut it down quicker. And this prank would also constitute dozens of felonies! The US military is also not incompetent, so they definitely know what’s going on; they just don’t wanna tell us for unknown reasons.

[@peggyh8937]

Thanks for covering this. This isn't just happening in New Jersey. They are flying over sensitive infrastructure and residential neighborhoods. It happened over one of our bases in the UK last week, has been reported in other states in the US, including New York, and other countries around the world including Japan and Australia. Also, there was a report that a Life Flight helicopter was grounded due to the drones and unable to respond to an incident. The injured woman had to be taken via ground ambulance instead which was a long distance so this is not harmless. According to the Pentagon per CBS Reporter, "the drones do not belong to our military and do not appear to be coming from a foreign adversary." The fact this has been going on for a month and they claim they know nothing is very concerning and quite frankly unbelievable. Please follow this closely. These are not your average "drones" we are talking about.

[@LIamaLlama554]

Well “slap me and call me Susan”

[@junkerzn7312]

Who is "they"? Usually when people start throwing around the word "they" it means that the rumor mill has seriously echoed around its social media bubble chamber playing a long game of "operator".

[@peggyh8937]

@@junkerzn7312 The first "they" in my post is the drones of topic which are of unknown origin at this point but highly sophisticated and very expensive. The second "they" is the local and federal government, including Pentagon, & White House.

[@MicMc539]

That's B.S. about it happening in Australia. There's NOTHING in the press or media. It's just 350 Million Yanks having Hysterics, again.

[@smokeless7774]

Same thing happening over airbases here in the UK ?

[@3dtexan890]

I would not put it past the FAA doing this to ban ALL quadcopters used by Americans. The FAA hates this freedom, and they have been putting up road blocks when it comes to private quadcopters. The government knows who is doing this, they are. Of course that is my opinion.

[@DrMackSplackem]

The voters have decided it's time to clean house. If the problem persists, then we know our freedom has been an illusion.

[@1Placerville]

The battery life on larger drones, sticking with a DJI brand as an example, is not that long. There’s a weight to flying time ratio. I own 3 of the DJI S1000 eight rotor drones, 1 S900 six rotor and several smaller ones. My larger drones only get 20 mins with a newer battery, decreasing as the battery ages. Some mid size might get 30 and stretching to 40 mins. In other words, what goes up must come down soon! All those lights eats into flying time too. A simple solution is stage a law enforcement helicopter with infrared, which most have, stage a couple law enforcement officers on the ground and launch the helicopter when the drones are spotted. Helicopter loiters and tracks where the drones are landing and directs ground personnel to the site. If they don’t land then you have a bigger problem and can pretty much rule out over the counter rotor drones and start looking at fixed wing drones. Same capabilities but much longer flight time. However, they will still need to land and change batteries. I’m a Part 107 drone operator with night endorsement, instrument rated pilot and former military approach control and tower operator. Oh, I live in California so it’s not me!

[@SerebroWD]

Oh, so we blame you for the ones over Oregon on Sunday, then? ;)

[@PRH123]

hmm, what are ya’ doin’ with all them drones, eh? probably hoovering over people’s houses, and insensitive installations :)

[@ShreverBeaver]

It’s Santa testing package delivery. He has really evolved with the times in an effort to become more efficient. Elf labor rates and reindeer fuel isn’t what it used to be.

[@k.larson4682]

Reindeer fuel...you mean carrots?

[@HongyaMa]

fuel? How about their exhaust?

[@mgratk]

@@k.larson4682 Magic corn prices are through the roof.

[@brandspro]

Wish I could laugh about this.

[@Inevitable_Truth1]

Lmfao 🤣

[@tonyc223]

Lets take a few out and see who is controlling them. Why is everything so complicated?

[@w5cdt]

Agree…this isn’t an FAA issue this is a national security issue. When you fly into a presidential TFR it’s NOT the FAA who comes after you first. It’s the US Air Force in an F-15 or F-16.

[@olympiashorts]

I think it's the concern for a disabled drone falling and damaging property or hurting someone. I'm guessing there's no agency that wants to take responsibility for that.

[@shaggybreeks]

Things are "complicated" because they really are. Don't be so lazy minded.

[@twillison8824]

The Ukranians have drones that drop nets over other drones to disable them. Can't be too complicated to make it happen here.

[@olympiashorts]

@ but then the whole mess falls to earth. What agency is going to take responsibility for maiming or killing somebody (let alone bashing in their moonroof)?

[@donaldcloutier2973]

As a rc pilot, rc flight instructor and AMA club president and a private pilot…we fly at a sanctioned field, apply all the AMA, FAA, local and airspace rules remain 400ft or below…and still we get grouped with drones. We fly fixed wing, helicopters and have turbine jet waivers…whatever the drones are doing will just create more pain for those who fly legally. Flying RC was and is still a hobby and to get people interested in aviation. Will be interesting if anyone figures out the drone flying!

[@LarsLarsen77]

Yeah I don't follow any of those rules. Speak for yourself.

[@Angelum_Band]

Law Abiding Criminals do not exist. As the ukrainians who fly them all the time.

[@DAVIDBrown-zp8sz]

Cry all you want about being grouped with drones but it's the FAA that you should be pissed at, the same ones that are limiting our hobby to sanctioned fields unless we jump through all the FAA hoops. Besides with all the latest long range fpv technology and the fact that your fixed wing rc can fly longer and farther than drones could make fixed wing more of a threat than drones . So sure you're going to be grouped not just by society but by the FAA !

[@UneducatedEngineer444]

Long term flyer here! Thank you for posting this. I don't feel so alone now. I've been a 3d heli pilot since 2010, what an amazing time it was back then I never saw any of this coming

[@firstielasty1162]

If they are ours (military, etc) they (officials) are lying. If they are not ours, they (FAA, DHS especially) are incompetent. Those are the two choices.. I don't know which is worse.

[@A1FAHx]

@@firstielasty1162 The military or NRO would not necessarily tell everybody. But the folks who need to know do know - and they're not talking.

[@junkerzn7312]

They were probably embarrassed when they tracked the drones down to a 7-year old playing with his Christmas present.

[@robertgentry9436]

Likely both DHS is totally corrupt and enemies have obviously made deals with these politicians to invade our airspace and who knows what else. The "spy balloon" thing made that pretty obvious.

[@charlessage7323]

Don't forget that both choices could be true at the same time.

[@bobthompson5317]

Or they are ours and they (FAA/DHS) are incompetent.

[@markaboyce]

How about using a good old fashioned Search Light to light these "drones" up so we can get some good pictures and video. Is it true that commercial drones stop working when these civilians try to fly a drone to go investigate?

[@emergencylowmaneuvering7350]

Thanks. Let me pull my WW2 search lights i bought from London in 1946.

[@MrSupro]

Sal from What’s Going On With Shipping just talked about this. Highly unlikely an Iranian drone mother ship is off the East coast because we have eyes on them and they are in the Middle East. Ships are very hard to hide.

[@bpendztv]

Penagon already said it is NOT Iran or any other adversary.

[@nadogrl]

@@bpendztv- oh, so we believe them?🤯

[@carbonking53]

​@bpendztv and you believe them?

[@Plutogalaxy]

@@nadogrlI know, why believe anything right?

[@nadogrl]

@@Plutogalaxy - Not when it comes to the government and the media.

[@dagger4146]

This topic has been put on blast on the radio waves all day. Got a chuckle from an interview where somebody said, "as soon as we get eyes on them they go dark". Poindexter didn't say why they are flying with anti-collision lights though. LOL

[@oldRighty1]

They are quantum-locked. They don't exist when they're being observed. The moment they are seen by any other living creature, they freeze into rock. No choice. It's a fact of their biology. In the sight of any living thing, they literally turn to stone. And you can't kill a stone. Of course, a stone can't kill you either. But then you turn your head away, then you blink, and oh yes it can.

[@richardcatalinajr.369]

That somebody was NJ Governor Phil Murphy. 'Nuff said.

[@spanieaj]

Been hearing about this for weeks. Pretty tired of all the conjecture. The one grainy video was clearly a Cessna. I think this another way to keep government budgets on the rise.

[@SerebroWD]

OR.... push the narrative that the FAA needs to be dismantled and privatized? That's been suggested, though not the drone link.

[@gd8205]

Why do I feel like I did with the crop circles in the 90s?

[@FranktheDachshund]

Exactly what I was thinking, hoaxers.

[@tondog54]

Count me in. Feels the same.

[@mikepanchaud1]

Except , these 'hoaxers' are risking prison. Unlike crop circle pranksters.

[@JoshuaTootell]

Did you forget about the guy who crashed his plane for KZbin ​@@mikepanchaud1?

[@bpendztv]

Not just NJ, happening over UK RAF bases, worked on some stuff back in the day, but not this stuff, and our federal government is raising their hands up and blaming local government and local government blaming the feds, someone stands to make money, that's where this is coming from.

[@Cyclegladiator]

Weird that they have lights. The operator is obviously not worried about being covert.

[@onsitevideoservices9552]

I fly ag drones at night and that’s what they look like. I took a quick Look at the NOTAMs around the sighting areas in NJ and guess what, UAS NOTAMs are in place. Back in the summer the FAA gave us permission to fly drone over 55 lbs at night. These are likely legal operations.

[@XJRSuper]

Feels like you need to highlight the difference between the actual few possible drones and 99% of the stuff all over social media at the moment which are clearly planes…

[@txkflier]

It isn't being done by 60+ year old model aviation hobbyists and yet the FAA couldn't keep from putting new regulations on us.

[@gregsweber]

I live in north Jersey. I’m sure there are some consumer grade drones being seen in the area but I think more than likely a lot of group think is occurring. A vast majority of what I’ve seen has been commercial air traffic and not drones. I’m actually surprised Juan didn’t call out some of these “drone” sightings. In addition to living in the area where a lot of these are being observed, I’m also an airline pilot out of EWR. I’ve also noticed during the times where people have reported seeing drones coincides with EWR approach vectoring off the Philbo and Williamsport arrivals a bit further east and lower when landing the 22s.

[@boejiden1065]

They’ve been hovering for long periods of time, do your jets hover regularly?

[@brandspro]

You’re from North Jersey. You people think pork roll is called taylor ham. You have no credibility. 😂

[@MajorMinor12]

​@@boejiden1065Show all the videos showing them hovering for a long time. Every single "drone" sighting I've seen where someone has disclosed the location and time, I've been able to tie to an exact airplane or helicopter registration so far.

[@gregsweber]

@@boejiden1065 link to proof of this claim?

[@gregsweber]

@@brandspro fantastic insight. Thanks for the input.

[@thomthumbe]

I went thru the licensing and permit process for the two drones I own. On every occasion when I expected to be operating in an area where “official notification” was required (ie when operating near a local airport, excluding approach or departure lanes, which means I avoid that particular airspace altogether) when I called via telephone, there was not a single soul who cared one way or the other, no matter what. It has almost been a situation where the person who answered my call had no idea what I was talking about.

[@ChadNJ]

Thanks for covering this issue on your channel Juan. As a New Jersey resident and a licensed UAS operator, I can attest that this issue has been both frightening and confusing. I reviewed several videos of drones operating at low altitude over nearby Mendham Township and they appear to be both large and sophisticated. The strobe systems do not resemble anything close to a consumer grade drone and residents are seeing them fly for hours over one area. The lack of information & response from the government has been both frustrating and disheartening. The lack of solid information is creating a vacuum for misinformation further confusing New Jersey residents.

[@PigVirusNBC]

Me too another NJ resident. Thanks for your coverage.

[@HollyIvins-os7mi]

Yup .I had one fly low over my house in Jamesburg NJ . Flew over Manalapan lake Also saw them from my porch over Turnpike . Flew South to North And north to south.

[@LIamaLlama554]

They are looking for Snookie

[@brandspro]

Thanks for the sensible comment.

[@Plutogalaxy]

Just teenagers pranking everyone and laughing at the total hysteria.

[@kennysilvers-z4x]

as an rc enthusiast, I don't feel like a national security threat lol

[@GinaKayLandis]

But can RCs be programmed to fly patterns like drones can be?

[@jstins]

@@GinaKayLandisa “drone” is any unmanned aerial vehicle. Fixed wing, helicopter, multi-rotors, etc. RC isn’t a class. Yes, some can be programmed.

[@GinaKayLandis]

​@@jstins Thank you.

[@micamp45hc99]

I would bet Juan a basket of taco's that the necessary people already know the source of this traffic. Once the funding is reauthorized, this will no longer be a mystery.

[@stanbernstein6564]

An "N number" is required to fly a drone if it weighs 55 pounds or more, as this is considered a large enough drone to need the same registration process as a standard aircraft, meaning you need a paper-based registration with an N-number through the FAA; for smaller drones, you typically only need a standard drone registration number which does not start with an "N".

[@IRAMightyPirate]

Mass hysteria! Come get your mass hysteria! Remember the 2016 clown sighting panic? I bet this is like 10% actual drones and 90% airplanes and helicopters.

[@pauldavis5665]

However you want to cope with it. But I have been seeing them almost every night the last few weeks. They are not planes or helicopters.

[@CrazyMotorcycleGuy]

@@pauldavis5665 Sure thing. Prove it.

[@MicMc539]

F-22 Raptor's shooting down a weather balloon? You guys are always good for a giggle!

[@junkerzn7312]

@@MicMc539 The military learned from its mistake... the balloon was just too high and not enough people saw the F.L.E.X.. This time it will be different, you'll see! That 400ft altitude limit is there for a reason! We got our Mickey-Mouse formation, our Kremlin formation, and if that doesn't get people riled up we got the "Scrooge McDuck planting his flag on Donald's Hat" Formation with dollar signs raining down from the sky, then disappearing in puffs of inflation. It will be great. Again. Just watch!

[@Rusty-Metal]

Exactly!

[@boblynch2802]

Why would these drones be using their navigation lights if there the drones were up to no good? Hmmm emerging unknown drone activity and then expiring counter drone legislation?

[@fibonacci2079]

Lol. Sounds like a good old false flag operation!

[@Cerbium]

So many videos of these so called "drones" are literally just planes, its actually crazy how many people are seeing planes and thinking they're drones.

[@hamzerpanzer]

If that was really all there was to it, why is the FBI wasting their time? Are they stupid?

[@bobthompson5317]

At this point, even if there are real videos of UAS doing nefarious things, it's impossible to find the interesting videos beneath the pile of ordinary plane videos. A conspiracy minded person might suggest that this is intentional. Someone did see something, and now "they" are trying to hide the needle with a haystack. But I think it's far more likely this is just regular old mass-hysteria.

[@brandspro]

And a lot know the difference and know they are seeing things that aren’t planes.

[@Cerbium]

@@brandspro theres 0 videos that show anything other than a plane and a hobbyist drone. All popular videos of these sightings are all planes so that's what 99% of them are.

[@conniesenesr6915]

They are not planes!! 😮😮😮😅😅😅

[@revmansolution]

Seeing the Ukraine war unfold. Drone/counter measure instruction should be a matter of civil defense.

[@brandspro]

Absolutely! And we are woefully behind the curve on this as this episode is demonstrating.

[@richarddelotto2375]

"Honest Agent Mulder, I thought it was a duck..."

[@MmmHuggles]

I think an exception should be allowed to take down drones legally if they are trespassing over private property and/or harassing private property owners. It seems like it should be illegal to be able to fly a drone over private property with no recourse.

[@littlewingpsc27]

You don't own the airspace over your private property. Your property ends at like 50' above the ground or even less. You have no say what flies over your home or work place or at what hours. Basic fact. Look it up.

[@MmmHuggles]

@@littlewingpsc27 I'm saying you 'should' have a right to the airspace to 500ft. A tree can grow 150ft. If I can legally shoot a bird at the top of a tall tree, I should be able to shoot a drone from a similar height.

[@littlewingpsc27]

@MmmHuggles and what about a paragliding or ultralight? You want the right to shoot them down too?

[@pootthatbak2578]

I have seen drones over my house in pennsylvania. The one i tracked did have a little yellow drone shape symbol on flightradar24..a circle with 4 legs. We tracked it back to landing, it went to trenton mercer airport TTN ( IATA) Just north or bordering trenton new jersey

[@gordybishop2375]

Funny how folks are freaking out at night but not during the day as much. And funny how they can tell the altitude so easily . Next up….Burds are not real

[@williampankratz600]

Those line birds are spies , what closet are you from ?

[@alstruck8063]

End of the hallway, on the right.​@@williampankratz600

[@Wartooth6]

yeah yeah useless people like u think everything is a balloon. we need answers not weak opinons like this.

[@nealdaleyjr7625]

These damn birds spy on me every day. Maybe I should move the bird feeder...

[@brandspro]

The drones aren’t flying during the day, that’s kind of the point.

[@Jack-ne8vm]

Invent a hunter-snagger drone to examine unidentified drones.

[@HyenaEmpyema]

@@Jack-ne8vm people are developing these now. Another way would be a net with some fins on the corners to drop on it from above.

[@GinaKayLandis]

​@@HyenaEmpyemaThat would work (net) unless someone is handling the drone, seeing the capture drone approach and deploy, and move the target drone away.

[@bmitch3020]

If it has nav lights, and wasn't followed to see where it landed, then it's almost certainly government operated. Left hand isn't talking to the right hand again.

[@laurentbarrere6530]

both hands said no however.

[@bmitch3020]

@@laurentbarrere6530 with the government, there are a lot of hands.

[@chrisbailey5055]

5:55 third row third from the right, that is an ultra light, Pivotal Blackfly or Helix.

[@Samrushtonblight]

Weird that they all look like aeroplanes flying at night, lit up like Christmas trees. Interesting spy strategy...

[@GARDENER42]

Rather than knock the things down, it would be better to track them back to where they land & apprehend the operators. That gets more answers.

[@BobDobbs681]

The FAA head is resigning. Juan Browne for head of the FAA!

[@aircampilot8025]

a drone with lights on probably not a risk the ones no one sees now that would be a problem

[@seaglider844]

I know there are some commercial use of large drones, like inspection of power lines, that might get people triggered. There've been a couple of sightings in my area at night (they may be using thermal imaging that would produce better results at night). They are quite noisy and I'm not sure if all of these organizations operate within the proper bounds of restriction. If its anything like I think, they're probably just getting used in the most efficient way possible to get the job done. It will be interesting to see what the source actually is.

[@mbvoelker8448]

If it was something that simple and ordinary the operators would have come forward.

[@seaglider844]

@@mbvoelker8448 Would you come forward if you were playing fast and loose with the rules? Not to mention just the pure hassle and exposure? Guess who gets fired even though management likely know......

[@richardschindler8822]

Personally I think it’s little green men from mars. But that’s just me. But seriously. I’m a retired corporate pilot and was based in EWR as well as TEB for some time. As if there isn’t enough going on with just regular aircraft operating in the area., add a bunch of large drones into the picture. That’s frightening. Times like this I’m glad Im retired, miss flying, don’t miss this sort of nonsense.

[@hermanprez]

I have had a DJI drone for several years and it is by far the most sophisticated device I own. It still amazes the distances it can travel and the clarity of the imagery.

[@BillSmithBSartist]

I’m forwarding this to a bunch of people I know from NJ. One of the best non emotional and informative pieces.

[@paulw9293]

Juan, here in Australia every state Police agency has a fleet of drone jamming vehicles. If you want to operate a drone, you must be licensed & heavy fines or jail apply for breaching laws. This is ridiculous in a country such as the US.

[@joehimes9898]

Convenient timing. Just before expiration date.

[@derekdowns6275]

I find it odd that federal law protects drones from being shot down as they are considered "aircraft" and also requires ID if over 250 grams, have also specifically declared under FAA Part 103, that ultralights up to 254 pounds are NOT aircraft, nor do they require any such ID.

[@GarethReecewood]

Most of the videos I've seen have just been normal aircraft. Everything's a UFO now 😂

[@johnqdoe]

Yep, all the videos I’ve seen have distinct normal shapes and FAA lighting.

[@jay1373]

I mean, everything is unidentified, even for a few seconds, until you identify it 😂

[@ge2623]

Wrong. Everything I don't understand is a conspiracy.

[@bobthompson5317]

Bro, you don't understand. It was just hovering there. It is impossible for an ordinary plane to do that. What's that? Did I get video of it hovering? No, I just missed it. Sure it just looks like a plane in the video, but I promise when I wasn't filming it did some crazy stuff.

[@warlordop713]

Yup 😂

[@BogeyTheBear]

5:56 Kind of like it's sort of illegal to shoot motorists travelling down a highway.

[@Les__Mack]

Thank you for covering this. I have learned I can trust you. Not so much about the other news sources. Of course I also use my own brain too. Thank you for these videos.

[@johnneyland3334]

I used to sell drones back in 2012 to federal agencies. These unmanned drones could fly up to 18,000 feet AGL with a flight duration of up to 30 hours. They could fly distances up to 80 nautical miles.

[@cassandratq9301]

AZ is seeing them, too. They don't all look like these.

[@Iflyagrasshopper]

It seems that our government will take every small problem, and turn it into a huge one. A drone capable of deploying, a net and tangling these drones, and taking them down and landing them so they can be inspected, and hopefully identify who is responsible for them seems like the best way to go. A relatively easy solution? It would seem so, but not if you’re the government.

[@rcarsey]

Its likely just a stunt to promote the new movie Alien Wars: Judgement Day thats coming out in a couple weeks. As far as I know, they've been flying legally - lights.. NOT in any "critical airspace", and I'd assume they have Remote ID -- but nobody seems to have a receiver to say yea or neh to that.

[@Saml01]

Someone’s trying to prove a point and has done so successfully. We are completely unprepared for the unknowns and incapable of dealing with them quickly.

[@seeharvester]

This country is in sad shape on a lot of fronts.

[@natural-born_pilot]

Sad but true however that status is the direct result of poor (or at the present no) leadership will soon be changing and for me not soon enough.

[@henryhbk]

How could the US Army’s premier firearms engineering base not have the ability to take down a UAS? I get that local law enforcement might not be able, but the army had better be able! Even just fly a Blackhawk adobe them and go full power up, the rotor wash would knock them out of the sky (or just a big net below a helicopter)?

[@576103]

Or a Blackhawk door gunner with a harpoon gun. Shoot a rope over/through the rotors of the drone, they get snarled up, and it falls out of the sky. People are saying these things are the size of Volkswagens, so if that’s true, these ain’t no kid drones….

[@z400b]

It's happening here in UK at RAF bases

[@theburtseoni]

I suspect pranksters trying to see how much confusion and chaos they can cause. The lighting on the drones dismisses the idea of spying or nefarious activity.

[@bartsolari5035]

I like that logic

[@davidcolwell614]

But what if the pranksters are China and they are testing our defenses. Before World War II, Japan put civilians on hill around Pearl Harbor to report on what ships were in Port.

[@GinaKayLandis]

Yep, just another distraction.

[@wileytraylor5404]

...then again, the best way to hide something is in plain sight.

[@fastindy]

I think it's time to give a critical look at whether or not the vast majority of the sightings are actually drones. As pilots we're all aware of the implications on depth perception and ranging at night!

[@maykevin5]

They will now be spooked and turn off their lights at night.

[@maddercat]

The fact that they don't have RID indicates that they're manned ultralights that don't require anything like that.

[@rrich8371]

Ya know, Juan, it is very hard for me to believe having sophisticated radar we have now with the ability to identify incoming airborne threats.... there isn't a way to track where these drones originate from. Is it a lack of communication/data exchange between the government departments?

[@tracyrreed]

Hobby drones are quite small and almost all plastic. They won't show up on radar.

[@brandspro]

And these aren’t hobby drones.

[@brandspro]

The amazing thing is, it wasn’t that long ago that NY/NJ had Bomarc nuclear anti-aircraft missiles scattered around, ready at a moment’s notice to go into action and nuke incoming Soviet bombers off our coast. Now we are frighteningly impotent in the face of this incursion into our airspace. If this was the action of a maline state actor, and these drones were weaponized, what horrific damage might they do? The story of WW3 isn’t going to be about nuclear weapons, as we all once feared, it’s going to be about drones.

[@tracyrreed]

@brandspro A tiny little quadcopter can't carry any sort of WMD.

[@rrich8371]

@@tracyrreed And that is where reality and fiction blur. These seem to be larger than hobby drones. Look how fast SARS Cov 2 spread. Then coupled with Chinese balloons overflying... it seems like target mapping would be possible... or Amazon testing their delivery drones.

[@BlueshiftRadio]

It's been going on for a month yet every single video just shows misidentifications of aircraft. Be a bit more critical, please. This is hysteria!

[@Martin.Kefauver]

How about that "drone" that looked like an airline but weird nav lights?

[@roviwoteap2375]

What I don’t understand is why someone can’t be tasked with following one of these drones and see where it ends up, whether it be in the UK, USA or elsewhere around the world? There seems to be enough of them around, so take your pick.

[@pavanatanaya]

LIDAR Mapping? Other than the airspace conflict, is this an actual threat?

[@kylenations1231]

These are a combination of UAP and our own government technology. The increased UAP activity forced the government to put up their semi equivalent tech for surveillance

[@Timboslicce]

Give m a break bro. If the we’re bad players flying these. They would not have flashing lights on them. I think this is a play to ban all recreational drones!!!!!

[@joecastanza9822]

Thanks to Dan for giving me the link to this. LOVED THIS. I subscribed. Great stuff!!!

[@rwilk68]

Why doesn't the military down one of these things and examine the wreckage?

[@blancolirio]

Joe's gotta make the call...

[@junkerzn7312]

Because you wind up with a crying 7 year old on national TV... then the government is eating burnt toast for dinner and a whole lot of people are out of a job the next day. Are people really this ignorant over the state of consumer drone technology these days? The sophistication possible in a light package is off the charts. Compute power, GPS, cell communications, remote video, proximity sensing, swarm configurations, leveling, axis orientation. At near zero cost. Image recognition is a bit harder due to the energy requirements, but still... What we need is proper regulation, not conspiracy theorists flying off the handle thinking the end-times are neigh because some kid decides to fly his drone over a soccer match. -Matt

[@-mikerivers-]

Just because you don’t understand something doesn’t mean that thing is doing anything illegal.

[@peggyh8937]

They are flying without remote ID and much of the time in restricted airspace. Is that not illegal?

[@GinaKayLandis]

​@@-mikerivers-They are flying in Class B airspace, evidently without clearance. I thought Class B airspace was agressively managed?

[@Rstars11]

ALERT for JUAN! Crash today in Victoria Tx. Piper PA-31, tail numbers N818BR. Apparently doing geo surveying near San Antonio then landed on a loop access rd, crashing into 3 vehicles. Could he have made the airport? He landed parallel to VCT runway 13 at about the same distance. So many questions! I hope you see this - this is the only way I know to give you a heads-up!

[@DanSmithBK]

The analysis we’ve all been waiting for! Thanks Juan...

[@MrBlueSky2112]

It would be helpful to note that most of us that build and fly recreational quadcopters comply with all FAA rules and regulations. Only a small percentage of operators are acting illegally, as in full scale aircraft. And my “drone” remote ID broadcasts my position on the ground, exposing me to harassment and intimidation by anyone with a phone app in the area.

[@GreenhornPhototaker]

as a nj resident in the area where there are a lot of drones - thank you Juan for reporting on this. It is quite crazy.

[@TomRolfson]

Where are the local drone pilots who've gone-up at night to do recon? Even a couple simple pics or video would be a start. But like so many are saying- they're not trying to be covert and legally they should be broadcasting an ID. If not, then it's time to take one (or all) down to identify.

[@blindflips4951]

We don't have a radar system that can track these things to see where they're going or where they come from that's hard for me to believe given current technology

[@karoleenascottage]

Musk probably does.

[@hamzerpanzer]

​@@karoleenascottageMusk just has the solution to everything doesn't he

[@karoleenascottage]

@@hamzerpanzer Musk is pretty smart. 👍

[@seeharvester]

Juan, have you heard the flight comms during the ufo incident in Oregon the other day? I'd like to hear your opinion on that.

[@renegade44040]

Look up the drones going over the Pacific Coast over Oregon

[@olsonspeed]

It all seems far too convenient to the upcoming legislation...

[@Thebakedbaker413]

Drones are changing the way we do pretty much everything. Drone warfare is wild

[@Jimmyjimjimjim]

I still cook my steak the same way regardless of drones.

[@richardsteckel2814]

The best briefing so far on what’s going on. I don’t think it’s an Iranian mother ship launching these off the east coast…..

[@Plutogalaxy]

Funny how they stay out of controlled airspace, those pesky teenagers sure have the politicians worked up. More fun than the old doorbell ditch.

[@TheGospelQuartetParadise]

I have a question... All of these drone shows we see at fireworks shows and other events have to practice somewhere... Does anyone know how that takes place? They may be innocently flying these drones over New Jersey, but we know that they are now using drones as bombers in the war zone so we need to be vigilant.