The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has issued a Notice to Airmen, or NOTAM, that bans uncrewed aircraft within one nautical mile of specified infrastructure through mid-January. The government may use “deadly force” against the drones if they present an “imminent security threat,” the NOTAM said.
Meanwhile, as proof that no one is in charge of the country, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said that it should pay no attention to the FAA. All is well. Remain calm.
"We continue to assess there is no public safety threat relating to the reported drone sightings," the DHS spokesperson said in a statement Thursday. "In coordination with the FAA and our critical infrastructure partners who requested temporary flight restrictions over their facilities, out of an abundance of caution, the FAA has issued temporary flight restrictions over some critical infrastructure facilities in New Jersey."
"No public safety threat," but we're treating a drone as an "imminent threat" if it flies over restricted airspace? Why couldn't they have done this a month ago?
I get the desire for the government not to panic anyone. And yes, the drone swarms are now mostly copycats looking to cause a stir.
But not all of them. And what were all those sightings before the New Jersey drones became an issue? Why is there still no satisfactory explanation?
This is a government with its feet caught in quicksand. A three-toed sloth moves faster than these people. If you want proof that the entire behemoth that is the federal government mirrors the energy and passion of its chief executive, this is it.
Pilots who fail to abide by those restrictions could be "intercepted, detained, and interviewed by the law enforcement/security personnel." The FAA said it could also take administrative action, including imposing civil penalties and suspending or revoking the operators' certificates, as well as pursuing criminal charges.
This ban comes after Sunday's press briefing where an FAA official said there have "without a doubt" been drones flying over New Jersey, pointing to the fact that nearly a million drones are registered in the U.S.
The FBI has received more than 5,000 tips in the last few weeks about drone sightings in New Jersey and other states, said a multiagency statement, which was released Monday by the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI, the FAA and the Department of Defense.
"Having closely examined the technical data and tips from concerned citizens, we assess 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 stars mistakenly reported as drones," the joint statement said.
"Lawful commercial drones"? How the hell do they know that all the drone spottings were of "lawful" drones? There were thousands of drone sightings. And why are commercial drones flying around in the middle of the night?
I'm not saying they're covering anything up. They're disguising their ignorance by speaking in bureaucratese while trying to calm the plebes. They genuinely can't explain many of the sightings, and rather than admitting that, they are giving us the runaround.
This isn't over, not by a long shot.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member