In a joint statement released on Monday December 16, 2024, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Newark office and New Jersey State Police (NJSP) warned the public against pointing lasers into the sky and attempting to shoot down suspected unmanned aerial systems (UAS).
According to the statement, there has been an increase in the number of pilots of manned aircraft being hit in the eyes with lasers due to members of the public on the ground thinking they see a UAS. Additionally, there is a concern over people potentially firing weapons at what they believe to be a UAS but could be a manned aircraft – which could have “dangerous and possibly deadly consequences if manned aircraft are targeted mistakenly as UAS.”
In the last month there has been an increasing number of reports of unexplained drone activity, with suspected sightings in the New Jersey area in particular gaining significant media attention.
Monday’s statement emphasized that FBI Newark, NJSP, other agencies and law enforcement partners “have 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.”
In the statement, the FBI and NJSP highlighted that UAS are sometimes misidentified and mistaken for more familiar objects, such as “manned aircraft, low-orbit satellites, or celestial bodies like planets or stars.”
The agencies point toward “many different websites and mobile applications the public can access through various governmental agencies and private companies” to determine if people are seeing UAS or something else. They stressed that “accurate identification is critical for maintaining safety and ensuring appropriate responses to UAS activity.”
Post Image Credit: RioPatuca Images.
