On Tuesday, January 28th, the newly appointed White House Press Secretary, Karoline Leavitt, held her first press conference for the Trump administration and addressed a series of issues. Leavitt clarified the mysterious drone incidents that had sparked nationwide attention and caused some panic.
She stated that the drones involved in the New Jersey drone sightings were authorized to fly by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and were “not from enemies.”
“After conducting investigations, a large number of drones flying over New Jersey were authorized by the FAA for research and various other reasons,” Leavitt said. “Many of these drones also belong to hobbyists, enthusiasts, and individuals who enjoy piloting drones. Due to curiosity, the situation worsened. But they are not enemies.”
She also mentioned that this information was directly from President Trump himself.
The mysterious drone sightings began near Morris County, New Jersey on November 18th last year. Since then, drones have been appearing every night. Anxious residents have frequently reported seeing drones circling overhead, sometimes flying in groups. Some drones even appeared in military-sensitive areas.
The mysterious drone incidents quickly spread throughout New Jersey and then rapidly expanded to New York and other regions. At least eight states have reported drone sightings.
These sightings have caused increasing confusion or concern among more and more people and put immense pressure on the Biden administration. They were asked to provide more information about these aircraft, and officials urged people to remain calm, emphasizing that there was no evidence to suggest these sightings posed a security threat.
In response to public concerns, the FAA issued dozens of drone bans over critical infrastructure airspace, which have since expired. The Trump administration’s new explanation aligns with the statements made by Biden administration officials at the time, indicating that the drone sightings do not have malicious intentions.
In December of last year, Trump had mentioned that the U.S. government knew what was happening, the military knew where the drones were taking off from, but for some reason, they did not want to comment.
“I can’t imagine this being enemies because if they were, they would have blown them up,” Trump had said regarding the drone incidents at that time.