FBI, Homeland Security May Have An Answer To Drones In NY Skies

NEW YORK — The FBI and Department of Homeland Security say they may have an answer for what's behind the increased sightings of mysterious aircraft and lights in the skies over New York and nearby states: absolutely nothing unusual.

In a joint statement released Tuesday, the agencies said that they've received some 5,000 tips and followed up on more than 100 leads with advanced detection technologies and trained observers.

"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 agencies said. "We have not identified anything anomalous and do not assess the activity to date to present a national security or public safety risk over the civilian airspace in New Jersey or other states in the northeast."

See also: Mystery Drone Sightings On LI: Police Departments Working With Feds

This may well be met with a skeptical eye by the residents and local officials across New York who have taken to social media over the past week — and over the past month in Pennsylvania and New Jersey — to share video of sights which they do not believe to be so easily explained away.

The FBI and Homeland Security did not explain why, if the sightings are just regular private and commercial drones and planes, there has been such a marked increase in the sightings.

It comes within days after Gov. Kathy Hochul called upon the federal government for additional resources and announced that federal officials were deploying a drone detection system to New York.

The federal agencies said they still "recognize the concern" the public has expressed regarding the drones, and urged Congress to pass "counter-UAS (unmanned aircraft systems)" legislation immediately. They advised new legislation to "extend and expand existing counter-drone authorities to identify and mitigate any threat that may emerge."

Related: Can You Shoot Down Drones In NY? What To Know

On Long Island, In a joint statement by Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine and police brass, officials said that "in light of the recent drone sightings throughout the East Coast," officials "are working closely together along with our state and federal law enforcement partners to monitor the situation in real-time."

The runways at Stewart International Airport were shut down for about one hour Friday night because of drone activity in the airspace, Hochul said.

The Hudson Valley airport is also home to Stewart Air National Guard Base.

"Last night, the runways at Stewart Airfield were shut down for approximately one hour due to drone activity in the airspace," Hochul said in a statement on Saturday. "This has gone too far."

The New York governor called on federal authorities to get to the bottom of a string of mysterious drone sightings in the region.

Drone sightings were also reported near Brookhaven National Laboratory on Long Island.

With reporting by Peggy Spellman Hoey and Jeff Edwards.