It’s been weeks since the first reports of unusual drone activity in New Jersey came in and Americans still don’t have any answers. From local law enforcement agencies to the feds, no one knows what’s going on—a point that was emphasized Tuesday during a joint hearing by the Subcommittee on Counterterrorism, Law Enforcement, and Intelligence and Subcommittee on Transportation and Maritime Security on “Safeguarding the Homeland from Unmanned Aerial Systems.”
“You’re telling me we don’t know what the hell these drones are in New Jersey?” asked Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX).
“That’s right,” responded Robert Wheeler Jr., the FBI’s Assistant Director of the Critical Incident Response Group, who admitted that it’s “concerning” they can’t identify who’s behind the swarm of drones that seems to invade NJ skies nearly every night.
“That’s crazy!” Gonzales replied. “That’s madness that we don’t know what these drones are…”
When asked how much of the FBI’s budget goes toward countering UAS, Wheeler said when it comes to the technology they use and the way it’s deployed, the figure is less that $500,000 out of an overall budget of around $11 billion. He did emphasize, however, that that number does not include investigative work and does not reflect the agency’s commitment to protecting the American people from this threat.
The American people are looking to lawmakers for answers, and they’re starting to think they’re being lied to because their representatives can’t explain why drones are flying over some of the most critical airspace in the nation, Rep. Anthony D’Esposito (R-NY) noted.
In addition to reports of drones over sensitive military sites such as Picatinny Arsenal, drones have been spotted over critical infrastructure, Florham Park’s chief of police, Joseph Orlando, said in a statement, noting “their presence appears nefarious in nature.”
Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) shared reports he’s hearing, which appear to confirm that characterization.
"Last night I was on the beach…in Ocean County with the sheriff…one of his officers two nights ago saw 50 drones come in off the ocean right there,” he said.
Smith then relayed another concerning report of a commanding officer from the Coast Guard who said “one of their 47-foot motor lifeboats was followed by between 12 and 30 of these drones as they went through the water.”
Asked about the rules of engagement, the commanding officer said he didn’t know - they didn’t have any.
Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) says the Ocean County, NJ sheriff told him an officer saw 50 drones come in off the ocean, and a Coast Guard boat was followed by drones. Smith calls on the Pentagon to share its shoot-down capabilities, because the drones could be from China or Putin pic.twitter.com/ZwhI4hC9D7
— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) December 11, 2024
Smith wrote to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Tuesday, urging him to deploy all capabilities to identify and take down the drones.
"Let's go get that DoD capability and find out and put to rest the question [of who is responsible]," Smith told the witnesses. "We can bring one down tomorrow."