The mysterious drone sightings that cropped up over , New Jersey  , starting late last year were” not the enemy” , , White House , press secretary , Karoline Leavitt , told reporters Tuesday during the inaugural press briefing of President , Donald Trump ‘s , second administration.
Otherwise, Leavitt said, the robots in the Garden State that caused a national outcry were authorized to be in flight by the , Federal Aviation Administration. That information, Leavitt added, came “directly from the chairman of , the United States”.
” After research and study, the drones that were flying over , New Jersey  , in large numbers were authorized to be flown by the , FAA , for research and various other reasons”, Leavitt told reporters Tuesday. ” Many of the robots were also beginners, pleasure, and private individuals that enjoy flying robots”.
The passion over the very publicized , New Jersey  , aircraft observations, Leavitt added, “got worse according to curiosity”.
” This was not the enemy”, she said.
Observations of huge robots flying over northern , New Jersey  , began in mid-November, causing concern among people. State officials reported four to 180 reported aircraft sightings per day since the sightings began in December, though some of the reports most likely involved the same drones.
By early December, the , FBI , began investigating reports of what had been called” car-sized” drones buzzing around the Garden State. Worries over the obvious phenomenon grew over the observations ‘ near proximity to then-President-elect Trump ‘s , Bedminster , golf course and the , Picatinny Arsenal, a , U. S.  , military study and manufacturing facility, as well as local area network.
Occurrences also cropped up in the Philly cities,  , South Jersey, and , New York ‘s , Staten Island.
Officials claimed last month that the drones had no posed a safety threat despite the concern and annoyance of the drones.  , U. S.  , Rep.  , Jeff Van Drew , ( R., N. J. ) in mid-December suggested the robots be shot down, which is illegal, and sent a letter to then-President , Joe Biden , regarding unverified reports that unusual enemies were in control of the robots.
But following a presentation from state and federal authorities last month, New Jersey Assemblywoman , Dawn Fantasia , wrote in a review that it was vague who was behind the airlines.
” We know everything, PERIOD”, Fantasia wrote. I informed all authorities about the utterly false statement that there is no known or reputable risk.
Weeks before the winter holidays, the , FBI , said it determined that some turned out to be smaller planes, hobby robots, aircraft, celebrities, and law enforcement plane.
” Having closely examined the technical information and tips from concerned citizens, we assess that the sightings to meeting include a combination of lawful commercial drones, hobby drones, and law enforcement drones, as well as staffed fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and stars mistakenly reported as drones”, various federal agencies, including the , Department of Homeland Security, said in a joint declaration next month. We haven’t found anything unusual or evaluated the activity to date that poses a threat to national security or public safety in the civilian airspace of New Jersey, New York, or other Northeastern states.
The , FAA, meanwhile, later announced nearly two dozen temporary flight restrictions across , New Jersey  , affecting drones. The agency previously implemented temporary restrictions near , Bedminster , and the , Picatinny Arsenal , following the November sightings.
At a gathering of Republican governors at his Mar-a-Lago estate in , Florida , ahead of his inauguration, Trump said he would give a report on the drone situation” about one day” into his administration.
” I think it’s ridiculous that they are not telling you about what’s going on with the drones”, he said.
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