The U.S. Drone Panic Mirrors UFO Overreactions

US drone panic reflects overreactions to UFOs

Who Sean Kirkpatrick edited by Daniel Vergano

December wave drone sightings seen in New Jersey and rolling it out nationwide, sure sounds familiar. As does the associated media frenzy—ending with memes conspiracy theories about the so-calledmysterious drones“. The episode bears an uncanny resemblance to the UFO phenomenon unidentified abnormal phenomena (UAP), which has increased in recent years and has brought significant results Congressional attention and legislation

In a way, this is progress. The reason this occurrence is so popular is that drone sightings would have previously been identified as UAPs. It is only after many years of efforts in education, and transparency U.S. Department of Defense officials said UAP observations focused on routine drone identification. This is not to say that drone sightings are any less of a concern, but hopefully we can address them without contaminating the UFO community and conspiracies connected with it

Unfortunately, it was our answer not so irrational.

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A New Jersey state assemblyman accused federal officials of “lying” on CNN about drones. The president-elect proposed to us “shoot them!!!” which almost (but almost, unfortunately) goes without saying, bad idea. Therefore, it is a waste of resources to research nonsensical notions related to advanced technology Iran or again foreigners. Not only do the calls to dispose of the objects have obvious safety concerns, but they also ignore Congress and the White House. such limited strikes After US territory riots involving a Chinese high-altitude balloon and other balloonss, based on concerns about civilian security.

There are a couple of things we need to make clear about drone sightings. First, many observations remain misinterpretations of manned aircraft Satellites like Starlink. Actual drone sightings fall into two classes: those in restricted airspace and those in legal airspace. Restricted airspace surrounds airports as well as national security areas such as Air Force and Navy bases. Most observations reported a decrease within that last category and they valued having it there is no immediate national security or flight safety riskalthough the public finds them annoying.

One fact that many people overlook, or at least don’t easily rationalize, is that these drones have lights. The existence of lights on various flying objects, including drones (also known as unmanned aerial vehicles or UAVs) is a fact that I often mentioned in my last job, researching in a Pentagon office. UAP observations. A drone’s lights are to avoid collisions. They are a safety feature. Flying drones with lights ensures they can be seen; In order to go unnoticed, the operators would turn off or disable the lights. In September 2023, The FAA changed the rules to allow drones to fly at night in this way, and this is likely a contributing factor has increase observations. Public officials and elected officials in Congress continue to believe the lights in the sky are scaryhowever, especially when they confuse manned aircraft with drones.

Congressional officials and that unfortunate source of information, social networks, keep doing baseless claims drone technology ahead of US capabilities. The most recent example is the assertion that drones were flying An Iranian mother ship US coast and showed seven to eight hours of battery life. Such a fantastic claim must prove that the drones originated from an Iranian ship and continued to target US cities. There is no such track. A more rational explanation is that they originated close to where they were seen, that is, from home operators.

However, that doesn’t mean some drone operations aren’t malicious.

Several hypotheses (besides mistaken identity) could explain these drones in legal airspace. Home operators may be academics, professionals or hobbyists exploring a new technology. YouTube is full of drone footage from amateur photographers all over the world. It is flying in urban environments, legal airspace, for photography or perhaps for research such as high resolution thermal or pollution measurements. very believable. Or they are commercial. Increasing commercial activity it is inevitable as the industry advances drone technology for delivery, remote sensing and communications.

More worryingly, operators may be exploring the limits of legal activity, or in military terms, performing or exploring preparing the battlespace. Whether foreign or domestic bad actors, they can fly commercial drones, with lights, to test public and government reactions. While flying within legal airspace, within legal limits, they can exceed those limits and gauge the reaction. This information about reactions and responses could easily translate into planning attacks, illegal drug delivery, or other nefarious intentions.

Finally, operators can deliberately use them to incite frenzy, hysteria and panic. It could be for personal gain (eg saying they have an anti-UAV solution to sell), or maybe to advertise something similar to someone else. History Channel series about aliens.

similar to UAP problemthere is little evidence to support or reject any of these hypotheses. Like UAP, drones will not all have the same explanation. This makes it difficult to distinguish from a national security perspective when it is good and potentially evil. Let us not forget the lessons As a result of the ongoing war against Ukraine, we do not want to be caught by any intelligence or technical surprise.

Meanwhile, clear observations in restricted airspace they usually have more obvious intentions. These can be benign or malignant, but are usually based on seeing things that are not allowed. Whether they are military aircraft, commercial airports or operations, these clearly identified payload drones and balloons pose not only a security risk, but also a flight safety risk. It would only take a small quadcopter to suck in a commercial jet engine to end in tragedy.

The the spread of drone technologyin its commercial, recreational, scientific and military uses, it is clearly disrupting the world around us. Our laws and regulations have created an environment that allows the use of legal drones. It should come as no surprise that drones are in the air and getting bigger. Yet here we are, once again with extraordinary claims, the public requests for transparencybaseless accusations hiding the truthand Congress calls for further legislation above a celestial mystery, instead of a rational scientific approach to research. Are you familiar?

This is an opinion and analysis article, and the views expressed by the author(s) are not necessarily their own. American scientific