Fears are continuing to grow in America over the mysterious nationwide drone sightings, as security officials are criticised for their ‘lack of transparency’ on the issue.
Multiple sightings of unmanned drones flying across the sky have been reported in a number of US cities and bases in the last month – including New Jersey, New York and Washington DC.
Their presence has raised both alarm and confusion with few answers forthcoming.
This has led many people to offer numerous suggestions and conspiracy theories online, with some believing they are Government nuclear weapon detector drones or the result of foreign powers spying on the country.
The FBI, Department of Homeland Security, Federal Aviation Administration, White House and Pentagon released a joint statement on Saturday stating there was no evidence of large-scale or malicious drone activity.
They also dismissed many of the sightings as manned aircraft such as aeroplanes.
But this response was described as ‘disturbing’ by James Dodd, mayor of the town of Dover, New Jersey.
Meanwhile, Larry Hogan, the former governor of Maryland, took to social media to vent his frustrations with the White House’s ‘dismissive attitude’ to the situation.
Mr Hogan said he had witnessed ‘what appeared to be dozens of large drones in the sky’ above his home for about 45 minutes on Thursday night.
Multiple sightings of unmanned drones flying across the sky have been reported in a number of US cities and bases in the last month – including New Jersey, New York and Washington DC. (pictured )
A mysterious ‘glowing orb’ seen hovering in skies above New Jersey – where most of the drones have been documented
Larry Hogan, the former governor of Maryland, took to social media to vent his frustrations with the White House’s ‘complete lack of transparency and the dismissive attitude’ to the situation
He said: ‘Like many who have observed these drones, I do not know if this increasing activity over our skies is a threat to public safety or national security. But the public is growing increasingly concerned and frustrated with the complete lack of transparency and the dismissive attitude of the federal government.’
Airing his grievances to the Financial Times, Mr Dodd said: ‘We could shoot a missile down 5,000 miles away, but we can’t determine where these drones are originating from?’
Dodd said he was left ‘frustrated’ by the ‘scant information on a serious issue’, having attended a briefing on the matter hosted by New Jersey state police this week.
The meeting was set up after the authorities in the state were flooded with reports of drones dotting the night sky, sometimes in groups and without any apparent purpose.
A wave of footage has emerged of the drones since they were first spotted last month, with some of the clearest video yet coming this week in New Jersey.
Video captured in Somerset County shows three ‘mystery drones in the air’ as two move extremely close as if they are interacting with each other.
The FBI has received more than 3,000 tips since the first sighting on November 18, with reports of varying levels of credibility cropping up in at least 12 counties throughout New Jersey, as well as eastern Pennsylvania and Orange County, New York.
Swarms of drones have been spotted in the skies of New Jersey for weeks, sparking officials to call for a ‘limited state of emergency’
Mysterious drones are terrorizing US cities from coast to coast as the eerie objects have now been spotted in California, Massachusetts, Florida, Wyoming, Maryland, New York and New Jersey. Pictured: A New Jersey resident saw what appears to be multiple drones flying over their Bernardsville home
And the crisis deepened last night, after DC locals claimed to have spotted drones floating in the sky around the US Capitol, as other videos purported to show objects on flight paths heading towards LaGuardia Airport.
Charlie Kirk, 31, a conservative political activist and close confidant of president-elect Trump, took to X on Friday to claim America is ‘f****d’ as he suggested the recent mass drone sightings are part of Project Blue Beam.
‘WE ARE F****D. THE DRONES ARE PROJECT BLUE BEAM,’ Kirk posted on X.
‘LOOK FOR VIDS OF THEM TRANSFORMING FROM BALLS OF LIGHT TO PLANES WHEN FILMED TO SEE FOR YOURSELF. THE GOVERNMENT IS NOT INVESTIGATING. THEY ARE DOING THIS. WHATEVER YOU SEE IN THE COMING DAYS IS NOT GOOD.’
Project Blue Beam is a conspiracy theory dating to the 1990s that claims global elites, including government and military organizations, are planning to use advanced technology to stage celestial events in order to manipulate the world’s population.
The theory has recently found traction again online as commentators such as Kirk claim that the US government could stage an alien invasion as a pretext for imposing authoritarian rule.
The outlandish theory is among many that have been amplified over the last week in the vacuum of information left in the wake of the Biden administration’s failure to tell the public where the drones are coming from or who is behind them.
And Donald Trump called for urgent action yesterday, taking to the Truth Social platform to say: ‘Mystery drone sightings all over the country. Can this really be happening without our government’s knowledge? I don’t think so! Let the public know, and now. Otherwise, shoot them down!’
The sightings started mid-November with footage capturing ‘car-sized’ drones with flashing lights
Charlie Kirk, 31, a close advisor to Donald Trump issued a grave warning to the American public as he claims the countrywide drone sightings may be linked to a spine-chilling conspiracy theory
The lack of clarity on the situation has left critics questioning how such incidents can remain unresolved in an era of advanced surveillance.
‘How is it possible that the Pentagon doesn’t know? I’m not buying it,’ remarked Fox Business anchor Maria Bartiromo, voicing the skepticism felt by many Americans.
Gordon Chang, a senior fellow at conservative think tank the Gatestone Institute and an expert on Chinese affairs, said the drones appeared to be highly sophisticated and are not being controlled by amateurs.
‘These activities are too large and well-organized to be the work of hobbyists,’ Chang told Fox Business.
‘That leaves foreign powers. It could be Iran in connection with China, but clearly, somebody is trying to divert our attention.’
Chang suggested that while the drones themselves are unsettling, he was more troubled by the fact that they could be a distraction for a far greater threat.
‘What really worries me is what they might be doing elsewhere. We could very well get hit,’ he told Fox.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul also slammed the Biden administration’s bumbling response to the crisis, telling the White House the bizarre episode ‘has gone too far.’
The Biden administration has maintained that the drones are not a public safety risk and pose no threat to the nation’s security.