American officials were stumped on how to respond to swarms of unidentified drones over US own mainland
FILE PHOTO: Two US Air Force F-22 Raptors fly over Joint Base Langley-Eustis’ Felker Army Airfield, Virginia, June 14, 2018 © US Air Force / Tech. Sgt. Natasha Stannard
An unidentified fleet of drones intruded into restricted airspace and potentially spied on a US military air base in Virginia for 17 days last December, with the Pentagon powerless to stop them, the Wall Street Journal has revealed.
Late last year, swarms of drones were detected flying over Langley Air Force Base on Virginia’s shoreline – one of the select US bases hosting F-22 Raptor stealth fighters – WSJ reported on Saturday, citing dozens of US officials, police reports, and court documents.
Former US Air Force General Mark Kelly, made aware of the incursions in December, estimated the lead unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to be “roughly 20 feet long, flying at more than 100 miles an hour, at an altitude of approximately 3,000 to 4,000 feet,” with other drones following. The drones flew in a pattern of one or two fixed-wing units accompanied by smaller quadcopters, roughly the size of 20-pound commercial drones, often operating at a lower altitude, the report said.
The dozens of drones moved south across Chesapeake Bay toward Norfolk and the base housing the US Navy’s SEAL Team Six special operations unit, as well as Naval Station Norfolk – a large naval port, Kelly noted.
When news reached the White House, officials reportedly attempted to brainstorm a response.
Military radars – tuned to detect larger military aircraft and ignore anything resembling a bird – often failed to pick up the drones and needed recalibration. The offending quadcopters were also controlled on a radio frequency unavailable to off-the-shelf drones. Police attempted to pursue the drones, tracking their movements, but ultimately failed to identify their owners.
Authorities were skeptical about bringing the UAVs down. Federal law bars the military from shooting down drones near military bases unless they pose an immediate threat – which does not include aerial spying, WSJ wrote. Jamming the drones was considered risky to local 911 emergency systems and Wi-Fi networks. Using directed energy weapons to shoot them down was viewed as too much of a risk to commercial aircraft.
On December 23, the flights ceased, with the perpetrators remaining a mystery, according to the report. Authorities failed to determine who was responsible for the flights but were reportedly convinced this unprecedented incursion was too complex to have been orchestrated by hobbyists.
This case is not the only instance of unidentified drones being spotted over critical US infrastructure. Two months prior, five drones were reportedly detected over the Nevada National Security Site, a US nuclear testing facility outside Las Vegas. Officials have yet to identify those behind that incursion.