Explaining the mysterious drone sightings from Riverside County to east coast
Meanwhile the Department of Homeland Security and federal Bureau of Investigation continue to press there is no evidence of reported drone sightings posing a national security or public safety threat from a foreign nexus.
Despite that, the FBI and DHS are deploying drone detection technology and infrared cameras to probe whether the drones flying over New Jersey and New York aren't harmful.
Recently, close to dozen drones were spotted by residents of Venice Beach on Sunday night.
"I haven't stopped talking about it since Friday," Ortega said. "All my friends and family are probably tired of hearing me say it, but something's going on. Something's in the sky."
Aaron Ortega is one of several residents in Riverside County, who's spotted drones flying above in the night time sky.
"Why are they here?," he ask.
"A lot of them look like planes that people I think are mistaking for big drones," Dr. Alexander De La Vega, of the University California Riverside said."A lot of them have blinking lights, which is a dead giveaway that it's a drone."
Dr. De La Vega says he's seen none of the videos from Riverside County to New Jersey show anything out of the unknown. He explained one of the easiest ways to verify what you're seeing in the sky is a drone or a plane, is to take a long-exposure photo.
"You can tell whether it's a plane because it has blinking lights. So you see these little blinks of light in the photo. You can tell it's a satellite because usually satellites will have a solid streak of light."
In California, a man from Brentwood was arrested this month for allegedly flying a drone over the Vandenburg Space Force Base.
Numbers in October from the Federal Aviation Administration put the number of drone registrations close to eight hundred thousand.
Breaking it down to half for recreational - and half for commercial.
In California, the film industry has added to the use, which has given us a new view of the action.
791,597
faa.gov as of Oct.1, 2024
Drones Registered
396,746
Commercial Drones Registered
387,746
Recreational Drones Registered
7,523
Paper Registrations
415,635
Remote Pilots Certified
883,094
TRUST Certificates Issued
FAA requirements for recreational Unmanned Aircraft Systems
- Fly below 400 feet and remain clear of surrounding obstacles;
- Keep the aircraft within visual line of sight at all times;
- Remain well clear of and do not interfere with manned aircraft operations;
- Do not fly within 5 miles of an airport unless you contact the airport and control tower before flying;
- Do not fly near people or stadiums;
- Do not fly in adverse weather conditions such as in high winds or reduced visibility;
- Do not fly under the influence of alcohol or drugs;
- Do not fly an aircraft that weighs more than 55 lbs;
- Do not fly near or over sensitive infrastructure or property such as power stations, water treatment facilities, correctional facilities, heavily traveled roadways, etc.;
- Do not be careless or reckless with your unmanned aircraft – you could be fined for endangering people or other aircraft;
- Do not conduct surveillance or photograph persons in areas where there is an expectation of privacy without the individual’s permission.
It's illegal to shooting an aircraft, including drones or manned airplanes. In California, first responders have immunity for damaging an UAS that interferes with the act of providing emergency services.
Both government agencies and recreationist must adhere to strict rules when operating a drone. You can view more of those here.
