Video from previous coverage.
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE (WXIX) – More drones have been spotted around Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (AFB).
The most recent sightings happened late in the evening of Dec. 16 and in the early morning of Dec. 17, according to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.
Officials say the drones seen on Dec. 16-17 were in the area of and over Wright-Patterson AFB’s Area A and Area B.
“The number of systems has fluctuated, and they have ranged in sizes and configurations,” Wright-Patterson AFB explained in a press release Tuesday.
This report comes several days after the AFB had to shut down its airspace for around four hours from late Dec. 13 into Dec. 14 due to drone incursions, Wright-Patterson AFB Chief of Public Affairs Bob Purtiman confirmed previously.
An unknown number of drones were spotted above and near the 8,000-acre base late Dec. 13 and continued into early Dec. 14, according to Wright-Patterson AFB Chief of Public Affairs Bob Purtiman.
Air traffic control audio posted on X claimed there was “heavy UAS (unmanned aircraft system) movement on the base.”
Wright-Patterson AFB is home to a self-described “vast, worldwide logistics system, a world-class laboratory research function.”
In each drone incursion, officials said there was no impact to any of the base’s facilities, assets, or residents.
In Ohio, it is a federal crime to shoot down a drone, according to The Ohio Bar Association.
The Dec. 13-14 and Dec. 16-17 reports from the Air Force base in Ohio join a growing number of mysterious drone sightings.
Reports from New Jersey and across the eastern U.S. have generated not only speculation, but concern.
“I think the government hides a lot of technology from us and I think this stuff is getting harder and harder to keep quiet,” Alex Blankenship, who lives near Wright-Patterson AFB, said.
President-elect Donald Trump echoed a similar statement.
Here is what he wrote on his social media app, Truth, on Dec. 13:
“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!!!”
Where have drones been spotted
The Associated Press reports that drones have been reported in New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, near Virginia Beach, and now Ohio.
There is a similarity between the drone sightings at Virginia Beach and in Ohio – both reports involve a military facility.
On Dec. 12, two people reported seeing an object fly slowly over an Army National Guard facility, according to the AP.
John Knight said to the Virginian-Pilot, “It flew like a helicopter but made no noise.”
The Virginia National Guard said it was aware of the incident, and it was under investigation, the AP explained.
Feds respond
More than 5,000 drone sightings have been reported over the last few weeks, according to a joint statement from the Department of Defense, FBI, Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Homeland Security.
The reports have led to around 100 leads, officials said.
In the joint statement, they said nothing has led them to think the drone sightings pose a national security threat or a risk to public safety.
National Security Communications Adviser John Kirby told Fox News on Monday that the White House has that same opinion.
“Our assessment is that this is lawful, legal, commercial, hobbyist, and even law enforcement aircraft activity,” Kirby explained. “Some of it’s manned, some of it’s unmanned. We absolutely acknowledge that a lot of these are probably drones, but they’re flying legally and it is legal to fly drones in non-restricted airspace as long as you’re registered with the FAA and there’s thousands and thousands of these kinds of flights every single day. I think there’s more than a million drones that are registered with the FAA just in the United States alone.”
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This article was published by WTVG on 2024-12-17 16:46:00
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