Are drones in recent sightings legitimate?
By: Kyle Morel
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
..... Reports of unidentified drones flying through the neigh sky have had much of North Jersey abuzz for the past few weeks. [12/05/2024]
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The numerous sightings, and posts claiming to show photo and video footage of the objects, have caused the FBI to get involved. But neither the bureau nor local law enforcement agencies have offered many answers, only statements assuring resident that there is no known threat to the public.
..... As speculation abounds, NorthJersey.com asked two of its own multimedia journalists, both with extensive experience piloting drones, what they think of the situation. Contrary to the prevailing pinons across social media, they are skeptical that what they re seeing looked at, I haven't been totally convinced," said tom Costello, who has piloted about 400 flights for the USA Today Network.
..... "It doesn't look like anything different," added Chris Pedot, a visual journalist with The Record and NorthJersey.com since 2000. "It (just) looks like lights in the sky."
..... Both pilots offered similar theories about the mysterious objects" that most recent sightings, in not all, have just been airplanes. Costello noted very clear nights in the region, which would allow people to see lights form a plane and make it appear similar in size to a drown.
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"It's a question of perspective,: Pedota said. "A big plane looks very small from far away, but the lights are var bright.
..... The confusion may stem fro the fact that most plane flying at night will have four lights: one each on the nose and tail of the plane and the two wings. Drones typically have four lights as well, arranged in a square pater along the end of the device, Costello said.
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But drones have a very specific sound, which Pedota likened to a "buzz" from a lawnmower, that is relatively quiet when compared to a plane. in one posted video alleging a drone sighting, Costello could hear a loud noise resembling a jet engine, leading him to believe the object was almost certainly a faraway plane.
Drone usage
..... There are several regulations that drone users must adhere to if they want to legally fly.
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Any license drone pilot will check with officials on whether there are any restrictions in the airspace near them before flying, Costello said. The drones Pedota uses are equipped with software that will not allow takeoff in certain areas without permission.
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The public is now allowed to fly drones at night after previously needing special clearance to do so, Costello said.
..... While flying in the dark is generally not as common, he recalled captioning drone footage of a fire at night earlier this year. [2024]
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Rescuers can also conduct missing person searches in the dark using thermal cameras, he said.
..... Drones have become "ubiquitous" in recent years, said Pedota, who has seen high school football deploying them above the end zone in certain games.
..... As the devices are still a relatively new form of technology, it is possible that individuals who reported sightings were simply mistaken and found what they thought was an easy explanation.
..... "It becomes one of those issues were, if one person sees it, now everyone is going to see it," Costello said
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If North Jersey residents see more lights in the sky, Costello advised them first to listen for a loud engine that would likely give away that the object is a plane.
..... They can also compare the lights to one another; an airplane on descent may have a spotlight on the nose that would be much brighter than the others.
..... The public can use apps such as Flightrader24 and Air Control to track the flights traveling through the airspace, Costello said.
..... For anyone who thinks they may have seen a drone, Costello suggested taking a note of the time of the sighting before contacting the FBI and FAA. That way, he said, the agencies can check their flight radars to see if any aircraft traveled through the area at that time.