The Patriot Post® · The Hysterical Drone Hysterics
(Editors Note: See update below this analysis.)
In 1938, with global tensions high and rising, famed radio personality and actor Orson Welles broadcast a prime-time “breaking news” Halloween episode, announcing to his audience that there was a Martian invasion. It was an adaptation of H.G. Wells’s novel, The War of the Worlds, and it was carried by the CBS Radio Network nationwide.
Obvious to most, the program was intended as humor, but given the social and cultural events at the time, the episode incited hysteria among some audience members. CBS was widely condemned for allowing the broadcast given that caused such emotional distress for some people.
In a modern case study of media-driven hysterics, also associated with current social and cultural tensions, according to endless mass media reports over the last two weeks, we are being invaded by alien drones. Drones, drones, everywhere!!!
When the “invasion” reports began almost a month ago on 18 November, both right- and left-media outlets embraced and churned the news endlessly, proclaiming it might be an imminent national security threat. Unfortunately, even the conservative MSM outlets like Fox News, get too deep in the Beltway echo chambers, and depart from all reason and logic when sensationalizing such reports. Of course, churning the news is what the MSM do best to boost ad revenue.
Fortunately the tenor and tone of these reports in their follow-up coverage has been tempered by the reality that it is highly unlikely that there is anything nefarious going on.
The drone hysterics crossed political party lines, with both Democrats and Republicans expressing outrage that there were no better explanations for all the “increase” of sightings. That concern topped out with claims by Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ) that the drones over his state were being launched from an Iranian mother ship off the East Coast. New Jersey Demo Gov. Phil Murphy has repeatedly called on the Biden/Harris regime to provide answers about who is flying the drones and why.
Reality check. There are about 10,000 drones being operated over the U.S. at any given moment. There is an unfortunate misconception that everything in flight is being tracked by somebody, and that has created confusion and anger when requesting information about drone sightings and not getting answers. Those answers regarding most drone traffic, don’t exist. It is not that the drones were trackable and then they became untraceable — civilian drones are generally not tracked unless they are in certain controlled airspace performing specific operations.
When the “drone” reports first broke, I told our team that I suspected some of these sightings were actual drones, but once the media hysteria metastasized, thousands of sightings would follow, most likely being private and commercial helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft being mistaken for drones. In general, hobby drone operators (the bulk of drones) are responsible — certified or licensed, but given the media hype, I predicted that some drone pranksters would pop up, accelerating the hysterics. That, combined with well-meaning folks looking up and identifying anything and everything flying as a “drone,” has resulted in increased “sightings” nationwide.
If you are familiar with the civilian recreational and professional use of drones, they have amazing capabilities. And there are millions of them in use, some by government agencies for everything from security to surveys, and law enforcement and fire/rescue responders. You may recall a recent report of how law enforcement agencies used drone thermal imaging to find a missing autistic 3-year old boy. New Jersey police used the same technology to find another missing child earlier this year.
Operating drones for search and rescue and to track criminal activity is far less expensive than operating helicopters. But the vast majority of drones are hobbyists or commercial operators. These drones range in size from a few ounces to more than 1000 pounds, the latter being very sophisticated. These drones are distinctly different from military-type drones of all sizes, but the most sophisticated civilian drones have some operational capabilities approaching those of military drones.
However, from the ground at night, making the distinctions is impossible.
Many larger drones are designed for commercial, agricultural and other distribution and delivery use. Amazon is expanding the use drones for fast delivery to customers.
As for civilian use, in October, in addition to all the YouTube videos of private individuals using smaller drones for search and rescue after the September floods in North Carolina, there were also videos of much larger civilian drones being used to supplement helicopter delivery of goods to isolated flood victims.
Civilian drones are restricted from flight more than 400 feet above ground level, and are not tracked by air traffic control. Unlike all civilian, commercial and military aircraft, drones are not required to be equipped with ADS-B (Automatic Dependent Surveillance - Broadcast) location and identification transponders, unless they meet specific size and/or use regulations.
For this reason, a significant concern is that drone operators could accidentally or intentionally interfere with flight approach and departure vectors in controlled air spaces, and those cases have been documented and criminally prosecuted. The FAA has equipment which can electronically capture drones violating airspace, and most current drones are programed in such a way that they will not operate within a controlled airspace.
The military has the capability to track drones but that capability is generally not being deployed domestically. The military and some federal agencies (FBI and DHS) also have the capability to “jam” drone control systems, even with autonomous drones, in order to take control of them or send them crashing to the ground. That capability would only be deployed domestically for national security purposes.
Fact is, there are not many regulations regarding drone operations, because civilian use has almost exclusively been by hobbyists until the recent rapid expansion of larger drone craft being used for commercial applications. And perhaps this is a wakeup call to implement more stringent drone regulation, particularly as those regulations pertain to privacy — I would fully support that!
Moreover, in a joint statement by DHS, FBI, FAA and DoD, the agencies are asking “Congress to enact counter-UAS legislation when it reconvenes that would extend and expand existing counter-drone authorities to identify and mitigate any threat that may emerge.” In other words, these agencies are asserting they lack this authority now to track all Unmanned Aircraft Systems, so politicians should stop demanding answers they can’t provide.
Recall that Donald Trump’s would-be assassin had surveyed the grounds in Butler, PA with a drone prior to Trump’s speaking engagement there, with impunity – just one of many security failures that day.
Regarding the drone threat concerns now, if some national security adversary was flying drones over the U.S. for nefarious purposes, they would not be lit up with red and green aviation beacons, white approach lights, etc. However, if a federal agency was operating drones over a specific area in order to evaluate a threat, they likely would use those lights for safety. If an agency was operating drones over an area because of a security concern, insisting that concern be disclosed could compromise sources and methods.
That being said, there is no question that some individuals are using drones for illegal overflights of secure installations on behalf of foreign adversaries. It would inaccurate to assume such flights are not being tracked. And nobody — NOBODY — should discount the possibility of foreign or domestic adversaries using drones for nefarious, disruptive, or destructive purposes — a very real concern.
This would include terrorist applications. In the 1980s, I evaluated a domestic terrorist scenario that involved a manned aircraft releasing anthrax spores over a stadium full of people. Four decades later, the probability of a drone being used to complete that act of terrorism is much higher than using a plane or helicopter.
Fortunately, military and civilian agencies are taking many mitigating measures to address such concerns. There are temporary flight restrictions over any event locations where there are large gatherings of people, and permanent locations where there are large numbers of people are classified as restricted air space. In other words, drone operations are prohibited.
After 10 days of the commercial MSM’s sensationalist reporting about drone sightings, they have moderated those reports. But enter Donald Trump last weekend, who amped up the concerns again, posting: “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!!!” Trump added, “I think they’d be better off saying what it is. Our military knows. And our president knows. And for some reason, they want to keep people in suspense.”
That post feeds into the underlying social and cultural issues accelerating some of the drone hysteria.
The reason these claims got so much traction is because of a heightened and well-earned public distrust of our government, particularly the Demo deep state actors who targeted the Trump administration, and will do so again if the new DoJ and FBI leadership fail to weed out these pockets of corruption.
To the point of mistrust, the Wall Street Journal editors note: “The loss of public trust in U.S. institutions is well-chronicled, and for an example of its cost consider the national mini-panic over unidentified aerial objects. No one in America seems to believe what anyone in authority says about them, and unproven claims are filling the vacuum.”
The editors conclude: “The feds need to explain to Congress and the public with more specificity what is really going on. But the larger need is for a government Americans can trust.”
Thus, no matter how many assurances are issued by DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who has devoted most of his waking hours over the last four years to the propagation of lies about the Biden/Harris open boarder policy, who would believe him?
Meanwhile, let’s hope one of the “Sopranos” in New Jersey won’t mistake a civilian aircraft for a drone and think Trump gave them permission to “shoot them down!!!”
Update: On 19 December, in an effort to squelch the media-driven drone hysteria – and look like they are doing something in response – the Federal Aviation Administration has issued a 30-day ban of drone flights over parts of urban and suburban New Jersey. The FAA NOTAM regarding the 22 TFRs (Temporary Flight Restrictions) asserted that the “government may use deadly force against” any airborne aircraft “if it is determined that the aircraft poses an imminent security threat.” (That is always the case.) It warned that pilots who fail to abide by these restrictions can be “intercepted, detained, and interviewed by the law enforcement/security personnel.” (That is always the case.) For the drone operating agitators who violate this ban, it will be a test of just what the FAA and other agencies can do to track, identify and prosecute those who violate the ban.
Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis
Pro Deo et Libertate — 1776
(Updated)