Mysterious drones are monitoring some of America’s most sensitive military sites and the Pentagon is struggling to respond, according to a report from the US. wall street journalThese drones have been seen flying over military bases in Virginia and Nevada in the past year, including the secret base of the Navy’s elite SEAL Team Six and Naval Station Norfolk, the world’s largest naval port, the report said.
Federal laws currently prevent the military from shooting down these drones because it could endanger soldiers and civilians. The Wall Street Journal also reported that the idea of drones jamming signals was rejected in high-level White House meetings, citing concerns that it could interfere with 911 systems, WiFi networks and commercial airlines.
Former US Air Force General Mark Kelly told the Wall Street Journal that he first became aware of drone sightings in December 2023, when officials at Langley Air Force Base in Virginia reported seeing dozens of drones flying over the base at night. informed of. Langley is home to the F-22 Raptor, one of America’s most advanced stealth fighters.
The drone sightings continued for 17 days, raising suspicions that they may be the work of Russian or Chinese agents seeking to spy on US military assets. However, since the drones posed no immediate threat, military law prohibited any action to shoot them down.
According to an FAA official, the option of directed jamming attacks was also considered too risky, as it could disrupt commercial air traffic, especially during the holiday travel season. According to a Wall Street Journal report, analog methods proved ineffective because local police assisting in the investigation were unable to spot the drone during the night.
The scenes ended on 23 December, with authorities still unsure of the origin of the drones or who was controlling them. The complexity and coordination of the operation led officials to dismiss the idea that amateur drone pilots were responsible.
An important clue emerged in January when a Chinese student named Fengyun Xi, studying at the University of Minnesota, was caught flying a drone near Langley Air Force Base. Xi’s drone got stuck in a tree, which he abandoned before flying to California. The drone was later recovered by the FBI, which discovered that it had taken photographs of Navy ships parked at the base.
Xi was arrested as he prepared to board a one-way flight to China and accused of illegally taking photographs of classified naval installations, the first such case involving drones. Magistrate Judge Lawrence Leonard rejected Shi’s claim that he was simply a student flying drones for fun, and Shi pleaded guilty to the espionage charge on October 2.
Despite these incidents, US officials have confirmed that similar drone swarms have recently been spotted near Edwards Air Force Base in Nevada. The Defense Department has not yet publicly identified the source behind these surveillance drones.
