Drones spotted flying over naval base Camp Pendleton in Southern California Last week’s attacks reportedly did not pose a threat to the facility’s operations.
Base spokesman Capt. James C. Sartain told The Warzone that between Dec. 9 and Dec. 15, “six instances of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) were seen entering the airspace over Camp Pendleton.”
Sartain also said the UAS poses no threat to installation operations.
The publication also learned from base personnel that countermeasures to take down the drones were not necessary because air and ground operations were not affected.
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The entrance to Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton in Oceanside, California. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)
Camp Pendleton officials did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for confirmation and further details on the matter.
The reports of drone flights over Camp Pendleton come as reports of possible drone sightings over the military continue to come in Installations in New Jerseyincluding the Picatinny Arsenal in Rockaway Township and the Naval Weapons Station Earle in Colts Neck.
Drones were also seen near Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio over the weekend, causing the base to close its airspace for hours on Saturday.
According to its website, Wright-Patterson is “the headquarters of a vast, global logistics system, a world-class laboratory research capability, and the U.S. Air Force’s premier acquisition and development center.”
The Pentagon doubled down on its statement Tuesday, saying the drones possibly spotted over New Jersey were not U.S. military installations. (Daniel Slim/AFP via Getty Images; Doug Hood/Asbury Park Press)
On Tuesday, Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said told reporters the drones These are not US military installations, and the vast majority of unmanned aircraft are likely used by hobbyists for recreational purposes.
“Just to kind of put that into context… (there are) over a million drones registered in the United States on any given day approximately 8,500 drones are, you know, in flight,” Ryder said. “The vast majority of these drones will probably be for recreational or hobby use. “They’ll be commercial drones… you know, used in things like architecture, engineering, agriculture, or they could be used for law enforcement.”
However, Ryder also said that bases such as Picatinny and Earle would be equipped with equipment to better detect, identify and track objects in their airspace if necessary. If necessary, he explained, the system could have capabilities that use non-kinetic means to jam drone signals, impairing their functionality.
Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, who serves as chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told C-SPAN on Tuesday that he believes the drones flying over military installations are operated by the People’s Republic of China.
Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, speaks during a news conference following a meeting of the House Republican Conference on Capitol Hill. (Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
“We want answers, but the answer I’m getting is we don’t know whose drones these are,” McCaul said.
The lawmaker said he had learned that the drones had been reported over military sites, adding that he did not consider this type of drone to be friendly, but rather hostile.
“We need to find out who is behind these drones,” he said. “My judgment, based on my experience, is that those above our military sites are controversial and most likely come from the People’s Republic of China.”
McCaul further explained that he based his belief that the drones were operated by Chinese on the fact that China had purchased land near military bases.
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Apparently large drones hover in the Bay Shore section of Toms River, New Jersey on December 8th. (Doug Hood/Asbury Park Press)
Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, D-Pa., spoke to reporters after the House Intelligence Committee’s classified briefing with the FBI, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the CIA about the drones in New Jersey.
Houlahan told reporters she was not concerned about a threat and said it was irresponsible to scare the public over the matter.
“I think the message to the American people is that a lot of people from a lot of different organizations at the federal level are taking this very, very seriously and to date they haven’t found anything to suggest that there is any foreign influence.” “Foreign actors or even little green men are working on the American people and I think it’s really important that people understand that,” the Pennsylvania lawmaker said.
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Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, D-Pa., isn’t worried about drones. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
She continued, saying more work needs to be done, including legislation that would give officials the authority to respond to drone threats with the right technology.
Houlahan pointed out that more drones will be gracing the airspace, and since it’s Christmas, there will likely be more drones under people’s Christmas trees next week.
She stressed that it is important for the American people to know that “there is no apparent threat from any location.”
But she also wanted to emphasize that the media and authorities play an important role when it comes to drones and the message to the public.
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“I’m not really sure why some of my colleagues decided that this was important to scare the public, but I don’t think that’s a particularly responsible thing to do,” Houlahan said. “The same goes for the media: I don’t think it’s particularly responsible to scare the public.”
Andrea Margolis of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.
