The Defense Department doubles down, saying drones are not U.S. military assets

The Department of Defense (DoD) doubled down on its statement Tuesday, saying the number of possible drones has increased in places like… New Jersey and New York are not U.S. military installations, adding that the vast majority of unmanned aircraft are likely used by hobbyists for recreational purposes.

Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder answered numerous questions from reporters about the drones during a news conference Tuesday, but remained clear that the drones are not Defense Department assets nor are they part of experimental programs.

He said there are over a million drones registered in the U.S. and about 8,500 drones may be in flight each day. The vast majority of drones, Ryder said, will likely be used by hobbyists or for recreational purposes. Then there are commercial drones that could be used for architecture, engineering, agriculture or law enforcement, he continued.

“Is it possible that some of these drones could be carrying out harmful activities? That’s entirely possible,” Ryder said, adding that this isn’t the case for the vast majority of drones. “In the case of drones flying near or over U.S. military installations, that in and of itself is nothing new given the volume of drone flights we see on any given day. We take all of this seriously.”

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Fox News’ Jennifer Griffin asked Ryder whether the drones seen in New Jersey might be part of a corridor created specifically for testing and evaluation a year ago Drones and unmanned systems.

Ryder said he asked the Joint Staff whether that was possible and was told that the drones were not US military installations and were not part of any military or experimental operations in the corridor.

Since mid-November, possible drone sightings have been reported across New Jersey, at places like Trump’s Bedminster Golf Club and over military research facilities.

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New Jersey military installations where drones were spotted included the Picatinny Arsenal in Rockaway Township and Naval Weapons Station Earle in Colts Neck.

According to Ryder, the Department of Defense is taking measures to ensure that military facilities such as Picatinny and Earle are able to appropriately detect, identify and track objects in their airspace.

Unmanned systems are part of modern warfare and “we’re here to stay,” Ryder said. Therefore, the Department of Defense wants to ensure that it is doing everything in its power to protect its forces from a national security perspective.

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“In addition to some of the capabilities that these assets already have, these capabilities will essentially improve space agencies’ ability to detect, identify and track (unmanned aircraft systems),” Ryder said. “This could include, for example, active or passive detection capabilities, as well as capabilities such as the system known as Drone Busters, which…uses non-kinetic means to disrupt drone signals, impacting their operational capability.”

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Ryder also debunked rumors that the possible drone sightings were accompanied by large, rectangular black monoliths, a reference to Arthur C. Clarke’s “2001: A Space Odyssey.”

“I would probably have to think back to the words of a very wise prophet, Obi-Wan Kenobi, who said, ‘These are not the droids, drones you’re looking for,'” Ryder said jokingly, referring to another science fiction book -Classic “Star Wars: A New Hope”.

“Beyond that, I just have to keep going.”