New Jersey Drone Sightings May Not Be Drones. By Professor Will Austin.

[Photo Booth]

While many of us are hobbyists, that fact doesn't dismiss the fact that the privilege of flying a drone in a shared airspace comes with responsibilities. At times, those responsibilities, if ignored, can lead to serious consequences.

In other words, facts and understanding those facts matter. This forum is EXACTLY the type of place where people should be clear, specific, and factual.

Mark

 

[Chip]

https://www.faa.gov/uas/research_development

Research & Development​

The FAA collaborates internally and maintains extensive partnerships across government, industry, and academia to develop integrated research plans that support the development of regulations, policies, procedures, guidance, and standards for drone operations. Research activities such as flight tests, modeling and simulation, technology evaluations, risk assessments, and data gathering and analysis provide the FAA with critical information in areas such as Detect and Avoid, UAS Communications, Human Factors, System Safety, and Certification, all of which enable the Agency to make informed decisions on safe drone integration. Read more about this work and the critical partnerships that advance drone research and development activities below.

 

[Photo Booth]

https://www.faa.gov/uas/research_development

Research & Development​

The FAA collaborates internally and maintains extensive partnerships across government, industry, and academia to develop integrated research plans that support the development of regulations, policies, procedures, guidance, and standards for drone operations. Research activities such as flight tests, modeling and simulation, technology evaluations, risk assessments, and data gathering and analysis provide the FAA with critical information in areas such as Detect and Avoid, UAS Communications, Human Factors, System Safety, and Certification, all of which enable the Agency to make informed decisions on safe drone integration. Read more about this work and the critical partnerships that advance drone research and development activities below.

PARTNERSHIPS!! You know, companies like Boeing, etc. Even companies like ZipLine and Amazon.

Mark

 

[Chip]

PARTNERSHIPS!! You know, companies like Boeing, etc. Even companies like ZipLine and Amazon.

Mark

Right. The FAA does no research at all. All they do is collaborate internally and maintain extensive partnerships across government, industry, and academia to develop integrated research plans that support the development of regulations, policies, procedures, guidance, and standards for drone operations. Research activities such as flight tests, modeling and simulation, technology evaluations, risk assessments, and data gathering and analysis provide the FAA with critical information in areas such as Detect and Avoid, UAS Communications, Human Factors, System Safety, and Certification, all of which enable the Agency to make informed decisions on safe drone integration. But again, the FAA does no research at all. No research can go on without FAA review, approval and monitoring but again they do no research at all. If research is done under FAA supervision and control, that is not the FAA doing research. The FAA was never asked the exact right question in the exact right way so they had no duty to disclose anything. Asking whether the drone research which occurred over New Jersey with FAA authorization was worth the fear, panic, and cost to the general public and state and local governments should not be asked or discussed because it has not been presented in accordance with the rigorous intellectual standards of this forum. Okay I think I got it now.

 

[Chip]

ZipLine was "hiding" its new New Jersey drone test facility in plain sight. It's was so secretive, ZipLine employees posted about it on X (formerly known as Twitter).

Notice that the opening of the facility (early November) coincides with the timing of the increase in reported drone sightings in New Jersey airspace.


Mark

Say can you post a link to the FAA documents which describe in detail the research that was conducted over New Jersey with the FAA's authorization? Its public information, right?

 

[mavic3usa]

If the Zipline experiment was so successful and so great, why not issue an official press release bragging about how you safely flew unidentified drones all over NJ and the region at the public expense, etc. Go ahead....

 

[Chip]

If the Zipline experiment was so successful and so great, why not issue an official press release bragging about how you safely flew unidentified drones all over NJ and the region at the public expense, etc. Go ahead....

Yes where is the press release? Zipline will start delivering pizzas and Panera bread in Seattle in a few months and I would think the public would be excited to hear how well the FAA publicly funded research went in New Jersey.

 

[Chip]

Gosh I noticed the FAA says on its website "The FAA conducts research to ensure that commercial and general aviation is the safest in the world." Maybe someone should contact the FAA and tell them to quit falsely claiming to conduct research because that is something they do not do. Right @Photo Booth?

 

[Torque]

Gosh I noticed the FAA says on its website "The FAA conducts research to ensure that commercial and general aviation is the safest in the world." Maybe someone should contact the FAA and tell them to quit falsely claiming to conduct research because that is something they do not do. Right @Photo Booth?

You should be able to suss out from what you've read that the FAA does NOT do research on Drones, new planes, new propeller designs, etc. Studying and "researching" ways to keep the sky safe is not product research.

 

[Chip]

You should be able to suss out from what you've read that the FAA does NOT do research on Drones, new planes, new propeller designs, etc. Studying and "researching" ways to keep the sky safe is not product research.

Okay I think I get it now. First it was the FAA conducts no research, now its they do some research but not the kind of research that they authorized to take place over New Jersey. And the FAA authorizing research is not conducting research and if the FAA says we authorized research then no one should say it was their research because technically we do not know whose research it was because the FAA never told us. Finally, we do not know who was doing the research and why but no one should ask or expect any answer because it is not their business. Please understand that I have no issue with anyone who believes the FAA did an excellent job handling the New Jersey drone crisis and had no obligation to say a word to anyone not even the FBI. Everyone is entitled to an opinion.

 

[Droning on and on...]

I see a thread closing peeking over the horizon...

If it happens, would someone please start a thread, "working out the fine details of regulating vs. researching"? I'm really learning a lot from the debate.

Not.

 

[Chip]

The White House announced that the mysterious drones flying over NJ were "authorized to be flown by the [Federal Aviation Administration] for research and various other reasons." Officials have never explained exactly what kind of research the drones were doing or who was involved.

New Jersey congressman Josh Gottheimer remains dissatisfied:

"[They] said those drones were literally for research and study and other reasons. I'd like to know what research and study, and what other reasons we're talking about. Why are they flying these drones over Jersey?" he said.
"I'm glad the White House confirmed today that there is no national security threat related to the recent drone activity over New Jersey. However, today's briefing raised new questions and confusion. I've reached out to the FAA and asked them to immediately clarify what they meant by 'research and various other reasons.' As I've been urging for months, I am also calling on the FAA to hold a public briefing to address the concerns of Jersey families. Transparency is essential, and the public deserves clear answers."

FAA's response: Deafening Silence.

This other New Jersey lawmaker and former Apache pilot says he doubts the drones were even for FAA research at all and he is also demanding answers.

FAA's response: Deafening Silence.

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[Chip]

 

[Droning on and on...]

 

[Zbip57]

I never used the word conspiracy. I said secret (which it was) experimental (which it was) research (which is the word the FAA used). But let us not worry about semantics. I will change the question: are you not curious what "research" the FAA was conducting that was so important that it warranted gaslighting the entire American public?

No, I think we really should worry about semantics.

In post#356 you shared a video of White House Press Secretary, Karoline Leavitt, making an announcement, which you insist is some sort of "confession" from the FAA. It's nothing of the sort.

It only appears that way to you because you are distorting the semantics of what she said.

Here is a transcript of what she actually said,

"From President Trump directly, an update on the New Jersey drones.
After research and study, the drones that were flying over New Jersey in large numbers were authorized to be flown by the FAA, for research and various other reasons. Many of these drones were also hobbyists, recreational, and private individuals that enjoy flying drones. In time it got worse due to curiosity.
This was not the enemy."

The statement says that:

• This was NOT a statement from the FAA, it's a statement from President Trump.
• The FAA authorizes drones to be flown. It does NOT say they were being flown by the FAA.
• The FAA authorizes flights for research and various other [commercial] reasons.
• The FAA also authorizes hobbyists, recreational, and private individuals that enjoy flying drones.
• If you see a drone, it most likely has a legitimate and authorized reason for being there.
• There is zero reason to assume a drone was launched from Iranian motherships in the Atlantic.

Semanitcs, eh.

 

[Droning on and on...]

I've lost track of the Regulate v. Research debate... who's winning?

Gotta keep this focused on what's important, after all.

 

[MA2 317]

I've lost track of the Regulate v. Research debate... who's winning?

I think we need to research the regulation on the research.

.

 

[AMann]

Oh, sorry, wrong room!

 

[Chip]

I've lost track of the Regulate v. Research debate... who's winning?

Gotta keep this focused on what's important, after all.

We are.*



*But it depends who you are.

 

[Chip]

I think we need to research the regulation on the research.

.

Great news! We do not have to. Because the White House and FAA agree that drone flights were "authorized by the Federal Aviation Administration for research and various other reasons." The FAA simply refuses to explain what research is being conducted by who and for what purpose. The FAA knows but will not tell us. Some might describe that as keeping a secret.