FAA Has Been Unable To Independently Confirm Sightings

Reports of a drone flying near Teterboro airport on Tuesday caused delays at Newark Liberty International Airport for about 20 minutes. But it may have been just another false alarm.

The Chicago Tribune reports that the FAA said Wednesday that it had been unable to independently confirm that whatever was seen by a Southwest and a United pilot was actually a drone. "We continue to work with local law enforcement to find additional evidence," and FAA spokesperson said.

The objects were initially spotted about nine miles from airspace used by aircraft on approach to Newark Liberty. While the pilots and many others immediately said "drone", others say "not so fast."

Brendan Schulman, a spokesman for DJI, said that it is very unlikely that what the pilots saw was a UAV. The object was reportedly flying at 3,500 feet, and while that is possible, Schulman said it is "highly unlikely" that it was a drone. He said that the recent incident at Gatwick Airport in London has led people to just assume anything the see in the air that they can't identify is a drone.

Schulman said that while there have been case where "knuckleheads" have flown drones where they should not have, there are also documented cases where an object that was initially reported to be a drone turned out to be a balloon, a bat, or even a plastic grocery bag.

(Image from file)

FMI: Source report