The 2024 New Jersey drone sightings

About 2024 New Jersey drone sightings

The full story, section by section

The story of 2024 New Jersey drone sightings in 6 parts. Tap any part to read it in full.

1. BackgroundA drone is an aircraft flown remotely, without a pilot on board, used by the military, businesses and hobbyists alike.Read this part → States in which drone sightings were reported from November–December 2024. [1][2][3][4][5] · Photo: Chetsford, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
2. The sightingsThe first report came from Picatinny Arsenal, a U.S.Read this part → Round Valley Reservoir, New Jersey, one of the places where drones were reported. · Photo: Kjerish, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
3. Investigations and findingsThe FBI opened its investigation on 3 December 2024 by asking the public to report suspected drones near the Raritan River.Read this part → White House spokesman John Kirby, who said the reported drones could not be verified and many were manned aircraft (photo from 2023). · Photo: The White House, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
4. Government responsesThe White House said on 10 December that President Joe Biden was aware of the sightings, and on 18 December Biden said there was no sign of danger.Read this part → Illustration drawn for this site — not a photograph.
5. Proposed explanationsMost experts attributed the sightings to ordinary aircraft and objects in the sky.Read this part → An airliner on final approach. Investigators matched several high-profile drone reports to aircraft lining up to land. · Photo: John Murphy, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
6. AftermathAt a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing in February 2025, General Gregory Guillot, head of NORAD and U.S.Read this part → Illustration drawn for this site — not a photograph.

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Key people

The people at the centre of the story — witnesses, investigators, officials and sceptics:

• John F. KennedyJohn F. Kennedy served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination on November 22, 1963. Although he is not known to have publicly spoken about UFOs, he became a majo…
• Chuck SchumerCharles Schumer is an American politician who has served as a United States senator from New York since 1999 and has led the Senate Democratic Caucus. In 2023, he and Republican senator Mike Rounds i…
• Donald TrumpDonald John Trump is an American politician and businessman who serves as the 47th president of the United States, having previously served as the 45th president from 2017 to 2021. On February 19, 20…
• Kirsten GillibrandKirsten Gillibrand is an American lawyer and Democratic politician who has served as a U.S. senator from New York since 2009.
• Mick WestMick West is a science writer, skeptical investigator, and retired video game programmer who co-founded Neversoft before turning to debunking pseudoscience and conspiracy theories. He founded the web…
• Jake BarberJake Barber is a U.S. Air Force veteran and government contractor who claimed in January 2025 to have flown missions for a secret program recovering crashed, potentially non-human craft.
• Nancy MaceNancy Mace is an American Republican politician born in North Carolina who has served in the South Carolina House of Representatives and the U.S. House of Representatives.

Related cases & events

Events and sightings linked to 2024 New Jersey drone sightings:

🛸 Case · 8 min readBattle of Los AngelesThe Battle of Los Angeles was a wartime false alarm that occurred over Los Angeles County, California, on the night of 24–25 February 1942. During the incident, U.S.

Programs, organizations & documents

The official programs, groups and papers involved:

📄 Document · 13 min readFreedom of Information ActThe Freedom of Information Act is a United States law signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson on July 4, 1966, requiring federal executive agencies to release records upon request unless they fall under specific exemptions. The statute allows federal courts to …📄 Document · 7 min readNational Defense Authorization ActThe National Defense Authorization Act is the annual U.S. law that sets the budget, spending, and policies for the Department of Defense.

Related topics & places

Ideas, terms and places that come up in the story:

📍 Place · 11 min readVandenberg Space Force BaseVandenberg Space Force Base is a U.S. military and space launch facility located on the coast of Santa Barbara County, California.📍 Place · 19 min readWright-Patterson Air Force BaseWright-Patterson Air Force Base is a U.S. Air Force facility formed in Ohio in 1948 by merging Wright Field and Patterson Field.📍 Place · 6 min readFort WorthFort Worth is a city in Texas that is significant in UFO history because debris from the Roswell incident was flown to its army air field in July 1947. At the airfield, reporters photographed the material while General Roger Ramey presented it as a weather ba…

🏛️ Official records

• ODNI 2022 Annual Report on UAPOffice of the Director of National Intelligence · January 12, 2023The first annual unclassified UAP report required by law, covering reports received after the 2021 assessment.
• Newark Field Office, 1952-1967FBI · August 1952-1967This file details a special inquiry by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Newark Field Office of various reported sightings of unidentified flying objects (UFOs) in and near New Jersey between August 1952 and January…

🛸 UFO sightings near New Jersey drones

412 sightings on ufos.dev were reported within 120 km. The most-upvoted:

Sightings that mention 2024 New Jersey drone sightings

Open the sightings map → Search sightings →

More in the encyclopedia

Other articles that link to or mention 2024 New Jersey drone sightings:

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• John Lennon UFO sightingJohn Lennon and May Pang watched a silent, saucer-shaped UFO glide past the terrace of their Manhattan penthouse on the night of August 23, 1974. The object was described as having flashing white lig…
• Kelly–Hopkinsville encounterOn the night of August 21 to 22, 1955, at a farmhouse near Kelly, Kentucky, two families claimed they were attacked by small, strange creatures that they fought off with gunfire. Law enforcement and …
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