0 min left

FAA and FBI Collaborate to Combat Drone Threat

Interagency cooperation is at the forefront of efforts as data from FBI’s UAS detection system is tested and evaluated at JFK.

As drone incursions continue unabated, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is stepping up its efforts to combat the threat that unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) pose to some of the nation’s busiest airports.

Over the last two years, drones have been a particular problem at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), with both pilots and residents living near JFK reporting frequent sightings to the FAA. The administration, along with a host of industry, academic and governmental partners, has now announced that it has begun to evaluate the effectiveness of a UAS detection system created by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

The testing and evaluation of this system, intended for a commercial aviation environment, began on May 2 at JFK and involved the use of five different types of drones over 40 individual tests. These tests were intended to build on similar research data collected earlier this year at Atlantic City International Airport (ACY).

Commenting on the evaluation at JFK in a statement, Marke “Hoot” Gibson, FAA Senior Advisor on UAS Integration, said, “We face many difficult challenges as we integrate rapidly evolving UAS technology into our complex and highly regulated airspace.”

These tests involved considerable interagency collaboration and, in addition to the FAA and the FBI, included the input of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Department of Justice and the Queens District Attorney’s Office as well as the port authorities of New York and New Jersey. While the remit of the FAA is to ensure a safe environment for all air traffic, the FBI and the DHS intend to use this collected data for the purposes of law enforcement.

Speaking of the collaborative efforts, Thomas Bosco, ‎director, Aviation Department at The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, said, “We applaud the FBI and FAA for their efforts to detect and track unmanned aerial systems (UAS).”

“We look forward to supporting continued U.S. Government efforts to identify and deploy countermeasures to neutralize the threat posed by rogue UASs,” he added.

[Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images]

Comments are Closed.
0 Comments