Mysterious drone sightings shut down one of the largest US Air Force bases in the world
Drone sightings forced officials to close the airspace at one of the largest US Air Force bases in the world over the weekend.
Drones flying around Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio, led base officials to shut down the airspace for around four hours late on Friday and into early Saturday morning, a base spokesperson has said.
It is the first time drones have been spotted at the base, Robert Purtiman said.
No sightings have been reported since early on Saturday, he added.
Mr Purtiman said the drones ranged in size and did not impact any base facilities, but would not say how many were flying in the area.
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What are the mystery drones flying over New Jersey?
It comes as police in Boston arrested two men accused of flying drones “dangerously close” to the city’s Logan Airport on Saturday night.
An officer using drone monitoring technology detected the aircraft and the location of the operators, authorities said.
A third man fled police and remains at large, they added.
The two men face trespassing charges and could face more charges and fines.
Boston police urged drone operators to adhere to federal safety guidelines in a post on social media, saying: “Even small drones pose significant risks, including the potential for catastrophic damage to airplanes and helicopters.
“Near-collisions can cause pilots to veer off course, putting lives and property at risk.”
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Lights in the sky near Lebanon Township, New Jersey. Pic: Trisha Bushey/AP
Drone sightings across eastern US coast
Swarms of drones have been sighted in eastern parts of the US since the middle of November, fuelling theories they could have been launched from an Iranian ‘mothership’ or by China.
Dozens of witnesses have reported seeing them across New Jersey, including near the Picatinny Arsenal military research and manufacturing facility and over president-elect Donald Trump’s golf course in Bedminster.
Sightings have also been reported in New York, with the runways at Stewart International Airport shut down for around an hour on Friday night because of drone activity in the airspace.
Several alleged drones over Bernardsville, New Jersey. Pic: Brian Glenn/TMX via AP
Calls for better technology to deal with drones
Legislators have demanded US federal and state authorities identify and stop the unmanned flights.
Officials at the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have said the sightings do not appear to be signs of foreign interference or a public safety threat.
But because they cannot say with certainty who is responsible for the swarms, or how they can be stopped, leaders of both political parties are calling for better technology and powers to deal with the drones.
‘The government knows what is happening’ – Trump
President-elect Trump has said the US military should tell the American public what is behind the drone sightings.
“The government knows what is happening,” Mr Trump said. “For some reason, they don’t want to comment. And I think they’d be better off saying what it is our military knows and our president knows.”
Speaking at a press conference in Palm Beach, Florida, Mr Trump said he “can’t imagine it’s the enemy” but did not go into further detail. He refused to answer when asked if he had received an intelligence briefing on the matter.
The White House has said a review of the reported sightings shows many of them were actually manned aircraft being flown legally.
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Senator spots ‘unidentified drones’
New Jersey senator shares videos of mysterious ‘drones’
It comes after New Jersey Senator Andy Kim shared videos of what he described as multiple unidentified drones flying over the state.
Mr Kim posted four videos on his X account of lights moving across the sky, saying sometimes the lights were “solid white” while others “flashed of red and green”.
Mr Kim also said some of the unidentified objects appeared to be moving in “small clusters of 2-4” but he and officers often saw “5-7 lights” at a time.
Dozens of supporters were outside court as the man accused of fatally shooting the chief executive of UnitedHealthcare made his first appearance.
Luigi Mangione has pleaded not guilty to multiple counts of murder following the 4 December killing of Brian Thompson, 50, outside a midtown Manhattan hotel.
The 26-year-old is accused of ambushing and shooting the executive as he walked to an investor conference.
Luigi Mangione supporters stand outside the Supreme Court. Pic: AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah
Dozens of people who showed up in court to support the suspect including former army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning who was jailed for stealing classified diplomatic cables.
Dozens more queued in the hallway.
Mangione is also facing federal charges that could carry the possibility of the death penalty.
The judge set a deadline of 9 April to submit pre-trial motions.
Luigi Mangione is accused of fatally shooting Brian Thompson. Pic: Steven Hirsch/New York Post via AP
In addition to the New York cases, Mr Mangione also faces charges of forgery, carrying firearms without a licence, and other counts in Pennsylvania, where authorities arrested him at a McDonald’s.
Police say he was in possession of a gun, bullets, multiple fake IDs and a handwritten document that expressed “ill will” towards corporate America.
He is being held in a Brooklyn jail alongside several other high-profile defendants, including music mogul and rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs, and disgraced crypto entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried.
The killing prompted some to voice their resentment at US health insurers, with Mangione attracting a cult following.
A poll taken in the wake of the shooting showed most Americans believe health insurance profits and coverage denials were partly to blame for the incident.
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