Department of Homeland Security issues terror alert after three drones are spotted in three days above JFK

  • Two drones were spotted by pilots on Friday, and another was spotted on Sunday 
  • Following the sightings, the Department of Homeland Security warned that drones could be used by terrorists to attack commercial planes 
  • The sightings come just days after a unidentified object was filmed hovering near a Virgin Atlantic plane taking off from JFK  

Three drones were spotted flying too close to airplanes landing at New York City's John F Kennedy Airport over the weekend, prompting warnings was the FAA. 

It's currently illegal to fly a drone withing five miles of an airport or higher than 400 feet, but one of the pilots landing at JFK on Friday said he say a drone as high as 1,400 feet off the ground. 

The drone spotting  have prompted worries from federal aviation officials, that the unmanned aircraft would be used to pose a threat to commercial planes. 

Scroll down for video 

Too close for comfort: Three drones have been spotted in three days, flying dangerously close to planes landing at New York's JFK Airport. Above a stock image of a drone 

Too close for comfort: Three drones have been spotted in three days, flying dangerously close to planes landing at New York's JFK Airport. Above a stock image of a drone 

In response to the sightings, the Department of Homeland Security issued a bulletin, warning that drones would be used by terrorists. 

'The rising trend in UAS incidents within the National Airspace System will continue, as UAS gain wider appeal with recreational users and commercial applications. 

'While many of these encounters are not malicious in nature, they underscore potential security vulnerabilities... that could be used by adversaries to leverage UAS as part of an attack,' the statement reads. 

Over the weekend, New York Senator Chuck Schumer called for tougher defenses against drones - such as geofences that wouldn't stop drones from approaching restricted areas.  

'The FAA has to act and toughen up the rules before a tragedy occurs because if a drone were sucked into a jet engine of a plane filled with passengers untold tragedy could result and we do not, do not, do not want that to happen,' Schumer said. 

The first spotting this weekend was reported by a JetBlue flight arriving from Haiti just before 2:30pm on Friday. 

Two and a half hours later, a Delta pilot landing at JFK from Orlando spotted another drone about 1,400 feet off the ground.   

'Yeah, about a mile back there was a drone flying just under the southwest side of the airport here. It’s about a hundred feet below us,' the pilot said over the radio. 

The third report came on Sunday, from a Shuttle America flight arriving from Richmon, Virginia around 6pm.  

None of the three pilots had to take evasive action to avoid the drones. 

According to the federal aviation agency, there are about two drone sightings across the country each day. 

Mystery sighting: A plane enthusiast captured the moment this object flew over a Virgin Atlantic plane at the beginning of July

Mystery sighting: A plane enthusiast captured the moment this object flew over a Virgin Atlantic plane at the beginning of July

The Port Authority and FAA are investigating the drone sightings. 

The drone sightings come just days after a video caught the moment a unidentified object was seen hovering near a Virginia Atlantic plane as it took off from JFK on July 7.

Rick, from LookNowTV who found the video, said: 'The person that saw this UFO at JFK films planes often and looks to catch UFOs on video.

'I even try to film UFOs myself often. Planning on a UFO hunt in NYC soon to hopefully air on LookNowTV. I thought this one doesn't look like a bug or another plane in the background.

'I have no reason to believe this guy is a hoax. It's really unidentified.

'I shared it with my friends to get further opinions on it, and we could not come to a definitive conclusion on what the object might be so I decided to go with it and share it online.'

But British UFO expert Russ Kellett remains unconvinced.

Mr Kellett said: 'It seems to get narrower and wider as it's moving, it's hard to say. I always send footage to an expert to image enhancement as it looks good but unfortunately it could be anything.

'There should be nothing getting that close to an aircraft. It doesn't look to be a bird or anything like that but at a different angle it could be anything. You can believe in UFOs and be logical about images as well.

'It comes behind from the aeroplane's tail, you can tell it's behind but it does move sort of like a bird, when something's moving when the wings are flapping. If it's moving away, it will give that appearance.'

 

  

The comments below have not been moderated.

The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.

By posting your comment you agree to our house rules.

Who is this week's top commenter? Find out now