Here's where drone flying is now restricted in New York
NEW YORK (WABC) -- A large number of mysterious drones reported flying over New York and New Jersey has prompted the FAA to take action.
The FAA has now temporarily banned drone operations in multiple areas of New York, citing "special security" reasons. This means no drones can be operated in those areas unless granted special permission from the government.
The temporary flight restrictions (TFR) have been implemented in the following locations starting Friday, December 20, 2024, until January 19, 2025:
- Farragut Substation - Brooklyn, NY 4/9171
- E 13th St. Substation - New York, NY 4/9167
- EF Barrett Substation - Oceanside, NY 4/9192
- Goethals Substation - Staten Island, NY 4/9186
- Fresh Kills Substation - Staten Island, NY 4/9180
- Roslyn Substation - Roslyn Heights, NY 4/9189
- Newbridge Rd. Substation - Levittown, NY 4/9202
- Ruland Rd. Substation - Melville, NY 4/9194
- Hunt Point Compressor Station - Bronx, NY 4/9205
- Riverhead Substation - Calverton, NY 4/9197
- Point Jefferson Substation - Setauket, NY 4/9193
- Shoreham Substation - Shoreham, NY 4/9201
- Pilgrim Substation - Commack, NY 4/9188
- Holbrook Substation - Holtsville, NY 4/9178
- Lake Success Substation - Hyde Park, NY 4/9213
- East Garden City Substation - Garden City, NY 4/9216
- Electric Control Center - New York, NY 4/9169
- Gas Control Center - Bronx, NY 4/9177
- Far Rockaway Substation - Far Rockaway, NY 4/9172
- Glenwood Substation - Glenwood Landing, NY 4/9181
- Valley Stream Substation - Lynbrook, NY 4/9191
- Hauppauge Substation - Commack, NY 4/9187
- New South Rd. Substation - Hicksville, NY 4/9200
- Millwood Substation - New Castle, NY 4/9206
- Astoria Complex - Queens, NY 4/9203
- Northport Substation - Northport, NY 4/9195
- Brookhaven Substation - Ridge, NY 4/9168
- Sprain Brook Substation - Yonkers, NY 4/9199
- Holtsville GT Substation - Holbrook, NY 4/9182
- Shore Rd. Substation - Glenwood Landing, NY 4/9214
New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced on Thursday night, the FAA's plans to grant temporary flight restrictions over some of the state's "critical infrastructure sites."
The governor said the action is "precautionary," and there are no threats to these sites.
"While we have not detected any public safety or national security threats, we will continue aggressively monitoring the situation as we call on Congress to pass legislation to give states and local law enforcement the authority and resources they need to manage this evolving technology," she said in a statement. "Public safety is my top priority and I will stop at nothing to keep my constituents safe."
She says these new measures are in addition to the state-of-the-art drone detection system delivered to the state by the Biden-Harris administration earlier in the week.
Similar action was taken by the FAA in New Jersey as well.
The FAA banned drone operations in several areas of the Garden State until January 17 without special permission from the government due to "special security reasons."
The temporary flight restrictions (TFR) have been implemented in the following locations starting December 18, 2024 until January 17, 2025: Hamilton, Bridgewater, Cedar Grove, North Brunswick, Metuchen, Evesham, Camden, Gloucester City, Westampton, South Brunswick, Edison, Branchburg, Sewaren, Jersey City, Harrison, Elizabeth, Bayonne, Winslow, Burlington, Clifton, Hancocks Bridge, Kearny.
The efforts come as anxiety over the mysterious nightly drone sightings grows among residents and elected officials.
As it stands, legally, only the Secret Service, the Department of Justice or Homeland Security are allowed to intercept drone transmissions and bring it down.
Bill Ritter sat down with Governor Hochul on Up Close, who said that she should have the power to decide where drones cant fly in the state.
"I want the power from Congress, and I'm calling on Congress to allow me, as governor, to identify sensitive sites, military installations, my power facilities, I don't want anything to happen with our power generators," she said. "And places like Times Square, City Hall, the Capitol. Give me the power as governor to say that's restricted airspace."
Asked if drones should be brought down, Hochul said, "They should be brought down if they are a threat, absolutely."
Meanwhile on Friday afternoon, an NYPD counter terrorism officer monitored drone activity in Battery Park.
"Our teams have been going out there. They've been tracking quite closely to see if there's anomalous activity, and that they have not seen," said NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Counterterrorism and Intelligence Rebecca Weiner. "So, nothing out of the ordinary. They're also looking to try to see where they can enforce very high volume, drone dense places where people really shouldn't be flying drones."
White House officials, national security spokesman John Kirby, continue to stress that the federal government has yet to identify any public safety or national security risks from any of the reported drone sightings in the northeast. They say they believe they were lawfully flown drones, planes or even stars.
"There are more than 1 million drones that are lawfully registered with the Federal Aviation Administration here in the United States," Kirby said. "And there are thousands of commercial, hobbyist and law enforcement drones that are lawfully in the sky on any given day. That is the ecosystem that we are dealing with."
The federal government has deployed personnel and advanced technology to investigate the reports in New Jersey and other states, and is evaluating each tip reported by citizens, he said.
About 100 of the more than 5,000 drone sightings reported to the FBI in recent weeks were deemed credible enough to warrant more investigation, according to a joint statement by the Department of Homeland Security, FBI, Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Defense.
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