A fleet of unidentified drones breached the airspace over a U.S. military base for 17 days in a row.
The base houses the F-22 Raptor fighter jets.
About 45 minutes to an hour after sunset, the drones flew over Langley Air Force Base, The Wall Street Journal reported. The first drone was an estimated 20 feet long and flew at more than 100 miles an hour at an altitude of about 3,000 to 4,000 feet.
Former US Air Force Gen. Mark Kelly was the first to notice the December 2023 sightings. According to the WSJ, the drones flew near the Navy’s SEAL Team Six home base and Naval Station Norfolk.
Although the White House was briefed on the matter, no action was taken. The WSJ explained that “[f]ederal law prohibits the military from shooting down drones near military bases in the U.S. unless they pose an imminent threat,” noting that “[a]erial snooping doesn’t qualify, though some lawmakers hope to give the military greater leeway.”
For two nights, local police officers attempted to track the drones both by foot and by car. Several of the drones appeared to land but returned to the air before officers could reach them, WSJ explained.
In January 2024, authorities obtained one of the drones allegedly involved in the Langley base incident.
Fengyun Shi, a student at the University of Minnesota, attempted to free a drone from a tree. When authorities later obtained the drone, they found photographs of Navy vessels.
Shi pleaded guilty to taking unlawful photos of classified navy installations and was sentenced to six months in prison.
