More than 20 days after the phenomenon began, the Pentagon still has no answers about the origin of the mysterious drones in New Jersey

More than three weeks after dozens of mysterious drones began appearing in New Jersey’s night skies, the public still hasn’t been given a clear look at the phenomenon.

Rep. Jeff Van Drew, R-N.J., suggested that the swarms of unmanned aerial vehicles could have come from an Iranian “mother ship.”

The Pentagon shot down his idea.

“There is no Iranian ship off the coast of the United States and there is no so-called mother ship launching drones towards the United States,” Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said. She added that there was “no evidence” that the drones were “the work of a foreign adversary.”

“We are not being told the truth,” Van Drew responded on Fox News Thursday. “They treat the American public like we’re stupid.”

While the Pentagon maintains that the drones did not come from abroad, the FBI has admitted that it is “concerned” about how little the agency knows about them.

Asked whether Americans were “at risk,” Robert Wheeler, deputy director of the FBI’s Critical Incident Response Group, told Congress: “There’s nothing known that would cause me to say that, but we just know not. And that’s it.” the part in question.

In recent weeks, the drones have flown near sensitive locations, such as a military research facility.

Photos taken in the Bay Shore section of the Toms River show what appear to be large drones hovering at high altitudes in New Jersey on Sunday, December 8, 2024. The drones appeared to be well above the FAA’s permitted altitude of 400 feet. (Doug Hood/Asbury Park Press)

And if the drones are not of foreign origin, observers wonder why it is taking US authorities so long to find out who is behind them.

“What I can say is that many of our detection systems, means of tracking and understanding, are so grossly underpowered and completely outdated,” Doug Birkey, executive director of the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies, told Fox News Digital.

“So it wouldn’t surprise me that we’re still not up to speed and understanding at the level we should,” he added. “After the Cold War, the idea of ​​air defense really fell into the background.”

And Birkey remains unconvinced that the drones are not of foreign origin.

“I don’t think we can speak declaratively about the source, but obviously they appear to have a certain sophistication, size and behaviors that indicate a high potential to come from an adversarial source,” he said.

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“I think they use them either for information, images, etc., but they can also just test us to see how we respond to then inform their strategies and operating concepts.”

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy has insisted the drones pose no threat to public safety. The FBI is assisting local law enforcement with the investigation and has asked for the public’s assistance through its tip line.

This is far from the first time that unknown drones have flown near US military installations. Last year, drones hovered near Langley Air Force Base for over two weeks, and their origin is still unclear. Previously, a Chinese spy balloon crossed the United States for a week, passing near military installations, before being shot down off the East Coast.

“There appear to be few serious consequences (for the drones), and that poses a very dangerous risk of escalation.”

None of the New Jersey drones were shot down or their systems were jammed by U.S. officials. The drones hovering near Langley were also not intercepted.

“Whoever is flying these drones doesn’t necessarily care about their relationship with the Federal Aviation Administration, the FAA, because they clearly violate almost all of the FAA’s rules for safe drone flying,” said Pramod Abichandani, an associate professor at NJIT’s School of Medicine Applied engineering and drone expert.

“These drones fly at night, over populated areas, flying around in a group, whether they are programmed as a drone swarm or not,” he said. “All of these things are not freely permitted by the FAA.”

Photos taken in the Bay Shore section of the Toms River show what appear to be large drones hovering at high altitudes in New Jersey on Sunday, December 8, 2024. The drones appeared to be well above the FAA’s permitted altitude of 400 feet. (Doug Hood/Asbury Park Press)

On December 5, 2024, several drones are spotted over Bernardsville, New Jersey. (Brian Glenn/TMX/AP)

In military environments, officers attack their enemies with “swarms” of drones to make it difficult for them to shoot down the drones.

The drones are “six feet in diameter,” fly in a coordinated manner and without lights, and “appear to evade detection by traditional methods,” according to New Jersey state Rep. Dawn Fantasia, who provided a law enforcement briefing.

Mysterious drone sightings continue to be reported in New Jersey with no response

The drones were first spotted on November 18 and have been spotted every night since. They flew from dusk until about 11 p.m. Four to 180 sightings were reportedly reported each night.

“We don’t know anything. Point. To suggest that there is no known or credible threat is incredibly misleading, and I have informed all officials of this sentiment,” she said.

“At this point I believe military intervention is the only way forward. Without proactivity there will be no answers.”

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U.S. Northern Command, the military command center responsible for defending the U.S. homeland, said it had not yet been asked to intervene and help.

“We are aware of and are following reports of unauthorized drone flights near military installations in New Jersey, including Picatinny Arsenal and Naval Weapons Station Earle. “We refer you to these facilities for information about any actions they are taking to ensure the security of their personnel and operations,” a U.S. Northern Command spokesperson told Fox News Digital.