Ahead of July 4th Celebrations, the NYPD seeks to increase its security measures as currently, only the federal government has the authority to down drones deemed threats to public safety. Though there will be increased police presence and the FBI will be working alongside police to monitor intelligence streams for suspicious drones during New York City’s fireworks displays, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch remarked, “things come up all the time in New York City … every day, and so we really need to be able to be nimble and have the authority to do drone mitigation ourselves.”
As the NYPD has its own fleet of drones that are able to detect other remotely piloted aircraft, it has continued to lobby for legislation that gives the agency the authority to electronically jam and disable nefarious drones.
“The city is in talks with Maryland-based American Robotics to buy technology that can detect, track, and intercept hostile drones,” Deputy Mayor of Public Safety Kaz Daughtry told the New York Post. “The drone launchers can be used along parade routes or other large events.”
Though there have been no credible threats made to New York City’s fireworks celebrations, security concerns are still prominent, as Jessica Tisch noted, “As we’ve seen in Ukraine, the Middle East and even along our border, the threats posed by weaponized drones is real and growing.”
The FBI and Department of Homeland Security have issued a warning this week about the possibility of “lone wolf attacks by homegrown extremists.” The warning reads, “We are concerned about the potential threat of copycat attacks inspired by the 2025 New Year’s Day vehicle-ramming attack in New Orleans and continued messaging [from foreign terrorist organizations] calling for attacks against Western targets.”
