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Hearing Wrap Up: Swift Action Needed to Address Unauthorized Drone Activity
Over U.S. Military Installations
| WASHINGTON—Yesterday, the Subcommittee on Military and Foreign Affairs held a hearing on “Securing the Skies: Addressing Unauthorized Drone Activity Over U.S. Military Installations.” During the hearing, members discussed how drone incursions over military installations have increased in frequency, posing a |
By Congressional Committee on Oversight
4-30-25 |
significant threat to U.S. national security. Members noted that while multiple federal agencies share responsibility for countering drone threats, no single entity has clear authority over deterrence, leaving U.S. military sites exposed to surveillance, espionage, or potential weaponization. Subcommittee Chairman William Timmons (R-S.C.) and Ranking Member Suhas Subramanyam (D-Va.) pledged to work together to find solutions to enhance military security and counter aerial threats.
The unauthorized use of drones threatens our national security. Ineffective policies and difficulties distinguishing threats from recreational usage leave military installations vulnerable to exploitation by hostile nations and entities.
• Subcommittee Chairman Timmons noted in his opening statement, “These incursions are not from hobbyists being blown off course. The multitude of drones reported flying over bases in the past several years to yield a coordinated effort by our adversaries to collect valuable intelligence and surveillance of some of our most sensitive military equipment. These incursions often are designed to disrupt important trainings and create chaos.”
• Rear Admiral Spedero Jr.—Vice Director of Operations, J3, Joint Chiefs of Staff, U.S. Department of Defense—testified “Now, being able to discern hostile intent and hostile act, as referred to in the opening comments may be very challenging, as is negligent activity being conducted by someone just flying a drone irresponsibly, whether that is a recreational enthusiast, or it is someone that’s using a drone for commercial aspects. So, it can be a challenge here in the homeland to determine that.”
Adversaries exploit gaps and shortages in U.S. defense capabilities, using drones for surveillance, intelligence gathering, and potential attacks, even along the southern border.
• Rear Admiral Spedero acknowledged technological disparities in drone detection that create vulnerable gaps, saying, “In general, the technology to field systems has far outpaced the technology to defeat those systems. It’s a much wider, broader, deeper market for drone application, for commercial and recreational purposes, so hence that technology has evolved very quickly from radio control drones to now fully autonomous drones that may or may not even rely on reception of a GPS signal, which would make it very challenging to intercept.”
• Rep. John McGuire (R-Va.) pointed out that adversaries near the southern border are using drones to observe Border Patrol operations, and that implementation of 10 U.S.C. 130i to safely conduct those operations without drone surveillance is absent.
Strong leadership and swift action are necessary to mitigate the threat, strengthen military readiness, reinforce U.S. deterrence against drones, and provide answers to the American people.
• Mark Roosevelt Ditlevson—Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense and Hemispheric Affairs, U.S. Department of Defense—suggested solutions to improve the U.S. response to drones in his opening statement. “You can’t defeat what you can’t see. On the legislative front, we continue to engage with members of Congress to seek modest but important refinements to do these counter UAS authorities under section 130i. Our legislative proposal is intended to allow the department to protect additional locations and missions, add greater stability for long-term planning and resources allocation within the department, and facilitate improved understanding and cooperation among U.S. interagency and local partners.”
• He explained that the Department of Defense is looking to streamline its processes so commanders would know what authority they have to respond to drone threats.
