NBC 4 in New York has reported that three pilots of passenger jets have reported unmanned drones flying too close to their planes on approach to Kennedy Airport this week. Yesterday the pilot of JetBlue flight 842 reported a drone flying at about 400 feet as the plane was on approach crossing from Nassau County into New York City. Last Sunday, a pilot of Virgin Atlantic flight 9 from London reported a drone sighting near the 747, at about 8:12 p.m. The pilot said the drone was flying high, at about 3,000 feet. The Virgin Atlantic flight was flying over Nassau County on approach to runway 22L at the time. About a minute later, at 8:13 p.m., a pilot of Delta flight 838 arriving from San Diego reported a drone was flying too close to its left wing. Officials said the drone did not come into contact with the Boeing 737. The plane was also over Nassau County at the time, about 10 miles out on approach to Kennedy Airport.
Both the FAA and the FBI are investigation the incidents. If the operator of the drone is found, he could face criminal charges, including reckless endangerment. The pair of drone sightings come after an NYPD helicopter pilot reported a separate near-miss with a drone over New York City on Sept. 18. Earlier this week, the National Transportation Safety Board ruled that drones are aircraft.
