NEW YORK (WABC) – New York Governor Kathy Hochul is sounding the alarm about recent drone sightings across New York after suspected drone activity shut down an airport in Orange County.

Officials at Stewart International Airport, located about 60 miles north of New York City, said they closed their runways for an hour after the Federal Aviation Administration alerted them that a drone was flying around 9:30 p.m been spotted in the area

Air traffic control records from the airport during this time include a pilot reporting drone sightings in the area.

The FAA said it had “slowed” traffic at the airport due to reported drone sightings near and over the airport. The agency added that no aircraft were affected. The airport temporarily closed its runways, but flight operations were not affected by the closure.

“This has gone too far,” Hochul said in a statement.

Hochul called on the New York State Intelligence Center to investigate the drone sighting incidents, but also called on the federal government to do more.

Specifically, she called on Congress to pass the Counter-UAS Authority Security, Safety, and Reauthorization Act, which would strengthen the FAA’s oversight of drones and give state and local law enforcement more authority to investigate the activities.

“Until these powers are granted to state and local officials, the Biden administration must intervene by sending additional federal law enforcement to New York and the surrounding region to ensure the safety of our critical infrastructure and our people,” she said.

Officials from a variety of federal agencies spoke to reporters on a call Saturday and emphasized that the federal investigation into drone sightings in New Jersey is ongoing. An FBI official said that of the nearly 5,000 tips he received, fewer than 100 yielded credible leads for further investigation.

A Department of Homeland Security official said they are “confident that many of the reported drone sightings are actually manned aircraft being misidentified as drones.”

The FBI official also spoke about how investigators overlaid the locations of reported drone sightings and found that “the density of reported sightings matches the approach pattern” of busy New York area airports, including Newark, Liberty, JFK and LaGuardia.

However, an FAA official says there is “no doubt” that drones have flown over New Jersey, noting that there are nearly a million drones registered in the United States

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy is also weighing in on the matter, telling Eyewitness News on Saturday he was surprised that the federal government doesn’t seem to know much about what’s flying over his state.

Just the day before, officials said there had been “multiple” instances of drones entering the airspace of a Navy weapons station.

Murphy says he may travel to Washington, D.C. next week to look for answers, including why a law hasn’t been passed giving state and local officials more power to investigate recent drone sightings. Murphy also plans to push for more federal funding to address the ongoing sightings.

The FAA is responsible for regulating the use of drones, and Congress has enshrined some requirements into law.

The FAA official noted in the call Saturday that flying a drone is legal in most locations during the day and night, provided the drone stays below 400 feet, stays within the line of sight of the drone operator and does not pose a safety risk to people and property constitute or violate airspace restrictions.

However, concerns remain over reports of drones flying near sensitive areas, including military bases. The FAA official said the FAA received the first report of drone activity near Morris County, New Jersey, on November 18. In response, the agency issued two temporary flight restrictions (TFRs) banning drone activity over Picatinny Arsenal and the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey. Both TFRs are still valid and can be extended. The FAA is working to implement a permanent flight restriction for Picatinny Arsenal.

A Joint Chiefs of Staff official said there were visual sightings of drones near Picatinny Arsenal and Naval Weapons Station Earle in New Jersey that were reported by “highly trained security personnel.” The official said they do not believe the sightings “were linked to a foreign actor or that they had malicious intent.”

However, the Joint Chiefs of Staff official added that they did not know much about these sightings because they had limited authority to investigate off base.

Some information from ABC News and Associated Press.

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