US spy agency employee admits to operating drone that crashed at the White House
Employee for Defence Department admits tooperating device that landed at White House
PUBLISHED : Wednesday, 28 January, 2015, 10:43pm
UPDATED : Wednesday, 28 January, 2015, 10:43pm
Reuters in Washington
Secret Service officers search the White House grounds after an aerial drone (inset) was found during the middle of the night. Photos: AP
An employee of a US spy agency has confessed to operating the small drone that crashed on the grounds of the White House on Monday, the agency said, the latest in a series of incidents that raised questions about the president's security.
A spokesman for the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency (NGA) said on Tuesday that an off-duty employee had told the US Secret Service, which guards the presidential mansion, that he had been flying the four-propeller drone.
The NGA is a Defence Department agency whose principal job is to analyse photographs taken by spy planes and satellites.
The spokesman said that the Secret Service was investigating and at this point the man was not facing disciplinary action. It did not name the employee or explain why he was operating the device near the White House.
A Secret Service spokesman said the device, which set off an alert and a lockdown at the White House, was used for recreational purposes and did not appear dangerous.
US President Barack Obama, who was travelling abroad, said he understood the drone was of a type available at a high street chain store and the incident illustrated the need for more regulation over such new technologies.
Obama's wife, Michelle, had accompanied the president on the trip.
Their daughters, Sasha and Malia and their grandmother, Michelle Robinson, had stayed behind in Washington.
In an interview with CNN, Obama said he had asked the Federal Aviation Administration to examine how the United States is managing the influx of flying devices "because the drone that landed in the White House you buy in RadioShack".
The device, which is known as a "quad copter" crashed at the White House during the early hours of Monday without endangering anyone.
The pilot's work has nothing to do with drones, the agency NGA in a statement, adding: "Even though the employee was using a personal item while off duty, the agency takes the incident very seriously and remains committed to promoting public trust and transparency."
Asked by CNN if he was confident that another drone that was armed could not land at his residence in the future, Obama demurred. "This is a broader problem," he said.
"I'll leave the Secret Service to talk about this particular event."
The Secret Service has come under scrutiny after several incidents involving flaws in White House security.
Its director resigned in October. An independent review concluded that it needs to build a better fence and hire more officers. The episode unfolded with the Obama administration on the verge of proposing rules for drone operations that would replace an existing ban on most commercial flights.
Hobbyists can fly drones, but must keep them under 120 metres in altitude, 8km from an airport, always within sight and not within a highly populated area.
Only a small number of companies can use them for inspections and aerial photography.
The Federal Aviation Administration had wanted to release proposed rules for drones by the end of last year.
To the dismay of the drone industry, that process is now dragging into this year
Additional reporting by Associated Press
