The swarm of drones that hovered around U.S. destroyers off the California coast remain unidentified, but there are "no indications at all" they are "extraterrestrial," according to a top Navy official.
"No, we have not" made any conclusions on the identity of the drones, Adm. Michael Gilday told a Defense Writers Group event Monday in Washington, NBC News reported.
"I am aware of those sightings, and as it's been reported, there have been other sightings by aviators in the air and by other ships not only of the United States, but other nations — and of course other elements within the U.S. joint force.
"Those findings have been collected and they still are being analyzed."
The Navy is expected to deliver a report on "Unidentified Aerial Phenomena" to Congress later this year, according to the report.
The drones hovered for hours in July 2019 and the investigation remains inconclusive, according to Adm. Gilday, who referenced "a well-established process in place across the joint force to collect that data and to get it to a separate repository for analysis."
The report was requested by the Senate Intelligence Committee, which asked the director of national intelligence and the Defense Department to deliver a report by June 25.
There are "no indications at all" the unidentified flying objects (UFOs) are "extraterrestrial," Gilday told reporters.
The drones were a potential security breach, as 6 were flying around the warships over a number of days, staying aloft for 90 minutes or more, according to reports.
The sightings came near San Clemente Island, which is home to a Navy SEAL training site, a ship-to-shore firing range, and an airfield.
The sightings are generating high-level interest throughout intelligence, the Navy, and even the FBI. The Naval Criminal Investigative Service at the Los Angeles FBI field office and the Maritime Intelligence Operations Center of the Navy's 3rd Fleet are seeking information in their investigations, NBC News reported from emails it obtained.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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