The mystery that once gripped New Jersey as a “drone panic” has now re-emerged with new, disturbing allegations. A full year after 11 unauthorized, bus-sized aircraft repeatedly breached the airspace of a U.S. Army weapons research base — and appeared over communities statewide — officials still cannot explain who launched them, what technology they carried, or why they were here.

And now, one local official says the massive craft may not have just been flying over homes and reservoirs — they may have been hijacking smaller drones mid-air.

The saga began on Nov. 13, 2024, when the first unauthorized drone was spotted above Picatinny Arsenal, a heavily restricted weapons and research site in Morris County. Ten more sightings followed over the next three weeks.

The sightings triggered statewide hysteria. Thousands of New Jersey residents flooded authorities with reports, many later dismissed as mistaken aircraft or hobby drones.

Yet behind the frenzy, one fact remained: the military confirmed the intrusion — and could not explain it.

For the first time, Montvale Mayor Mike Ghassali is speaking about a credible witness who claims one of the mysterious drones seized control of his personal aircraft.

“His drone was up while the drones were up also, and they took control of his drone and they landed his drone,” Ghassali told The New York Post.

The hobbyist — described as “trusted” and “professional” — refuses to come forward publicly out of fear for his career, the mayor said.

According to Ghassali, the massive drones were 15 to 20 feet long, the size of a small school bus, and flew in tandem formations, repeatedly sweeping over Montvale’s reservoir, commercial areas, and downtown.

“It became so normal after a while,” the mayor said. “People would just say, ‘Oh look, there’s more drones.’”

New Jersey wasn’t the only target. Just days after the Picatinny sightings ended, a U.S. Coast Guard vessel encountered a swarm of 12 to 30 drones off the Atlantic coast.

“They appeared out of nowhere,” a sailor who witnessed the swarming told The Post.

The drones, described as seven feet wide with four propellers and blinking red, white, and green lights, tracked the boat for 15 minutes. When the vessel altered course, the drones followed.

“We were sent out to look for drones — and they found us,” the sailor said.

Other seemingly credible sightings — including reports near Salem Nuclear Power Plant, a medevac helicopter diversion, and a National Guard facility — were later dismissed by federal authorities as misidentified aircraft.

But inside government briefings, there was no confidence behind the curtain, according to Ghassali.

“When the state police and the FBI brought all the mayors in to talk about what these are, they said, ‘We don’t know. We don’t know anything,’” the mayor recalled. “To this day.”

No federal agency has offered an explanation. No data has been released. No entity — foreign, domestic, criminal, or corporate — has claimed responsibility.

A year after drones the size of vehicles flew repeated missions over a U.S. Army base and coastal military patrol — allegedly with the capability to seize control of civilian aircraft — the mystery remains.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)