A JetBlue pilot reported hitting a drone as he approached JFK International Airport to land in New York on Monday morning (local time).
The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the incident that happened as the plane passed through 914m around 7.15am as it was crossing the coastline. The plane landed safely without any additional help, and no damage was found when the plane was inspected afterwards.
“We collided with a drone back there in the turn,” the pilot told an air traffic controller, according to ATC.com. “It hit us right above the cockpit.”
The airline said all the passengers deplaned normally, and then the plane was removed from service so it could be inspected. JetBlue said the airline “found no damage or evidence of a collision”. The Airbus A321 plane was flying overnight into New York from Las Vegas.
“Safety is JetBlue’s first priority, and we will assist with any relevant investigations,” the airline said in a statement.
Drones are generally allowed to fly below 122m in the US, but the FAA does restrict airspace around airports and public events like the World Cup because of safety concerns. Law enforcement officials say that even when a drone pilot is just trying to shoot an overhead video, their presence distracts officers from dealing with other potential threats.
But even though drones are supposed to stay under 122m unless their pilots get approval, many drones are capable of flying more than 914m in the air. Scott Shtofman, who is with the Association for Uncrewed Vehicle Systems International, said even a drone as small as 2kg or so can fly that high.
“Now the rules restrict that, but that doesn’t mean that somebody couldn’t do it,” said Shtofman, who is vice president and counsel for regulatory affairs for the trade group.
By Monday evening, a helicopter pilot flying near the same airport reported a remote-controlled aeroplane near the aircraft, according to the FAA. The agency flagged it to local authorities.
Incident reports collected by the FAA show that drones are a growing threat around airports. The risk of a collision is most acute near airports because that is where the flight paths of drones and aeroplanes most overlap.
More than 100 drone sightings near airports are reported to the FAA every month, and the agency said it works with law enforcement to investigate them. Drone operators who violate restricted airspace can face substantial fines and even lose their license or have their drones confiscated. But Shtofman said collisions between drones and other aircraft have been rare thus far.
Planes are designed to survive a direct hit from a bird strike, but hitting an object in the sky can cause significant damage, particularly if an engine or key control surface is struck. Just last fall, a United Airlines plane had to make an emergency landing after hitting a weather balloon and damaging its windshield. And during the devastating California wildfires in early 2025, an errant drone collided with a firefighting plane and knocked it out of commission for several days while a hole in its left wing was repaired.
The death and destruction drones have caused on the battlefields of the Ukraine and Iran wars has officials increasingly concerned about the threat drones pose.
Sometimes an initial report from an airline pilot about a close encounter with a drone doesn't always turn out to be an actual collision after officials investigate. In April, the FAA was able to determine that a drone passed roughly 305m below a United Airlines plane as it came into San Diego and did not strike the plane.
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