Article By Frank Bergman
FBI Deputy Director Chris Raia is sounding the alarm over a looming threat against the American people, warning that terrorists launching attacks using drones armed with explosives inside the United States is now “only a matter of time.”
Raia issued the chilling warning during an interview with Fox News, where he said the threat is no longer theoretical after years of explosive drone attacks overseas.
The FBI official warned that modern technology now allows someone thousands of miles away to control a drone inside an American city.
A person “in China can control a drone over New Orleans,” Raia said.
“We have seen that overseas, and it’s only a matter of time before somebody brings that type of attack, that threat vector here to the United States,” Raia warned.
FBI Eyes Lone-Wolf Drone Threat
Raia said the most immediate concern is not necessarily a large-scale terrorist operation like the September 11 attacks.
Instead, he warned that a single attacker using a drone with an explosive payload may pose the greater near-term danger.
“I’m less concerned about a mass 9/11-style attack than a lone single person, a single attacker,” Raia said.
He said drones with what he described as “kind of the five-yard target” are currently “the biggest threat.”
“We have seen what drones can do overseas with an explosive payload on it,” Raia said.
He noted that such attacks have “not come to the United States yet,” but said the FBI must prepare for that possibility before it happens.
Raia pointed to 5G and LTE networks as part of the danger, explaining that drones can be controlled remotely from vast distances.
The warning comes after drone warfare has transformed battlefields overseas.
Both Russia and Ukraine have used explosive drones extensively during the war, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Thursday that Russia had moved air defenses around Moscow in response to Kyiv’s recent drone strikes.
Iran’s military has also used explosive missile-like drones to target U.S. military bases and other facilities in the Middle East after U.S. strikes.
The United States has long used armed drones, including MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper models, to carry out military strikes.
FBI Seizes Hundreds of Drones During World Cup Events
Raia said most drone activity the FBI has seen inside the United States has involved hobbyists rather than terrorists.
However, he urged the public, especially responsible drone users, to report suspicious activity.
“Especially all these drone hobbyists out there that are flying drones for non-nefarious purposes,” Raia said.
“They know better what somebody out of the ordinary looks like than we do.”
The warning comes as federal authorities monitor drone activity around FIFA World Cup games and related events in the United States.
Raia said the FBI has seized about 300 drones in roughly two weeks.
Eight arrests have also been made in connection with those seizures, he said.
The Federal Aviation Administration has established “no drone zones” around stadiums hosting World Cup games and surrounding events.
The agency said it is working with the FBI and other law enforcement agencies to monitor U.S. airspace.
Last week, the FBI said it arrested an illegal immigrant from Mexico who was allegedly flying a drone in restricted airspace near an Atlanta World Cup event.
Explosive Drone Plot Targeted White House Event
The drone warning also follows arrests tied to an alleged terrorist plot targeting the UFC Freedom 250 event on the South Lawn of the White House earlier this month.
The event was attended by President Donald Trump and other senior White House officials.
According to court documents, suspects in the case allegedly planned to use explosive drones and snipers to spark mass panic and kill government officials.
The Department of Justice and the FBI said arrests were made in connection with the alleged plot.
The case underscores why federal officials are increasingly focused on drones as a domestic terror threat.
For years, Americans watched explosive drones reshape foreign battlefields.
Now, the FBI is warning that the same threat could be brought to U.S. soil by a lone attacker, a foreign-linked operative, or a terrorist cell willing to exploit technology that is becoming cheaper, easier to obtain, and harder to police.
Raia’s warning makes clear that federal authorities are no longer treating the threat as remote.
They are preparing for the day an explosive drone is used against Americans at home.
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