By Rocco Parascandola
New York Daily News
NEW YORK — The NYPD, for the first time, will have the authority to take out problem drones at the U.S. Open without the feds’ help, Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Friday.
It will be the first time a state or local agency will conduct independent drone mitigation operations at a major public event, officials said.
| WEBINAR: What 24 years of active shooter after-action reports reveal
The passage of the Safer Skies Act late last year granted municipal police agencies the authority to electronically take over drones in restricted airspace and land them safely — something that had traditionally been the sole province of the FBI.
Although NYPD officers have been trained in anti-drone technology, cops have so far always worked alongside the FBI at major events, most notably the recent FIFA World Cup games where Tisch said more than 100 drones were grounded.
But for the upcoming U.S. Open tennis tournament at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens, the nation’s biggest police force is on its own.
“Our counter drone teams worked alongside the federal government and our federal partners, and they held the legal authority to mitigate unauthorized drones,” Tisch said at a press conference at the National Tennis Center in Queens Friday. “Here at the U.S. Open, trained NYPD personnel will be ready to exercise that authority ourselves.”
Deputy Commissioner Rebecca Weiner, who heads the NYPD’s intelligence and counterterrorism bureaus, said the anti-drone technology will be used if anyone violates temporary airspace restrictions put in place by the federal government during the three-week event, which starts on Monday with Fan Week.
Police sources said most of the drones that have been taken over electronically and landed belonged to hobbyists, but authorities have long worried about terrorists using drones to carry out a bombing.
Earlier this month, a drone carrying explosives was found at an airport in Germany, officials said.
Tisch said that while there are no credible threats to the U.S. Open, police will be in place around the clock.
“Concrete barriers will be installed along the site perimeter to prevent any unauthorized vehicles from gaining access,” she said. “More than 100 light towers will be installed at the complex to illuminate streets and sidewalks and walking paths, and all attendees will go through a multi-layered screening process before entering the tournament grounds.”
©2026 New York Daily News. Visit nydailynews.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
