Drones are used by spies, which is why it does not come as a surprise that the White House is taking the accidental drone crash incident seriously.
What raised a lot of questions is the fact that the drone was flown around the White House at 3 a.m. EST on Monday. According to reports, a government employee was the one flying the drone.
The drone operator voluntarily called Secret Service on Monday to report about the drone crash within the White House perimeter.
"An individual called the Secret Service this morning at approximately 9:30 a.m. to self-report that they had been in control of the quad copter device that crashed on the White House grounds early this morning. The individual has been interviewed by Secret Service agents and been fully cooperative. Initial indications are that this incident occurred as a result of recreational use of the device," the Secret Service said in an earlier statement.
The operator was not named by the government, but according to the Secret Service, the operator lost control of it while it was flying over the White House.
The drone, which was about two pounds and two feet in diameter, was too small to get detected by radar. Investigations show that it does not have a camera attached to it. The quad copter crash triggered a lock down at the White House, as a security response measure.
President Barack Obama and wife Michelle Obama were currently in India at the time of the crash, but their daughters were in the White House during the incident.
The accidental drone crash within White House grounds caused authorities to enhance security in the area. While Security Service investigations show that the drone crash was indeed an accident, it showed that presidential security is not yet at its best.
At the moment, only a number of commercial drones can be flown by companies. Private companies will have to seek for an approval from the Federal Aviation Association (FAA) before they can operate drones commercially. Hobbyists can fly them at a given perimeter and must abide by the rules.
