JASON CHAFFETZ: America needs a drone defense plan before disaster strikes

In the USA there are roughly 220,000 commercial aircraft.  By 2027, the FAA estimates there will be more than 2.7 million drones.

As firefighting aircraft raced to drop retardant on a raging wildfire in Utah’s Provo Canyon last summer, some flights were grounded by a new threat. Private drones, presumably trying to capture dramatic footage of the fire, forced critical support to stand down while flames advanced. This incident was no anomaly. There were hundreds of drone sightings over wildfires in 2025.