ALEXANDRIA, Va. — With the threat of small unmanned aircraft systems growing, nearly 50 federal agencies convened for a summit recently to help keep the skies over America safe from dangerous drones.
Representatives from the Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security, FBI, Transportation Department, Federal Aviation Administration and other agencies — about 50 total — met for the first time at the Mark Center in Alexandria, Va., as part of the introductory summit for Joint Interagency Task Force 401 partners.
“This was an opportunity to bring together all of the services, all of our interagency partners that have shared interests and equities with countering small UAS threats, because no one agency can solve this on their own,” said Army Brig. Gen. Matt Ross, task force commander. “What we’re really trying to do is expand the community of interest into a community of action and make sure we’re taking tangible steps to defeat the UAS threat we face on a daily basis.”…