If you hear a drone flying overhead after midnight tonight (Monday), it’s most likely part of a planned public safety exercise.
Local, state and federal agencies will be testing drone detection technology between midnight and 4 a.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, according to the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments.
Friday is a backup day in case weather or something else grounds the drones earlier in the week.
The exercise is “not a response to any specific threat,” COG said in a press release. An AlertDC message sent today said the same: “There is no cause for alarm.”
The exercise, planned for several months by COG and D.C.’s Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency, will test how well an expanded network of sensors detects and tracks unauthorized drones under realistic flight conditions, according to COG.
Officials also plan to check whether data from individual sensors feeds into shared command and mapping systems, giving agencies in different jurisdictions the same real-time view of the airspace.
The effort is funded by about $28.5 million that FEMA awarded to the region in 2025 to expand its counter-drone capabilities. HSEMA administers the money, while COG coordinates the work with federal, state and local agencies.
The announcement did not say which agencies are taking part or where the flights will take place.
All of Arlington sits within the restricted airspace around Reagan National Airport, where drones need federal approval to fly. Overnight drone sightings have drawn attention here before. In 2022, a drone spotted hovering near the Pentagon in the early morning hours turned out to be part of a security exercise.
In September, pilots reported a drone over the airport’s runway and taxiway, delaying flights at DCA. The Secret Service and Navy also tested counter-drone systems near the airport weeks after the January 2025 midair collision, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said during congressional hearings, according to WJLA.
