Here is a closer look at the 1,348 reports of drone sightings near aircraft or airports as documented by the Federal Aviation Administration from November 2014 through the end of January 2016, which is the latest month that data is publicly available.
1. Reports, which are made by pilots, air traffic controllers or nearby members of the public, increased more than 320% from mid-November 2014 to January 2016. The increase was steady through the first eight months of 2015, peaking at 185 in August. Totals dropped by the end of last year as the FAA began implementing new regulations and registering drone owners.
2. The largest portion of sightings in North America occurred during weekend afternoons, similar to the timeframe as the incident in London. About 9.5% of sightings (128) were reported between noon and 6 p.m. on a Sunday afternoon, while another 7.6% (102) were reported during the same time on a Saturday. The noon to 6 p.m. period had the most reports (about 40%) across all days of the week.
3. The largest portion of sightings, 104 (about 7.7%), were reported in New York City. The top 10 locations all were major cities.
4. Most reports involved general-aviation aircraft rather than large passenger planes, but at least 153 of the drone-related sightings and incidents (about 11%) involved commercial airliners or large cargo planes.
5. Fridays (209), Saturdays (241) and Sundays (284) were the only days of the week to have more than sightings.
