AURORA, Colo. — The Aurora Police Department (APD) entered into an agreement with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and U.S. military this week to “assist, respond, detect, detain and investigate” anyone who illegally operates a drone over Buckley Space Force Base.
The agreement allows Aurora police to find where a drone operator launched from, detain the operator, and turn that information over to the FBI.
"This is new in terms of the kind of cooperation they are asking for," said Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman.
According to the agreement, "military law enforcement has limited or no jurisdiction to detain operators located off the installation."
- Read the entire agreement below, beginning on page 51:
Securing the skies has become a top priority for military bases across the country as more personal drones take flight.
"The challenge is, the military bases aren't meant for the general public, and there's a reason for that. They have a lot of classified information," said Jeff Price, a professor of aviation at Metropolitan State University Denver.
Last week, federal lawmakers came together for a hearing of the U.S. House Subcommittee on Military and Foreign Affairs, where they said more than 350 drones were detected above 100 military installations in 2024.
"Who is piloting these drones? Are they criminal actors? Are they foreign adversaries? Are they hobbyists with advanced capabilities?" said Congressman Suhas Subramanyam, a Democrat from Virginia.
According to Price, the law limits what the military can do to stop drones in restricted airspace.
"They are limited to a certain extent," said Price. "If you're in a war zone, you can shoot one of these things down."
An Aurora PD spokesperson told Denver7 on Wednesday the department has not made any drone-specific arrests, to the best of their knowledge. However, the department sees the agreement as a proactive measure.
In a statement, Aurora Police Chief Todd Chamberlain said, "This partnership allows us to respond quickly when drones enter restricted airspace, helping protect Buckley Space Force Base and supporting our federal partners in their investigations."
As Aurora enters this agreement, Price said technology is improving to catch these drone pilots.
"We're going to see airports, both civilian and military, start to deploy more drone-detecting technologies," he said.
Price expects technology, along with better drone education for the public, will cut down on these illegal operations.
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