Sponsored message
Logged in as
Audience-funded nonprofit news
radio tower icon laist logo
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
Subscribe
  • Listen Now Playing Listen
  • Listen Now Playing Listen

This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.

This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.

News

Drone Reported Above Disney's California Adventure Park

drone.jpg
Drone illustration (Photo by L Barnwell via Shutterstock)

This story is free to read because readers choose to support LAist. If you find value in independent local reporting, make a donation to power our newsroom today.

An employee of the Disney Resort said that a group of employees spotted a small drone hovering above Disney's California Adventure Park last week.The anonymous employee told Lake Forest Patch that a group of employees saw the 3-foot-long craft with propellers floating about 40 feet overhead. Some employees waved at it, because they assumed there was a camera on board. It had a flashing blue light, and the employee said, "It looked like a flying spider."

It reportedly happened around 7:30 a.m. last Friday, just a half-hour before the park opens to the public.

There isn't any official record of the drone sighting. An Anaheim police spokesman said he hadn't heard about any sightings. Disney disputes the claim that there was a drone. Disney spokeswoman Suzi Brown told Patch, "I was at work Friday ... [so] I would have known about it." She said Disney's security chief hadn't heard anything about it. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies declined to comment. The FAA wouldn't comment about whether it gave clearance to any craft to fly through the no-fly zone above Disneyland.

It's not clear what happened exactly, but there might not even be an official explanation. Plenty of amateurs have been getting into the business of spying using quadcopters to take videos from above. We'll be keeping our eye on YouTube and bestquadcopter.com for Disney footage.

You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our connected community. We are free to tell the full truth, to hold power to account without fear or favor, and to follow facts wherever they lead. Our only loyalty is to our audiences and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen our community.

Right now, LAist has lost $1.7M in annual funding due to Congress clawing back money already approved. The support we receive from readers like you will determine how fully our newsroom can continue informing, serving, and strengthening Southern California.

If this story helped you today, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.

Your tax-deductible donation keeps LAist independent and accessible to everyone.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief

Make your tax-deductible donation today