The pilot of a JetBlue Airways Airbus A321 reported striking a drone on approach to John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) Monday morning, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said, opening an investigation into what may be one of the first known mid-air collisions between a drone and a U.S. commercial passenger aircraft.

Flight 948, arriving from Las Vegas, was at approximately 3,000 feet and roughly 10 to 12 miles from JFK when the strike was reported at 7:15 a.m. local time on June 29, according to FAA data and Flightradar24 tracking.

“We collided with a drone back there in the turn,” the pilot radioed air traffic control. “Yep, it hit us right, right above the cockpit,” the pilot confirmed when asked. The aircraft landed safely at Terminal 5 at 7:21 a.m. A post-flight inspection found no damage or evidence of a collision, the FAA and JetBlue both confirmed.

“Safety is JetBlue’s first priority, and we will assist with any relevant investigations,” the airline stated.

The strike came two days after a United Airlines Boeing 737 pilot reported nearly striking a drone approximately 100 feet below the aircraft on approach to Newark Liberty International Airport. A second crew from a United Express flight operated by GoJet Airlines also reported a separate drone sighting near Newark at roughly 2,000 feet the same evening.

The cluster follows the FAA’s April 2026 launch of the Drone Expedited and Targeted Enforcement Response (DETER) program, an initiative under President Trump’s airspace sovereignty order designed to accelerate drone enforcement, including near FIFA World Cup 2026 venues.

Drones are restricted to altitudes below 400 feet and prohibited near airports. Monday’s reported encounter at 3,000 feet occurred more than seven times above that ceiling. “People are still not following the rules and all it takes is one to end up wrecking an engine or impacting a cockpit,” aviation analyst John Nance said.