Chinese national indicted for flying drone over Vandenberg Space Force Base

Photo from Vandenberg Space Force Base/Facebook

LOS ANGELES – A 39-year-old man pleaded guilty Monday in downtown Los Angeles to a federal charge for flying a drone over Vandenberg Space Force Base and photographing the military complex.

Yinpiao Zhou of Contra Costa County entered his plea to one count of violating the national defense airspace, according to the US Attorney’s Office.

Sentencing was set for April 7, at which time Zhou will face a possible sentence of up to one year imprisonment, a yearlong period of supervised release, and a fine of $100,000, court papers show.

Zhou was arrested Dec. 9 at San Francisco International Airport prior to boarding a China-bound flight.

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According to an affidavit, detection systems at Vandenberg in Santa Barbara County discovered a drone on Nov. 30, 2024, flying over the base.

The systems found that the drone flew for nearly an hour, traveled to an altitude of almost one mile above ground level, and originated from Ocean Park, a public area next to the base, the affidavit filed in LA federal court states.

Base security personnel went to the park, spoke to Zhou and another person accompanying him, and learned that Zhou had a drone concealed in his jacket — the same one that flew over the base, officials said.

Federal prosecutors say agents later searched Zhou’s drone pursuant to a warrant and saw several photographs of Vandenberg taken from an aerial viewpoint.

A search of Zhou’s phone showed that Zhou conducted a search for the phrase “Vandenberg Space Force Base Drone Rules” and messaged another person about hacking his drone to allow it to fly higher than it could otherwise, court papers show.

Zhou is a Chinese citizen and lawful permanent resident of the United States, most recently returning to the US from China in February 2024, according to the US Attorney’s Office. (CNS)