Is this strange aircraft responsible for the drone and ‘UFO’ scare in New Jersey?

A private company at a high-powered Army conference demonstrated a unique aircraft at the event — and allegedly took responsibility for setting off last year’s drone and “UFO” pandemonium in New Jersey, a source told The Post.

At the Army’s UAS and Launched Effects Summit at Fort Rucker in August, a private contractor conducted a live demonstration of a manned aerial craft that wowed the crowd with its unconventional appearance and unorthodox flight-movements, an attendee told The Post.

“You remember that big UFO scare in New Jersey last year? Well, that was us,” an employee of the unnamed contractor claimed to a small group after the demonstration, according to the source who was invited to the summit.

The company was in the air over the Garden State in November 2024 to “test out their capabilities,” the contractor’s employee claimed to the source — adding they were not required to disclose their activity to the public because of a private government contract.

In video provided to The Post, the roughly 20-foot across four-winged flier zooms through the skies just above the tree-line, drawing the attention of dozens of soldiers on the ground.

“I thought it was the military testing something out on the other side of the base,” the source, a military veteran and drone expert, said of their first impression of the flying object on Aug. 12 at Fort Rucker.

“It feels like it’s a UFO because it defies what you’re expecting to see,” they said, adding there was an “uncanny valley feeling” when watching it quietly motor through the sky.

“When it turned you almost completely lose sight of it,” the source said, of the roughly 30-minute demonstration in the controlled airspace of Fort Rucker.

“Which is why I think people were seeing this up in the sky and why there were reports of people seeing it and saying it disappeared.”

All conference attendees were approved by brass at Fort Rucker, which enacted strict rules for participation, including the exclusion of any drone or craft containing any Chinese-made parts, the source revealed.

“It would definitely have to be cleared,” they said, adding, “Somebody was 100% in charge of coordinating that.”

Fort Rucker, which is the headquarters for the Army’s Aviation Branch, could not be reached for comment.

The rash of supposed drone sightings in New Jersey began on Nov. 13, 2024 over Army base Picatinny Arsenal in Morris County and continued across the state through early December.

President Trump’s Federal Aviation Administration announced in January that many of the reports of mystery drones were hobbyists, recreational pilots, and private individuals.