Mamdani Evicts IDF-Linked Drone Maker from Brooklyn Navy Yard Just Weeks After Inauguration
Easy Aerial Inc., a drone manufacturer supplying the IDF, has been evicted from the Brooklyn Navy Yard following the inauguration of Mayor Zohran Mamdani. While officials cite "business policies," critics label the move as political retaliation.
A U.S. drone manufacturer that supplies surveillance tech to the Israeli Defense Forces was evicted from the city-owned Brooklyn Navy Yard industrial complex today, just six weeks after Zohran Mamdani, a vocal critic of Israel, was sworn in as New York City mayor.
The Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation (BNYDC), whose board is appointed by the mayor, notified Easy Aerial Inc. that it would not renew the company's lease for its 10,000-square-foot R&D space in the Fort Greene section of the 300-acre waterfront site. Easy Aerial, founded in 2014, develops autonomous drones used for border security, event protection (including the Super Bowl), and U.S.-Mexico border monitoring.
It has also sold systems to the IDF for similar purposes, per company filings and defense reports.The decision followed a months-long campaign by the activist group Demilitarize Brooklyn Navy Yard (DBNY), which protested outside the facility starting in September 2025, demanding the eviction of Easy Aerial and another tenant, Crye Precision (a tactical gear maker with IDF contracts). DBNY accused the companies of aiding "genocide" in Gaza and argued public property shouldn't host weapons manufacturers.
Brooklyn City Councilman Lincoln Restler welcomed the move, posting on X: "Public property should not serve as a base for companies that manufacture drones that are used as weapons."
State Assemblyman Kalman Yeger (D-Brooklyn) slammed it as antisemitic political payback: "Going after good jobs in New York because Mr. Mamdani and his friends hate Jews is not a particularly successful economic development plan."
The eviction impacts about 20 Easy Aerial employees, many ex-U.S. military.BNYDC spokeswoman Claire Holmes insisted the non-renewal was purely business-based: "Like any property owner, we review lease renewals based on compliance with terms and policies."
Mamdani's office declined comment.Easy Aerial plans to relocate to New Jersey, retaining its jobs.