US Homeland Security drones resume flying

The US government says drones patrolling the country's borders will resume operations, a week after one crashed in the Pacific Ocean.

The US government will resume drones patrolling their borders after one crashed in the ocean. (AAP)

The Homeland Security Department is back to flying drones along the US borders more than a week after one crashed into the Pacific Ocean.

Customs and Border Protection spokesman Michael Friel said an initial investigation concluded that the drone crashed due to a generator failure.

The department is making mechanical upgrades to the remaining drones in the fleet to safeguard against future malfunctions.

The $US12 million ($A13.43 million) surveillance drone was flying a security mission along the Mexican border when the generator failed and the Texas-based crew decided to down it in the ocean about 32 kilometres southwest of San Diego.

The crashed aircraft was one of 10 drones used by the US government to patrol the borders from the air.