Flying drones in the UK and the generally positive attitude from authorities and policy makers might have just been set back a few years...
Gatwick Airport: Drone sightings cause delays




It’s such a shame the few can ruin it for the many of us that resp3ct the rules and fly with consideration to get the most from this hobby.

True. It begs the question if we fly on borrowed time and how long before compulsory licensing akin to the current CAA PFCO will be introduced for anyone wanting to own a drone regardless whether it is for commercisl or pleasure use.

Perhaps not such a bad idea ... .

I think its too late for that, like many weapons licencing does not remove them from circulation, this is a result of technology being used to cause terror, now it exists they need to find a way to disable it when it happens, clearly in this case it has shown they can not.

I totally agree that genuine pilots like us will pay the price. However I do blame the media for not being clear, this is a result of someone using drones to cause upset rather than the drone being to blame as people now believe.

Sky news are reporting that this ongoing disruption is a deliberate act, ie being actioned to specifically shut down the runways repeatedly throughout the night and morning....  Untold damage being done to the reputation of drones and drone users.

This will only increase the efforts to force registration and gain flight data from DJI (which they can already do under the terms of the DJI go 4 app) to try and trace which account was registered against the drones in question.  At the moment, all that will give them is some random email address, but in the future I'm guessing registration requirements will be massively increased....  And today's rubbish will just help reinforce that approach...

Ian

Wellsi Posted at 12-20 00:46
Sky news are reporting that this ongoing disruption is a deliberate act, ie being actioned to specifically shut down the runways repeatedly throughout the night and morning....  Untold damage being done to the reputation of drones and drone users.

This will only increase the efforts to force registration and gain flight data from DJI (which they can already do under the terms of the DJI go 4 app) to try and trace which account was registered against the drones in question.  At the moment, all that will give them is some random email address, but in the future I'm guessing registration requirements will be massively increased....  And today's rubbish will just help reinforce that approach...

Scary moment mate - I can see massive restrictions being imposed after this - even a possible ban!

It is a shame that yet again the idiots spoil it for the majority who behave responsibly. I hope those that were doing this are traced and dealt with appropriately.

A CW Posted at 12-20 00:47
Scary moment mate - I can see massive restrictions being imposed after this - even a possible ban!

Yep... this will be the wake up call that makes them realise how powerless the security services are against drones.....  Watch out for massive geo-fencing, registration and restrictions coming soon.... and endless arguments with members of the public challenging legitimate drone users when flying....

I suggest to send your thoughts to the relevant Sky/BBC News live Twitter feeds in the hope they will pick up on our views.

They do not read this forum.

I can't see the problem with compulsory registration for aircraft. A drone is an aircraft.
You are also going to need compulsory insurance I expect.  Just like any other aircraft (or car)
You can see that NFL's and Geo fencing will become a requirement for all drone systems

At the moment car drivers drink and drive,   drive without insurance etc and the law only punished the specific individual driver not all car owners. Hopefully it will be the same with drone law and that there will be no knee-jerk draconian reaction .

On the good side Batteries have a finite life. So over the years the current drones will find their batteries need replacing. This means that in time 90% of the non serious users are likely to find their drones won't fly as the batteries start to have very short fly times.  Then the only drones they can get will be registered and any drone miss uses will be trackable one way or another. This will probably take a 5 years to have an effect but this is a new industry .  

It won't stop serious (terrorist/criminal) miss use but then it is the same with cars and firearms now and they have bee heavily controlled for years,

Wellsi Posted at 12-20 01:16
Yep... this will be the wake up call that makes them realise how powerless the security services are against drones.....  Watch out for massive geo-fencing, registration and restrictions coming soon.... and endless arguments with members of the public challenging legitimate drone users when flying....

Incidents like this will obviously place the hobby in disrepute. It’s a shame as I watched the David Attenborough documentary ‘dynasties’ last night and at the end they showed how the crew used the Inspire 1 Pro to capture the breathtaking aerial footage in Africa then this happens. Very sad to see!

Wellsi Posted at 12-20 01:16
Yep... this will be the wake up call that makes them realise how powerless the security services are against drones.....  Watch out for massive geo-fencing, registration and restrictions coming soon.... and endless arguments with members of the public challenging legitimate drone users when flying....

Incidents like this will obviously place the hobby in disrepute. It’s a shame as I watched the David Attenborough documentary ‘dynasties’ last night and at the end they showed how the crew used the Inspire 1 Pro to capture the breathtaking aerial footage in Africa then this happens. Very sad to see!

JAgraphics Posted at 12-20 01:36
I can't see the problem with compulsory registration for aircraft. A drone is an aircraft.
You are also going to need compulsory insurance I expect.  Just like any other aircraft (or car)
You can see that NFL's and Geo fencing will become a requirement for all drone systems

only part i agree with is last 2 paragraphs.. thrill seekers..they going to get bored very quickly i'd offer that it would last even 6 months for them before they are mostly done..  however high turn over rate means ya know seems like mroe than there are..

and ya, wont stop criminals, terrorist, and people willing to mod and hack and reverse engineer or make their own racer quads on their own terms and fly them wherever they want..  any law gets passed is only going to be a law for those who follow the laws..


i personally believe needs to be a 50/50 split between regulation and common sense..  pushing people into requiring so much to fly, only negatively impacts the hobby and is in fact draconian because as stated, people already causing this mess are already doing it illegally, so putting more regulations and sh*t in the way really isnt going to change or curb that behavior..

I dont think either Gouvernment or Aviation bodies are very fond of our hobby.

The results will probably be very obvious soon.

I personally have no problem with compulsory registration and PFCO tests/licensing.

i think overall this is an inside job.     probably being done by the commercial drone alliance to ruin the hobby and force it into their own hands..... prove me wrong

Far fetched probably but I have to admit that it crossed my mind too.

djiuser_jBXOnzT6p8Z1 Posted at 12-20 02:35
Far fetched probably but I have to admit that it crossed my mind too.

always possible... and this incident is almost as ridiculous as the idea it maybe an inside job.. so ya know...crazier sh*t has happened

What I find even more odd is that Sussex Police, in response to questions on why they can't 'shoot' the drone down, stated that it 'would not be save'.

It almost seems they want the bad publicity.

Surely it would be possible to take the thing down with another drone.

djiuser_jBXOnzT6p8Z1 Posted at 12-20 02:40
What I find even more odd is that Sussex Police, in response to questions on why they can't 'shoot' the drone down, stated that it 'would not be save'.

It almost seems they want the bad publicity.

i dont know much about the weapons UK police have access to, but some bird or buckshot would be relatively safe and make it easier to hit and at least damage the aircraft enough to force it to crash down or limp home and they can follow it...    if they miss because not going to go very far beyond the target and when it lands not going to have lethal force like a bullet..

but like i said i dont know what all UK police weapon capacity is for doing such things, kinda an oddball thing, dont imagine they have many if an bird or buckshot laying around in their cars or offices...

HereForTheBeer Posted at 12-20 02:47
i dont know much about the weapons UK police have access to, but some bird or buckshot would be relatively safe and make it easier to hit and at least damage the aircraft enough to force it to crash down or limp home and they can follow it...    if they miss because not going to go very far beyond the target and when it lands not going to have lethal force like a bullet..

but like i said i dont know what all UK police weapon capacity is for doing such things, kinda an oddball thing, dont imagine they have many if an bird or buckshot laying around in their cars or offices...

I hope to find the perpetrator and impose the full force of the law which, I believe, is up to five years inprisonment. He/She would loose tbeir job, home etc.

A statement case needs to be made

djiuser_jBXOnzT6p8Z1 Posted at 12-20 03:07
I hope to find the perpetrator and impose the full force of the law which, I believe, is up to five years. He/She would loose tbeir job, home etc.

A statement case needs to be made

ya i much rather they hunt down people like this.. instead of pushing everyone's face into the dirt that flies drones..

as for ruining their lives to make an example...meh... not how criminals work though, their is a reason they are on that side of the law vs like us on this side of it..  they work and operate mentally ...differently..  similar reason why death penalty doesn't change murder rates..

Latest Update;

Sky News live

House of Lords are right now discussing more stringent control. Heated discussion. Some Lords are calling for more than just registration. (Amongst others Baroness Smith)

Update;

Baroness Sugg, Aviation Minister, clearly not well informed about anti drone technology. Not doing well under questioning.

Perhaps DJI can, if not already doing so, assist Gatwick with this ...

... and thus save a little bit of reputation and perhaps a tiny bit positive news coverage for responsible drone operators and manufacturers.

djiuser_jBXOnzT6p8Z1 Posted at 12-20 03:54
Update;

Baroness Sugg, Aviation Minister, clearly not well informed about anti drone technology. Not doing well under questioning.

most lawmakers are uninformed to an embarrassing degree.. like sometimes i ask  "how did you even get into this position? "
like NY and california gun laws....so blantely obviously created by people who never seen a gun outside of google images..     

NY classifies a rifle as an assault rifle if it has a foldable or adjustable stock.. like..no..not at all how that works...   they also require that the threads on barrel be "thread gaurded against modification or removed"   so if i moved to NY state and wanted to make my AR-15 legal i replace the adjustable stock with a fixed stock to a reasonable size, and replace the barrel with a 10.75 inch barrel (from standard 16 inch) with open threads and screw on my supressor as my thread gaurd against modifiecation (as the law doesnt disallow that)... look i turned my AR-15 into a supressed pistol by both state and federal law x)     

DJI, please get in contact with SKY News for a statement to represent responsible operators.

Thanks.

DJI as the market leader had been very pro active in drone safety, with every drone since the last of the Phantom 2's having some form of geofencing built into the software.
The best we can hope for is for all other manufactures to be forced into implementing it.
Although those that want to hack the system will always find a way.

And lets not forget that as of today, nothing has been proved that any drone was involved, just wild speculation from the media coming from unconfirmed reports of "drone" sightings.

Harbourside Posted at 12-20 04:35
DJI as the market leader had been very pro active in drone safety, with every drone since the last of the Phantom 2's having some form of geofencing built into the software.
The best we can hope for is for all other manufactures to be forced into implementing it.
Although those that want to hack the system will always find a way.

technically true... nothing has yet been proven and the only thing has been "reports of drones"  and "two devices"   

the other day it was a ..wat large square or rectangular shape with minimal separation was spotted at 10,000 feet...  and media and pilot called it a drone..and yet they described the box my mini fridge arrived in, not a drone!

Harbourside Posted at 12-20 04:35
DJI as the market leader had been very pro active in drone safety, with every drone since the last of the Phantom 2's having some form of geofencing built into the software.
The best we can hope for is for all other manufactures to be forced into implementing it.
Although those that want to hack the system will always find a way.

Enough for the house of lords discussing possible 'draconian' future laws.

Decrease in drone sales, with other countries perhaps following, could be severe for manufacturers.

More reason for major players to get involved and state their side and technical knowhow.

Most people havent got a clue about drone technology.

Perhaps the bad news of today can be used to clarify and educate.

We are not aware of the make, model, or manufacturer of these drones. I don't know if any other drone maker has the Geofence capabilities that DJI drones have.  To me, the Geofence is the best way to prevent this from happening.

So let's say rules were put in place to require Geofencing on drones of a certain capability. Would DJI have an automatic monopoly on the market?  

Update;

SKY News

Army sent in to Gatwick to assist finding Drone and assist Passengers.

Total Chaos.

Aviation consultant speaking on Sky News suggesting increasing no-fly zones around airports to 2 nautical miles, around 5 kilometres as one of changes needed.

Bad News if, as me, you live within the catchment area of an airport, in this case Bournemouth UK.

This will affect possible business.

My observation so far ...

... Police and Airport Authorities totally unprepared for such an incident. Anti drone technologies woefully under developed.

Update

SKY NEWS

Government Spokesman "Army has unique capabilities"  ...

UK Government is holding COBRA meeting to evaluate the Gatwick situation. This level of meeting is reserved for high crisis events. Serious.

This will likely have far reaching implications for UK drone Operators.

djiuser_jBXOnzT6p8Z1 Posted at 12-20 08:09
My observation so far ...

... Police and Airport Authorities totally unprepared for such an incident. Anti drone technologies woefully under developed.

not only this but they haven't even fully confirmed anything... just in full panic mode without even a valid description..

"industrial looking"   and "something you can't buy off the shelf"    welp ...means nothing literally nothing..  

Update

SKY News

Another Aviation Expert talking about the dangers of drones within airport spaces, Flights now suspended indefinitely.

Observation so far; Understandibly a fairly one sided coverage so far. No one from the Drone community or drone manufacturing/training industry represented yet.

djiuser_jBXOnzT6p8Z1 Posted at 12-20 08:33
Update

SKY News

wow appearing more and more as an inside job isnt it

HereForTheBeer Posted at 12-20 08:37
wow appearing more and more as an inside job isnt it

I dont know about that but would not dismiss anything at this stage.

However, it will cause significant and far reaching problems for the UK Drone community.

At the moment, I feel very sorry for tbe many travellers, many families with children, affected by this.

Hello and good day. Thank you for sharing this information. Let us all be responsible for using our drones and abide by our local policies, rules and regulations when in terms of flying or using our drones. Thank you for continued support. Lets all have a safe and happy flying.

djiuser_jBXOnzT6p8Z1 Posted at 12-20 08:47
I dont know about that but would not dismiss anything at this stage.

However, it will cause significant and far reaching problems for the UK Drone community.

yep its sad for real.  it mostly a joke before about it being an inside job,  but its starting to grow more and more of a possibility given hardcore 1 sided nature, lack of details overall, and the intensity..

DJI Stephen Posted at 12-20 08:48
Hello and good day. Thank you for sharing this information. Let us all be responsible for using our drones and abide by our local policies, rules and regulations when in terms of flying or using our drones. Thank you for continued support. Lets all have a safe and happy flying.

Not sure if that will be enough here in the UK.

Are DJI communicating with UK gouvernment or Authorities either for a tracking solution or just to rule out one of their products?