Silly season is on us ...

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-sussex-46623754

Whether they really were drones or not makes no difference. The fact that its being reported that hundreds / thousands of passengers were re-routed / flights cancelled and runways shut down in one of the busiest UK airports ... means reaction of Authorities will likely be severe in Rules now.

When you read all the forums and posts about such - condemning and remarking about rules etc. - no-one seems to mention the imbeciles who actually get a kick out doing stupid things like this.

They think it funny to create havoc for others ... and run away before they can be nailed to the wall.

Bricks on railway lines ...

Dropping stones on cars of bridges ...

Throwing rocks / stones into swimming areas on beach ...

(Yes I have seen all three above !)

so many examples of the imbecilic human and its not confined to one gender either ...

How do you combat such people ? Not all are young kids ..

If it is a young kid - the Do-Gooders shout that you should not stain the kids record for rest of life by punishing severely ... HOGWASH !! Most kids understand this and act badly knowing they will get a slap on the wrist (even that slap is not allowed !!) and walk away.

It can only get worse ........ and Christmas is here ... imagine all those lovely Quads and Toys under the 'tree' waiting to be a real pain in the **** !

Nigel

Was it someone who just thought it would be cool to get footage of the airport/ planes or was this a deliberate attempt by parties unknown to ground/ disrupt flights. If more than one drone was involved then I’m thinking the later.

Either way the decent people who follow regs are going to be tarnished anyway.

My worry exactly. People who fly responsibly will now suffer from over the top regulation.
Hopefully the people responsible for this are found and dealt with. Dangerous and stupid.

AlanHd Posted at 12-20 04:25
Was it someone who just thought it would be cool to get footage of the airport/ planes or was this a deliberate attempt by parties unknown to ground/ disrupt flights. If more than one drone was involved then I’m thinking the later.

Either way the decent people who follow regs are going to be tarnished anyway.

I am with you on that thought. Way over the top for a few images. Perhaps a prelude for more. Think of the chaose that would happen if the was co ordinated around the world. Planes dropping out if the sky as there is nowhere to land. Not good.

embayweather Posted at 12-20 04:51
I am with you on that thought. Way over the top for a few images. Perhaps a prelude for more. Think of the chaose that would happen if the was co ordinated around the world. Planes dropping out if the sky as there is nowhere to land. Not good.

Yeah I agree, who needs bomb threats when a few drones can close all the air space.

Seems very odd as I have seen no footage of said drone?

Therefore is it:

        Disgruntled ex-employee

        Tree Huggers

        Terror related advising they have an explosive device fitted, hence total shut down

** Footage appears **

Hello and good day. Thank you for sharing this important 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.

DJI Stephen Posted at 12-20 09:13
Hello and good day. Thank you for sharing this important 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.

Just watched the news on the Gatwick drone shutdown.  At least the news is now saying it is NOT a consumer or hobby drone, but one of "industrial specifications."  The UK airport director said a drone normally causes a half-hour shutdown because the batteries on hobby drones don't last longer than that.  This drone (or apparently "drones") have been airborne for over two hours at a whack causing the sustained shutdown.  Large enough the controllers can see them from the tower.  Seems it shouldn't be that hard to follow where they go and land, or maybe even visible on radar.  Regardless, at least hobby drones and an irresponsible pilot have been largely vindicated in this case.

NM_Quad Posted at 12-20 12:18
Just watched the news on the Gatwick drone shutdown.  At least the news is now saying it is NOT a consumer or hobby drone, but one of "industrial specifications."  The UK airport director said a drone normally causes a half-hour shutdown because the batteries on hobby drones don't last longer than that.  This drone (or apparently "drones") have been airborne for over two hours at a whack causing the sustained shutdown.  Large enough the controllers can see them from the tower.  Seems it shouldn't be that hard to follow where they go and land, or maybe even visible on radar.  Regardless, at least hobby drones and an irresponsible pilot have been largely vindicated in this case.

Hobby drones vindicated?  Maybe but the news media is full of DJI drones.  I've seen Inspires, Mavics, and Phantoms and of course they all play the phantom hitting the wing video.  Mention the word drone to the people who's trips have been disrupted and I suspect many would love to stomp on your drone.
This is a bad day for drones.

embayweather Posted at 12-20 04:51
I am with you on that thought. Way over the top for a few images. Perhaps a prelude for more. Think of the chaose that would happen if the was co ordinated around the world. Planes dropping out if the sky as there is nowhere to land. Not good.

That would never happen, risk running out of fuel or land it and risk losing a  engine to a possible drone hit, i know which would win every time, its more possible that the airports would be put out of commission but before that point, most  drones will be banned....

Deffo a malicious act, it lasted too long imo...

Well this is the beginning of the end of our hobby. Like gun ownership, it will eventually be outlawed and then only the criminals and terrorists who have a mission to cause as much economic disaster to the Infidels as possible, will have drones.

There is a trend. I predict drones will become as hard to get as firearms.

They are suggesting its a Matrice 600 - ! - A pricy beast with 6 batteries and a 38min flight time... But until we see any photographic proof ??! - Awaiting the abuse I'll get when out on the next job from the dog walkers :O

I am surprised that media is reporting difficulty in downing drones ... when you consider that UK has designed / built and deployed for testing the 'Blighter' in UK, USA and other locations :



Nigel

New reports of AGAIN sightings disrupting flights ....

Whoever is doing this should be Hung Drawn and 1/4'd .....

Problem is now that sightings were made in first events ... even a video is online of something that appears like a drone ... means that reports even when nothing is there will trigger maximum action and shutdowns. The paranoia is now there and will take a while to dissipate.

Nigel

solentlife Posted at 12-21 03:22
I am surprised that media is reporting difficulty in downing drones ... when you consider that UK has designed / built and deployed for testing the 'Blighter' in UK, USA and other locations :

[view_image]

Copy and paste from the other thread.

As you have stated, guarding against this type of invasive, irresponsible, disruptive behavior, whether intentional or not is very difficult if not logistically impossible.

However, seeing the monetary disruption alone seems to make it necessary to develop reactionary tactics to eliminate the threat. The investment would be well worth the savings.

The anti-drone technology that we have seen being developed can and should be utilized by the authorities to let everyone know that this kind of behavior will not be tolerated.
Disruptive guns, net carrying drones, etc.

At the very least, video equipped authorized drones patrolling the perimeter would help. This would allow for a safe enough environment to resume airline flight. It could also provide video identifying footage of the offending drone.

This looks like a tactic that can and will be repeated. It's time for the authorities to up their game so that citizens feel like they are protected, not vulnerable to something as simple as a drone flight causing so much chaos.

Just my two cents.....

Time to deploy these systems :

http://www.blighter.com/products ... defence-system.html



Its been proven on trials .. so why is it not in use generally ?

Nigel

solentlife Posted at 12-21 11:40
Time to deploy these systems :

http://www.blighter.com/products ... defence-system.html

Possibly, too expensive, but more than likely drones have not become a big enough threat to justify the expense. Maybe soon they will..........

Hummingbird.UAV Posted at 12-20 17:50
Hobby drones vindicated?  Maybe but the news media is full of DJI drones.  I've seen Inspires, Mavics, and Phantoms and of course they all play the phantom hitting the wing video.  Mention the word drone to the people who's trips have been disrupted and I suspect many would love to stomp on your drone.
This is a bad day for drones.

I just saw the video of the Phantom hitting the wing for the first time today. I noticed something odd: the Phantom doesn't have any propellers on it...I wonder what the reason is for doing it that way?

solentlife Posted at 12-21 11:40
Time to deploy these systems :

http://www.blighter.com/products ... defence-system.html

I read an article this morning about the incidents, and it says DJI has some technology in it called Aero something, I dont remember the full name. It says the police are able to now obtain the serial number, make and model and also which direction the drone is flying. The article made it sound like this Aero thing is already in DJI drones. I will have to try to find the article again.

fansb1fe1104 Posted at 12-21 11:59
I read an article this morning about the incidents, and it says DJI has some technology in it called Aero something, I dont remember the full name. It says the police are able to now obtain the serial number, make and model and also which direction the drone is flying. The article made it sound like this Aero thing is already in DJI drones. I will have to try to find the article again.

Oh Dear ... not this myth again !!

Nigel

solentlife Posted at 12-21 12:32
Oh Dear ... not this myth again !!

Nigel

I found the article, it was from Fox News, but I just noticed now it looks like it's an opinion piece, so you are probably right about it being a myth...this is the quote from it:

  First, all of our major airports at a minimum should employ a technology called Aeroscope. Aeroscope is a counter-drone system created by DJI, the largest manufacturer of consumer drones worldwide. The system gives law enforcement authorities the ability to track the location of any drone that is turned on or flying within a certain radius. It provides not only the drone’s location, but also its serial number, type, and direction of flight. It is already being employed by law enforcement at sporting events, public gatherings, and certain airports, but its adoption needs to be more widespread

Heres the link to the actual article: .https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/ ... -well-be-next.print

fansb1fe1104 Posted at 12-21 13:09
I found the article, it was from Fox News, but I just noticed now it looks like it's an opinion piece, so you are probably right about it being a myth...this is the quote from it:

  First, all of our major airports at a minimum should employ a technology called Aeroscope. Aeroscope is a counter-drone system created by DJI, the largest manufacturer of consumer drones worldwide. The system gives law enforcement authorities the ability to track the location of any drone that is turned on or flying within a certain radius. It provides not only the drone’s location, but also its serial number, type, and direction of flight. It is already being employed by law enforcement at sporting events, public gatherings, and certain airports, but its adoption needs to be more widespread

As far as I am aware, that was a fishing piece put out by DJI and has not been implemented, but in any event is irrelevant, as the drones (?) at Gatwick were not DJI ones. The article is full of holes because it implies that this technology will work with all drones, and that is plain BS.

fansb1fe1104 Posted at 12-21 11:51
I just saw the video of the Phantom hitting the wing for the first time today. I noticed something odd: the Phantom doesn't have any propellers on it...I wonder what the reason is for doing it that way?

Yeah, all that tells me is not to fly in a Mooney aircraft, if its leading edge is so damn weak as that. In any event, that piece of loosely labelled 'research' has been discredited many times over. Most importantly, the impact of a Phantom drone with the wing leading edge of any commercial aircraft would not cause that level of damage at all.

Geebax Posted at 12-21 13:28
Yeah, all that tells me is not to fly in a Mooney aircraft, if its leading edge is so damn weak as that. In any event, that piece of loosely labelled 'research' has been discredited many times over. Most importantly, the impact of a Phantom drone with the wing leading edge of any commercial aircraft would not cause that level of damage at all.

I agree with you its all BS. But I just thought maybe they left the props off for a reason like so the motor was able to penetrate the wing somehow. I would think with props on, if it did hit the props would kind of deflect it away so the motor wouldn't immediately penetrate. I could be wrong about though obviously.

Geebax Posted at 12-21 13:24
As far as I am aware, that was a fishing piece put out by DJI and has not been implemented, but in any event is irrelevant, as the drones (?) at Gatwick were not DJI ones. The article is full of holes because it implies that this technology will work with all drones, and that is plain BS.

I agree with you about that, most news articles usually make the reader that doesn't have any knowledge about them think they are all controlled the same way.

Mark Weiss Posted at 12-20 21:56
[view_image]

There is a trend. I predict drones will become as hard to get as firearms.

The 'incident' graph makes it look so bad .... but I ask how many are actual incidents of actual drones. Problem here is that many reported sightings proved to be non-verifiable or false. They would be included unfortunately to 'prove a case'.

Nigel

Two people arrested .... remains to be seen what happens now.

Nigel

The hunt goes on, the two arrested are freed without charge https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-46665615

AlanHd Posted at 12-23 04:13
The hunt goes on, the two arrested are freed without charge https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-46665615

But only after having their names and faces plastered in every paper and website, plus becoming the defacto poster child for all that ails the hobby.

1Eagle Posted at 12-21 11:42
Possibly, too expensive, but more than likely drones have not become a big enough threat to justify the expense. Maybe soon they will..........

Turns out UK has bought IN Israeli tech ...

Why when UK has a tried tested system already ??  

Latest news is the couple arrested released and no longer considered persons of interest.

Nigel

solentlife Posted at 12-21 12:32
Oh Dear ... not this myth again !!

Nigel

Are you saying AeroScope is a myth?

EdM Posted at 12-23 05:27
But only after having their names and faces plastered in every paper and website, plus becoming the defacto poster child for all that ails the hobby.

I have never been impressed by the way the British police handle anything, and IMO they screwed up right royally in this case. Bad decisions made in haste, fueled by hysteria. They obviously got a tip-off from some disgruntled neighbour and dragged all the scumbag media along to the couple's house. Probably went in guns drawn and all. Amateurs.

Bashy Posted at 12-23 20:08
Are you saying AeroScope is a myth?

From what I read today it appears it has gone from myth to reality and I'm mot surprised at all to see that as the case.

Bashy Posted at 12-23 20:08
Are you saying AeroScope is a myth?

No ... what I am saying it has created a mythical amount of what it's claimed to be able to do ...

I do not doubt its there. What I doubt is the level of info some claim it can provide to others ...

Nigel

Geebax Posted at 12-23 20:49
I have never been impressed by the way the British police handle anything, and IMO they screwed up right royally in this case. Bad decisions made in haste, fueled by hysteria. They obviously got a tip-off from some disgruntled neighbour and dragged all the scumbag media along to the couple's house. Probably went in guns drawn and all. Amateurs.

One of the biggest tragedies about British Police - is the limitation of action imposed on them and then when its escalated - it gets out of hand.
The Brit Police are so handcuffed by procedure now ... its pitiful. And it does not help that more and more USA style tactics are being imported.

Bring back the traditional Bobby in the street .. get rid of the Do Gooder Political Correctness that has led to this ... - Let the Police do the job they are employed to do ...
As to THEM dragging the Media along ??? In fact the Media is the bad boy here as they monitor and follow every action ... waiting to pounce and tell the world ..

The identities I believe were witheld by Police ... but rags like the SUN and similar sensationalist 'newspapers' printed pictures and names for all to see.

Nigel

solentlife Posted at 12-24 06:01
One of the biggest tragedies about British Police - is the limitation of action imposed on them and then when its escalated - it gets out of hand.
The Brit Police are so handcuffed by procedure now ... its pitiful. And it does not help that more and more USA style tactics are being imported.

Sorry, by 'dragging along', my meaning was that the police identified the couple and led the news scrotes to their house. I think it is unacceptable the level of attention those people got, and all because of sloppy police work. The guy's employer told the police all along that he could not have been involved as he was (verfiably) working aelsewhere at the time. And the question remains, what did the wife(?) have to do with the whole affair.

Geebax Posted at 12-24 13:57
Sorry, by 'dragging along', my meaning was that the police identified the couple and led the news scrotes to their house. I think it is unacceptable the level of attention those people got, and all because of sloppy police work. The guy's employer told the police all along that he could not have been involved as he was (verfiably) working aelsewhere at the time. And the question remains, what did the wife(?) have to do with the whole affair.

I read today that the couple didn’t own or fly drones. Also one of the police even wonders if there was any drones. “The sky is falling “

...and I’m still waiting for the report on what hit the airline in Mexico.

There were drone(s), many reports of and not just by the public but by airport staff and officers, the police were misquoted! and no doubt intentional,