It has widely been reported that a drone hit a British Airways Airbus A320 on approaching to land at Heathrow Airport.
If there was an idiot flying a drone on one of the approach routes to Heathrow then they really need to be found and locked up.
Unfortunately it is another reason why the CAA should be striving for compulsory UAV registration. It will not stop idiots from doing stupid things, but it may make people think about what they are doing. Anything which helps remove this kind of operator from circulation has to be applauded.
If I took my UAV to Heathrow it would not fly due to the inbuilt Geo Fencing software, so have these people tampered with the one on their system? Possibly, but it is more likely that they have an older version, or have built it themselves, thus bypassing the safety features inherent in new UAVs such as the DJI Phantom 4.
Fly safely and stick to the rules. If you do not know the rules, go to the CAA website. Get some instruction, either from your local hobby flying club, or from a professional company like RUSTA. Don’t fly in restricted airspace, you are endangering peoples lives.
What the industry needs is clear direction from the CAA and their European colleagues EASA with a common policy covering the whole of Europe. All singing from the same page – same rules, same registration procedure – clear understanding from everyone. It can’t be that difficult can it? The FAA seem to be doing a good job.
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