Topic: Gatwick Chaos due to Drones

[Lush is the best medicine...]

Get on the horn to Liz Truss and borrow a few of those barking dogs from the prisons.   

to be fair drones shouldn’t mess with dogs

https://thebark.com/content/neighbor-harassed-dog-his-drone

[Buggy Eyes Alfredo]

Yes, you can control them from anywhere with connection and with the right set up, lots of pretty easy apps etc to do it with. Which obviously then throws all kind of scenarios into the mix! But I think the most likely is a few local scallys or someone who's really pissed off with the airlines/airport for some reason. Who knows, absolute crazy situation though!

Especially after hearing the news out of Stuttgart Airport and at Charles de Gaulle airport.

 
German airports on alert amid spying reports at Stuttgart

Germany's biggest airports are on alert after four suspected terrorists were spotted staking out Stuttgart airport, reports say.

Police are said to be hunting for a son and father from North Rhine-Westphalia and two others seen taking photos of the airport's terminal and grounds.

Details of the suspects were passed to German police by Morocco's secret service, reports say.

This comes a week after a terror attack across the border in France.

Three people were killed by Cherif Chekatt near a Christmas Market in Strasbourg, which is some 150km (93 miles) from Stuttgart.

Police told public broadcaster ARD that security forces were on alert at German airports, while Bild website said warnings had been extended to all 14 major hubs.

'Spying attempts' detected

Since the Strasbourg attack, suspicious activity had been spotted at both Stuttgart Airport and at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris, public broadcaster SWR reported.

The father and son were captured on surveillance cameras taking photos around the airport, but had disappeared by the time police arrived.

The Stuttgart airport suspects' names as well as details of their communications were reportedly given to police by intelligence officials in Morocco.

German police would not confirm the reports, with spokesman Roman Strohmayer saying only "we have information that for the moment cannot yet be judged conclusively."

But, he told Bild website: "We have detected spying attempts at Stuttgart Airport and have massively tightened our security measures at the airport in cooperation with the state police. "

Germany was targeted just before Christmas in 2016, when Tunisian jihadist Anis Amri ploughed a lorry into a Christmas market in Berlin, killing 12 people and leaving dozens more wounded.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-46639182

[The Gulleysucker]

Have none of the usual suspects suggested it's a false flag to distract from Brexit or May's difficulties?

[Cruiser]

^ Looks like they found the culprit..

[classycarra]

Have none of the usual suspects suggested it's a false flag to distract from Brexit or May's difficulties?

No but he hasn't been online for a bit, and Russia hasn't been accused yet so that corner of twitter hasn't stirred for now

[Ray K]

Have none of the usual suspects suggested it's a false flag to distract from Brexit or May's difficulties?

As someone who's due to fly into Gatwick on Sunday, let me assure you that the crazies are *all over* this story on Twitter and the forums.
'How convenient' and 'like one drone can bring down an entire airport' is the bullshit bingo buzzwords.

[rodderzzz]

I find it really hard to believe that with 50 sightings and that many people looking for it they cant find it.

[Andy82lfc]

I find it really hard to believe that with 50 sightings and that many people looking for it they cant find it.

It’s all very odd. There is very little information about what the police have seen or what they know. It almost seems like they are purposely hiding details or just handling it all really bad.

They say when they have been close to locating the operator the drone dissapears. How do they know they are close?? And how does it just dissapear if they have sight?? All sounds like they are being clever or very stupid.

They have known since yesterday and could have been manning drones videoing 24/7 around the airport waiting for a sighting then tracking it. Again though I’m obviously missing something! Just seems they must be all sat in the tower then running over each other down the stairs when someone rings in a sighting. Either that or the sightings are false and part of whatever game this is. Mad!

[Rush 82]

Drones or drone?

[rob1966]

Drones or drone?

The first sighting on Wednesday night was of two drones, but the reports read as if it is a single drone they are now hunting.

Shooting it down is now an option they are considering.

Edit: Gatwick now has it's runway available again with a limited number of departures and arrivals.
There is the MD of a drone security company on BBC, he is saying it was multiple drones being flown.

[Jm55]

I realise it wouldn’t necessarily stop things like yesterday happening. But banning the things without a license (for which you’d need a good reason to own a drone, not just be able to competently fly one,) would be a start.

There’s no good reason for any normal person to need to own a drone really when you think about it, just opens up to a load of knobheads causing issues with them.

[Rush 82]

The first sighting on Wednesday night was of two drones, but the reports read as if it is a single drone they are now hunting.

Shooting it down is now an option they are considering.

Edit: Gatwick now has it's runway available again with a limited number of departures and arrivals.
There is the MD of a drone security company on BBC, he is saying it was multiple drones being flown.

Thanks.

I'm sure I saw an electronic 'gun' of some sort a while back that could be used to knock the things out

[Cruiser]

Pilots and the aviation industry in general have been warning about drones for years now and jack all has been done. Its astonishing how obtuse this country is.

If this was Ben Gurion airport, the problem would have been neutralised in minutes.

[Jm55]

Whoever it is responsible hopefully gets serious jail time for it. Boils my blood, ruining people’s christmas weekend away, holidays etc to make some kind of, likely stupid, point.

Being bluntly honest I wouldn’t be screaming injustice if the bullet aimed for the drone ‘missed’ and hit the c*nt operation it.

[redbyrdz]

I realise it wouldn’t necessarily stop things like yesterday happening. But banning the things without a license (for which you’d need a good reason to own a drone, not just be able to competently fly one,) would be a start.

There’s no good reason for any normal person to need to own a drone really when you think about it, just opens up to a load of knobheads causing issues with them.

There are lots of drones people use without issue to film events or just for fun. A license will likely happen, but can't see it to be more complicated than a fishing license.

[itsalltosh]

The Kop could take it down...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jm6a3QXG_qI

[I've been a good boy]

So the runway's been opened again but where's the drone, vanished into thin air? Reeks of incompetence or a coverup, maybe both.

[Jm55]

There are lots of drones people use without issue to film events or just for fun. A license will likely happen, but can't see it to be more complicated than a fishing license.

Yeah but given what distruption can easily be caused, I just don’t think people using them to film events is justification for making them so accessible. They’re a massive pain in the arse generally and that’s without them intentionally being used for bullshit like this.

We’re not short of ways of filming and recording stuff without needing drones, unless it’s beinf used by an actual company like the BBC or whatever then it’s not needed.

The BBC can uses drone to get aerial footage of say, Glastonbury, and everyone can watch that footage on YouTube or whatever. We don’t need 3 million lesser quality replicas. I realise you can make the same point about mobile footage but the difference is it’s a lot harder to cause huge disruption and annoyance with an iPhone.

[itsalltosh]

So the runway's been opened again but where's the drone, vanished into thin air? Reeks of incompetence or a coverup, maybe both.

These drones can be flown remotely from a distance (over 4G, etc.), obviously, it would need someone on the ground to launch, change batteries, etc.  but the flight can be programmed in via waypoints so the operator may have been nowhere near.

[ChaChaMooMoo]

I am surprised that the Airports still dont have Anti-Drone guns at their disposal.

A simple signal jammer is all it takes really.

[rob1966]

I realise it wouldn’t necessarily stop things like yesterday happening. But banning the things without a license (for which you’d need a good reason to own a drone, not just be able to competently fly one,) would be a start.

There’s no good reason for any normal person to need to own a drone really when you think about it, just opens up to a load of knobheads causing issues with them.

People have been flying Radio Control planes for decades without any fuss, it is a hobby and is fun to do. Helicopters are really difficult to learn to fly, so the drones filled a hole of easy to fly RC vehicles that could be flown in limited space. Most of them are not causing issues, it is just the odd c*nt who causes problems.

1/6 scale Lancaster, imagine this hitting a plane.

[Jm55]

The Daily Mash suns up my thoughts on the issue - 



Allowing random twats to own small, unlicensed flying machines ‘obviously insane’
20th December 2018

Get Daily Mash headlines: 
PRIVATELY operated drones are a clear sign that society has lost its mind, experts have confirmed.

Researchers found it was ‘demonstrably insane’ to allow the average idiot to own a small, unpredictable flying machine.

Professor Henry Brubaker, from the Institute for Studies, said: “We’re now allowing anyone to send a two-foot wide, unmanned helicopter into the air.

“You know how, in the course of a typical day, you come across at least a dozen utter morons that you wouldn’t trust to boil an egg?

“Do you see what I’m getting at?”

He added: “Can we please just stop – for five fucking minutes – and think about this?”

[Trada]

Get on the horn to Liz Truss and borrow a few of those barking dogs from the prisons.   

[west_london_red]

Can’t they just build a robot wars type of drone with a flame thrower or chain saw attached and just chew up the rouge drones?

Or just use a really good drone to follow these drones home? Eventually they run or of batteries or fuel and need to return back to their owners to change batteries or whatever.

[Iska]

Unbelievable that the moment a new type of threat appeared there weren’t teams already waiting to deal with it instantly in some unspecified way.  It would have been really easy to just do something to sort it out.

[Jm55]

Can’t they just build a robot wars type of drone with a flame thrower or chain saw attached and just chew up the rouge drones?

Or just use a really good drone to follow these drones home? Eventually they run or of batteries or fuel and need to return back to their owners to change batteries or whatever.

Stream it live on tv, video footage coming via another drone obviously, and get Craig Charles to commentate.

[El Lobo]

Can’t they just build a robot wars type of drone with a flame thrower or chain saw attached and just chew up the rouge drones?

Or just use a really good drone to follow these drones home? Eventually they run or of batteries or fuel and need to return back to their owners to change batteries or whatever.

Sir Killalot was primed for action, but they couldn't get hold of Craig Charles to commentate.

[Andy82lfc]

Personally I just don’t understand calls for a wider exception around airports for drones, I honestly feel like I’m going insane when I hear such things on the news as why can anyone be so dumb to think that would make any difference whatsoever in this case.

‘There’s people illegally flying things! Let’s make them slightly more illegal that’ll stop ‘em!’

It’s just such a lazy suggestion by authorities to make it looks like they are doing ‘stuff’. They should have had plans in place to deal with this.

[Red Beret]

Terrorism lite. You can now paralyze major chunks of infrastructure without even having to kill or maime anyone.  Progress...?

[Trada]

Just need some of those kids with their racer/stunt drones to take them out.

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/u6s5144AYO8" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/u6s5144AYO8</a>

[Ziltoid]

Feel sick watching that

[Alan_X]

I find it really hard to believe that with 50 sightings and that many people looking for it they cant find it.

50 sightings doesn't mean a lot without context. Someone spotting the drone a half-a-mile away across the airport doesn't really help locate the operator does it?

I am surprised that the Airports still dont have Anti-Drone guns at their disposal.

A simple signal jammer is all it takes really.

They aren't used because there are concerns about unintended consequences.   

[PhilV]

Just need some of those kids with their racer/stunt drones to take them out.

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/u6s5144AYO8" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/u6s5144AYO8</a>

Flying drones with a VR headset must be awesome.

[ChaChaMooMoo]

They aren't used because there are concerns about unintended consequences.

Not really an expert but what unintended consequences do you mean?

[rob1966]

Flying drones with a VR headset must be awesome.

The Drone Racing on the free Sky Sports channel is brilliant.

[itsaknockuyt]

Would expect that they'll try to find them from their signal or maybe use some sort of Counter Drone like this video:

http://www.searchsystems.eu/sparrowhawk.html

[Red-Soldier]

Imagine the chaos a no-deal Brexit would bring 

[J-Mc-]

Probably a plane enthusiast or two just wanting to get a decent look at everything from a better angle, shit themselves and gone into hiding.

I'm trying to build myself up as a photographer at the minute and have been seriously contemplating getting a drone as it adds an extra spice to the packages I can offer and gets peoples heads turned.

When used right, they can turn something simple into something spectacular IMO.

[rob1966]

Probably a plane enthusiast or two just wanting to get a decent look at everything from a better angle, shit themselves and gone into hiding.

I'm trying to build myself up as a photographer at the minute and have been seriously contemplating getting a drone as it adds an extra spice to the packages I can offer and gets peoples heads turned.

When used right, they can turn something simple into something spectacular IMO.

One of our mates got married at some psoh gaff on the Wirral this summer, the wedding was outside and there were plenty of opportunities to have got some great aerial shots with a drone.

Some of the videos our kid has shot are great, he followed one of his lads as he was kayaking off Bournemouth beach and got some great shots of the sunrise over the fields when he was filming a crop circle. Also caught a UFO over a crop circle. (It is a UFO as something flew into the circle below his drone and it wasn't another drone and they couldn't identify what it was)

[Red-Soldier]

Pretty sure they'll bring in legislation that'll stop MOP buying them, which would be a good thing.

They are very useful in many industries though.