Someone – we will assume an unmarried man in his late 30s or early 40s with thinning hair until told otherwise – almost crashed his drone into a passenger flight coming out of Cornwall’s Newquay airport.
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Police in the United Kingdom have launched an investigation after a drone was involved in a near-miss with a passenger plane off the country’s south west coast.
The aircraft, carrying 62 people, was traveling at about 900 feet (274 meters) as it prepared to land at Newquay Airport in Cornwall on Wednesday afternoon when it reported a near miss with the drone which was flying alongside.
Officers searched the nearby area but found neither the drone nor its operator.
A spokesperson from Newquay Cornwall Airport said: On Tue 9th August at approximately 1445pm, the pilot of a landing scheduled air service sighted a drone being flown within the Newquay Air Traffic Zone and adjacent to the final approach to the airport.
The cops will be tasking their specialist drone unit to investigate.
More on this as we get it.
“The agency wants to send out a clear message that operating drones around airplanes, helicopters and airports is unsafe and illegal”, it says on is website.
The CAA’s Dronecode – don’t laugh – states: “Always keep your drone away from aircraft, helicopters, airports and airfields”, and adds that drones must not be flown “within 50 metres of people, vehicles, buildings or structures” or higher than 400ft above ground level.
“With air travel set to double over the next 20 years and drones sales climbing by 30% a year, tragic conflicts with reckless operators are inevitable”, he said.
Police have launched an investigation following reports of a “reckless” near-miss between a drone and a commercial flight. Inspector Dave Meredith called it “an incredibly concerning incident”.
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PC Fowler explained that every drone sold in the United Kingdom comes with guidance from the Civil Aviation Authority which owners should read to avoid causing danger to others.
