Drones in some Gatwick sightings could have belonged to police
Sussex Police say some sightings of drones that disrupted 1,000 Gatwick flights just before Christmas may have been their own devices.
The force’s chief constable Giles York told the BBC officers have searched 26 potential launch sites near the airport, but have not located the drone that caused the chaos on December 19 and 20.
And he said some of those spotted may have belonged to police. Officers received 115 reports of sightings, of which 92 were confirmed as being credible.
Chief constable York told the BBC: "I don’t think we have found the drone responsible for this at this time.
"I think the fact that we have found two drones so far as a result of this does show the extent of the search that has been carried out.
"I am led to believe that we are able to rule those drones out of this investigation at this time."
He added: "I am absolutely certain that there was a drone flying throughout the period the airport was closed. I spoke to an eyewitness yesterday who was on the roof with four other people and what they saw was corroborated by two police officers near the runway who saw the same thing at the same time."
But he admitted; "Of course, we will have launched our own Sussex Police drones at the time with a view to investigate, with a view to engage, with a view to survey the area looking for the drone, so there could be some level of confusion there."
The Sussex police investigation has been severely hampered because Gatwick has been unable to provide any clear images of the drone that caused the chaos, according to the Sunday Times, which said the airport had ‘no radar capable of tracking drones, birds or other small objects that might endanger flights’ despite ‘previous boasts’ that it had some of the best systems in the UK.
A Gatwick spokesman told the newspaper the airport is now improving its defences against drones.
The spokesman added: "This is obviously a new strategic challenge for all airports, as the government has recognised, and since December 21 Gatwick has invested several millions of pounds in new market-leading technology."
Lisa
Lisa joined Travel Weekly nearly 25 years ago as technology reporter and then sailed around the world for a couple of years as cruise correspondent, before becoming deputy editor. Now freelance, Lisa writes for various print and web publications, edits Corporate Traveller’s client magazine, Gateway, and works on the acclaimed Remembering Wildlife series of photography books, which raise awareness of nature’s most at-risk species and helps to fund their protection.
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