Drone ‘deliberately aimed at plane to cause a crash’

‘The pilot identified it as a small white drone of the lightweight, hobbyist type’

A DRONE was launched from a park and flown towards a light aircraft in a deliberate attempt to cause a mid-air collision, a pilot has claimed.

The near-miss happened as the Piper aircraft was coming in to land at RAF Northolt, west London. The gadget was flown just 20ft below the plane.

The UK Airprox Board classified the incident as having the most serious degree of risk. Its report, based on the recollection of the Piper PA-31 pilot from the June 11 incident, stated: “He lost sight of it under the nose and looked down at the wing root and identified it as a small white drone of the lightweight, hobbyist type, it was about 20ft below the aircraft as he passed over it.

“He reported that he had no doubt that it was being deliberately flown under the flight path in an attempt to collide with an aircraft. He reported that the drone had passed close to his right wing and that it was possibly launched from a park.”

Research part-funded by the Department for Transport (DFT) found that a drone weighing just 400g could smash a helicopter windscreen, and one weighing 2kg could critically damage an airliner’s windscreen.

The number of near misses between drones and aircraft has risen from six in 2014 to 93 last year. The DFT is considering banning children from owning drones weighing at least 250g for safety reasons. Children would only be able to fly the heavier devices if they were owned and registered by an adult.

Other measures in a consultation launched last month include giving police the power to issue on-the-spot fines of up to £300 for misuse and the ability to seize drones being used irresponsibly.

Drones are banned from flying above 400ft and within half a mile of airport boundaries. Penalties include fines of up to £2,500 and five years in prison.