Drone rules get stricter in UK

Drones will have to be registered and their users required to pass safety tests under new rules to be announced by the U.K.’s Department for Transport on Saturday.

Registration will be mandated for owners of drones 8.8 ounces or larger after research found that drones as small as 14 ounces could damage the windscreens of helicopters. Other security measures like “geo-fencing” — GPSbased technology programmed into drones to prevent them from flying into sensitive areas such as prisons and airports — are also under consideration, according to a statement from the department.

“Our measures prioritize protecting the public while maximizing the full potential of drones,” aviation minister Martin Callanan will announce Saturday, according to the statement.

The rules come as drone flights are skyrocketing for personal and corporate uses, but the laws haven’t caught up, leaving open the possibility of significant harm. It would only take a drone as big as 2 kilograms, or 4.4 pounds, to “critically” damage the windshield of an airliner flying at high speed, according to research from the Department for Transport, the British Airline Pilots Association and the Military Aviation Authority.