Drones reappear over Paris

AUTHORITIES BAFFLED WHETHER THE FLYOVERS ARE THE WORK OF PRANKSTERS OR TOURISTS

Unidentified drones flew over Paris for a second night in a row, police said yesterday, in the latest mystery appearance of unmanned aircraft over the French capital at a time of high security.

The latest sightings follow a series of drone spottings at French atomic plants last year and, more recently over the presidential palace and a bay in Brittany that houses nuclear submarines.

Authorities have been scratching their heads as

left they remain unable to catch any of the operators or determine whether the flyovers are the work of pranksters, tourists or something more malicious.

Flying drones over the French capital is banned by law, and the latest sightings come at a time of heightened vigilance following last month’s Islamist attacks.

A police source said witnesses and security forces reported at least five sightings overnight on Tuesday to yesterday over central Paris — that may have been the same drone or several.

The tiny aircraft were

spotted near the US embassy, not far from the Invalides military museum, the Eiffel Tower and several major thoroughfares leading in and out of the French capital, the source added.

Previous appearance

Police had already been trying to find out who was behind the appearance of an estimated five separate drone flights over similar areas of Paris the previous night.

“Is it a game? Scouting for future operations? The investigation will show us,” a Parisian police chief said on Tuesday.

Authorities were first alerted to mystery drone flyovers in October, when state-run power company EDF filed a complaint with police after detecting the small unmanned aerial vehicles zipping over seven atomic plants. The sightings continued into November, and altogether some 20 flyovers took place over nuclear plants. Their operators were never found.

Then on January 20, a pilotless aircraft briefly went over the presidential palace in Paris.