Police finally say sorry to drone arrest couple
A POLICE chief finally apologised to the couple detained over the Gatwick Airport drone inquiry last night, saying he is “really sorry” for the “feeling of violation”.
Giles York, the Chief Constable of Sussex Police, offered an explanation after Paul Gait and his wife Elaine Kirk were held for 36 hours before being exonerated.
His apology came less than a week after the investigating officer, Chief Superintendent Jason Tingley, refused to apologise over the arrests.
Mr York said: “I’m really sorry for what he has experienced and the feeling of violation around it.
“I am really sorry for what he went through, but the reason why we held him was so that we could dispel everything in the first instance.
“What might have been worse as an experience for him would have been to be released under investigation still.
“We were able to exhaust all our lines of inquiry on that first instance and, however hard it is, able to release him from police custody saying he is no longer a suspect in this line of inquiry.
“That’s why we took the time – in order to allow him the best opportunity to put his life back on the rails.”
About 1,000 flights were affected during the chaos between December 19 and 21, when drones were seen near the Gatwick runway.
Mr Gait, of Crawley, said the couple had felt “violated” after their arrest, adding: “Our home has been searched and our privacy and identity completely exposed.
“Our names, photos and other personal information have been broadcast throughout the world.”
Mr Gait’s employer, John Allard, who runs a double glazing firm, also slammed Sussex Police for an “appalling” investigation. He claims they failed to even consult him, adding that he could account for Mr Gait’s movements and could have provided police with a clear alibi “if they had only asked”.
The chief constable also confirmed that two drones found by police near the airport have now been ruled out for being responsible for the disruption.
He said police have not yet found the drone involved and did not know its model.
Describing the police investigation as “incredibly thorough”, he said: “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.”
However, Mr York said some of the sightings of drones may have involved the police’s own craft.
He insisted he is “absolutely certain” a drone was flying near runways at Gatwick during the three-day period. But he acknowledged there may have been some “confusion” caused by his force launching its own drones in the hunt for the rogue craft.
Mr York confirmed that military technology was now in place at Gatwick, though he declined to identify the nature of the equipment.
The Sunday Express understands that it is a UK firm, already under contract with the Ministry of Defence, which has been tasked with providing a permanent detection and execution system for unmanned aerial vehicles.
‘I’m really sorry for what he has experienced and the feeling of violation around it’