Home Office hatches plans to quell mass drone attacks

THE Government is drawing up plans to counter a mass attack by multiple drones against infrastructure such as a nuclear plant or a major sporting event.

The Home Office has invited defence and drone contractors to come up with a counter strategy that would be able to detect an incoming threat, identify the operators and block the attack.

It is part of a £3 million counterdrone strategy to harness the latest technology to enforce “drone-free” zones that would protect sensitive infrastructure and major events and gatherings including demonstrations.

Officials say they need the strategy to be able to deal with an attack by multiple drones that could last days.

The counter-drone plans anticipate a far bigger potential attack than the disruption at Gatwick, where the sighting of one or possibly two drones brought the airport to a virtual standstill.

A Home Office document outlining

‘The intent [of the drones] … could range from surveillance to malicious disruption or attack’

the proposal says: “A scenario could include numerous drones being used at an important installation, major event or demonstration over a wide, complex geographic area and over a prolonged period of time.

“The small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles [SUAVS] could be a mix of commercially available, high performance multi-rotor types operated directly in a planned and sophisticated manner.

“The intent of the SUAVS could range from surveillance to malicious disruption or attack.”

Technology used to counter attacks would “detect the presence of SUAVS; determine location, intent and assess the risk posed; locate the operator; and enforce a ‘no-drone’ zone”.

The document said: “It is critical that industry, academia and the Government work together to solve the counter-drone challenges of the future.”

The Home Office is also setting up a new mobile unit to prevent Gatwickstyle disruption by detecting and destroying drones. The unit will be available to any law enforcement agency and is expected to have militarygrade cameras, radar and radio frequency scanners to detect rogue drones.

To unit would have electronic jamming equipment and shoulderlaunched bazookas that fire projectiles to deploy a net over a drone and bring it down with a parachute.