For the first time I saw a case last week concerning the unauthorised flying of a drone near a licensed aerodrome. I can't say much more, but we did decide that a device weighing about 15kg (that's a stone to us oldies) **is capable of causing serious damage to an airliner if there is a collision, so it was off to Hizonner to deal with at the Crown Court.
** See numerous corrections in the comments. Mea Culpa.
Sorry for being pedantic BS, but 15kg is closer to 2 and a half stone!
ReplyDelete15 kg is a stone? More like 2 st 3 lb.
ReplyDelete15 kg = 2 St 5 lb
ReplyDelete15kg is not a stone, either you meant 15 lbs or if you really meant 15kg, that is over TWO stone (2st 5 lbs in fact.. ) (1 kg =2.2 lbs
ReplyDeleteExtra maths homework for you methinks
15kg is more like 2.5 stone methinks.
ReplyDeleteOver 2 stone 5 lb actually.
ReplyDeleteWhat's the weight matter ? One of those down an intake could kill an engine at the crucial time of takeoff.
ReplyDeleteReally? I would never have known unless I was told six times.
ReplyDeleteThey are not just a danger to aircraft. Fifteen pounds or 15 kg - it could still cause a nasty injury if it struck somebody in the head.
ReplyDeleteGrammar Nazis please take one step forward......
ReplyDeleteOMG! Someone mention N*zis. Arrest them under Godwin's Law.
DeleteYou mean arithmetic Nazis surely, or perhaps science Nazis, since weights and measures are part of science.
DeleteIf a drone of that size can do considerable damage to an airliner, think what damage even a smaller drone could do to an unprotected citizen just walking down the street.
ReplyDeleteUnprotected citizens (or even protected ones for that matter) don't have gas turbine engines on them that will self-destruct if a foreign object is ingested down an air intake.
DeleteMost (if not all) Jet engines are tested as part of their type approval process against bird strike and the like. I was reliably informed by one of my former colleagues that the standard test for this was to launch frozen chickens into the engine intake. That's not to say that drones aren't a problem but we need to be aware that this is not a problem that's unanticipated.
DeleteThere is a story dating back many years when a British team launched a deceased giant turkey into an engine and destroyed some of the blades. They enlisted the help of some American experts to witness a rerun to see where it went wrong. As the team loaded the bird ready for launch, one of the Americans mentioned it should be thawed first.
DeleteThe CAA already has good legislation regarding the use of Remotely Piloted Air Systems (RPAS) and have been active in seeking to make regulations better known: https://www.caa.co.uk/default.aspx?catid=1995&pageid=16012.
ReplyDeleteTrue, but then think what damage a normal motor car could do to an unprotected citizen walking down the street.
ReplyDeleteThis is why you will be prosecuted if you drive a normal motor car in an area where it should not be and is likely to cause a danger (a pedestrianised road for example), just as this dude was for flying a drone at a licensed aerodrome.
DeleteI'm far more concerned that such a drone could be used by terrorists. They are unlikely to be concerned about CAA regulations.
ReplyDeleteRecently, a drone was recently spotted hovering over and, apparently, inspecting a church roof in Suffolk. That church has had lead stolen from it in the past. It appears ordinary criminals may have found a use for drones.
DeleteOr roofers have found a way to inspect weather damage / wear and tear without the expense of a cherry picker / scaffolding. Afterall "ordinary criminals" have been nicking the lead off church roofs since before the plane, never mind the drone, was invented and you don't need a close up inspection to determine there is lead up there. One wonders if Gallileo faced these issues with the telescope increasing crime?
DeleteThere were no roofers vans, or roofers within sight in any direction. If what you say was true, I would expect their van and them to be in the car park nearbyu. And the lead that was nicked before was replaced with some sort of substitute that is not worth stealing, so perhaps the criminals were checking that out.
DeleteBut thanks for thinking I'm too stupid, and the person who told me this, are too stupid to think of the *****ing obvious.
Talking of lead:- When Acton Magistrates Court was closed, the lead was stripped from the roof in a few days. Harrow court's lead went the same way.
ReplyDeleteReminds me that at the court at which I used to sit, there were thefts of belongings from the cloakroom used by magistrates only and to which no-one else supposedly had access.
ReplyDeleteMe too; a colleague had her purse rifled while we were sirtting.
DeleteYep, you have to watch, there are criminals in every court.
DeleteHow should the state provide a means for those offenders to start anew?The online court approved theft classes out there would simply help offenders to choose the right path and live a life according to the laws. The classes will provide the courts an opportunity to see how the people progress when they attend to the sessions and plunge themselves on helpful activities.
ReplyDeleteCourt approved shoplifting class