Public drone usage is a "real danger" to British airspace

ON Sunday, April 17, a British Airways flight was just approaching Heathrow Airport, after coming from Geneva, when the pilot reported that something he believed to be a drone had hit the aircraft.

The plane was carrying 132 passengers and five crew members at the time.

If confirmed to be true, this is thought to be the first incident of its type in the UK.

A police investigation is underway and British Airways has stated that it will give the police “every assistance with their investigation”; however no arrests have been made yet.

Police have said that the plane was hit by the drone at an altitude of around 580m whilst it was flying over Richmond Park.

They are asking anyone who finds drone debris in the area to come forward.

Steve Landells from the British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA), said that it has been “only a matter of time before we have a drone strike”, due to the increasing numbers of near misses and sightings in the past.

With increasing interest in drones and recent technological advances, it is becoming easier for incidents like this to happen.

People are becoming more reckless and negligent with their usage of drones and using them so closely to planes and airports shows a lack of knowledge or consideration for the dangers of using drones.

If parts of a drone got into an engine or cracked or smashed a window, that could have extreme effects on the plane and the safety and wellbeing of its passengers and crew.

Fortunately, the inbound British Airways Airbus A320 wasn’t damaged and, after being carefully checked over when it returned to Heathrow, it was cleared to be safe for its next flight.

However, if another incident like this happens again, it could have more serious consequences.

I think that this is the side to drones that presents a real danger to the public.

Despite the amazing work that drones can do in terms of taking aerial photographs and helping with policing, there are always people who abuse the amazing technology that we are lucky enough to have access to.