Government crackdown on remote-controlled illegal drone flying is the need of the hour
On Sunday evening, the pilot of an Airbus aircraft carrying over 180 passengers and crew members landed at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport and the pilots informed the control tower that they observed a drone near the landing path. Small unmanned aerial craft, operated by remote control, which are known as drones, are a popular recreational and photography tool across the world nowadays. But increasing availability of such drones poses a massive risk — there are the usual security and industrial espionage risks, but most importantly, these small drones pose a huge risk to civilian air transport. Ergo, it was unsurprising that the aviation authorities at the Delhi airport immediately shut down all traffic coming into and out of the Delhi airport, thereby causing inconvenience to thousands of passengers and others across the country as the capital city is India’s largest aviation hub. Transportation authorities in many countries have recognised the risk from such drones and have even commented that a tragic incident between a drone and commercial aircraft is bound to happen. Earlier this year in Mozambique, a suspected collision between a small drone and a Boeing passenger aircraft apparently occurred, although the aircraft landed without incident.
In India, rules framed in October 2014, make it illegal to operate and fly a drone without permission. There are also provisions that prevent the import of such drones into the country but even a cursory search of e-commerce stores online will show that hundreds of sellers, marketing such devices, and many passengers, returning from foreign shores, easily pack them into their luggage. Most users of drones have no nefarious objectives in mind and are purely recreational users. In fact, drones have allowed television channels, including news channels, to acquire some tremendous shots, thanks to the elevated vantage points. But they should understand the importance of the issue at hand and while licenses will add a layer of red tape to drone usage, India will not be unique in this aspect. In the United States, the Federal Aviation Administration has a set of strict rules for drones, including banning them from Washington, DC. In the United Kingdom, there is a virtual blanket ban on private unlicensed drone usage. While the Directorate General of Civil Aviation put together a draft framework for drone usage last year, the final policy is on the backburner, although the incident at New Delhi should bring it back to boil. The arrest of three foreigners in Delhi for flying a drone recently highlighted the security risk that drones posed, and India’s security establishment should invest in anti-drone systems, which are usually larger drones. Sure, wedding film-makers will protest at the implementation of new rules, but when their clients plane is delayed because of a drone, they will likely understand why the rules have to put in place.