Drone Flies Dangerously Close to Canadian Airport
A pilot practices flying his "quadcopter" drone while wearing goggles connected to the small camera seen at the bottom center of the craft.Image: Mel Evans/Associated Press An unidentified drone flew dangerously close the flightpath at Vancouver’s international airport on Monday, prompting a search by police. The drone was flying over a runway when someone at air traffic control spotted it, according to local reports. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police searched the area, setting up road blocks, but were unable to find the pilot of the drone. The police said they might press charges for mischief and criminal negligence, if they do. “It puts people in danger and puts them at risk, puts the community at risk,” RCMP Sgt. Cam Kowalski said, according to CBC. “It’s incredibly dangerous and incredibly stupid, so we will investigate this every way that we possibly can.” This is the second time in less than a year that a drone has flown close to Vancouver’s airport. Last November, someone posted a video of a landing airplane shot from a drone, which prompted an investigation by Canada’s transportation agency. Canada has relatively lax rules concerning the use of drones. If the flying robot is under 77 pounds, its pilot can fly it freely as long as he or she keeps it within line of sight and doesn’t fly it too close to populated areas or restricted airspace. In the U.S., on the other hand, drones can’t be flown closer than 5 miles from an airport. Despite this rule, similar incidents have happened in the United States. Last year, an airline pilot spotted a drone a few miles from New York City’s JFK airport. More recently, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration revealed that a drone and an American Airlines jet came very close to crashing into each other 2,300 feet above the ground near the Tallahassee Regional Airport in Florida. For more on Mashable‘s coverage of unmanned aerial vehicles, check out Drone Beat. Read more: http://mashable.com/2014/07/02/drone-flies-dangerously-close-to-planes-at-canadian-airport/