Drones

[BennyD]

Like I said from the start; a massive overreaction, which is symptomatic of society today.

[BennyD]

Not your best day this, Benny.

You were saying.

[BennyD]

Is that so, Benny. Well, for me, this makes your previous comments look even more dunderheaded than they first appeared.

I've had the radio news on all day and I've yet to hear one expert say this is a "massive over reaction" like you claim it to be, Benny. But what the heck do they know, eh. Silly aviation experts.

You were saying.

[Billy Balfour]

You've won the internet, Benny. Well done.

[Hipper]

Apparently someone was questioning why the RAF couldn't just tip one over like they did with the V1

V2!

[Hipper]

What the police officer said was that there was no physical evidence for the drones - video etc. - but there were some 200 sightings and a possible damaged drone:

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/201 ... unications" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[JohnMac]

V2!

The V1 was the Doodlebug, the V2 was a bloody great Rocket or in reality an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile.

[bfcjg]

I can understand airports closing for this
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/authorities-c ... 17750.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
But a couple of old ducks looking for a pond to land in for a quick swim and over a hundred thousand people are screwed.

[BennyD]

You've won the internet, Benny. Well done.

It would be nice to hear you say you were wrong but, as Joey said, I doubt that’ll happen.

[Billy Balfour]

I thought you didn't care about what I said on here, BennyD. You do seem a tad hypocritical.

Remember this?

Debating sh!t like this with people like you means nothing to me. I don’t care what you think

[BennyD]

I don't care what you think because I knew you were talking bollocxs. Still, anyone who had been proven wrong should have the decency to admit it, but I know you won't. However, that's your failing, not mine. Merry Christmas.

[Rick_Muller]

I don't care what you think because I knew you were talking bollocxs. Still, anyone who had been proven wrong should have the decency to admit it, but I know you won't. However, that's your failing, not mine. Merry Christmas.

Smug mode initiated


lol

[FactualFrank]

I think somebody said it was a big overreaction. But it hasn't been. There were many sightings of a drone and all it took was an aircraft to take off and a drone to crash into it - and we could have been looking at 200+ dead. You don't take a chance with life, when something like that happens.

Overreaction? No. Should they have had something in place before now to deal with a drone? Yes.

[FactualFrank]

I was thinking the same last night Frank as I was watching them on the news. Film crews filming them as they came out of their house, it can't be right that these people were more or less accused of doing something they didn't and paraded in front of the nation.

Aclaret... seems it could be a possibility.

The couple arrested and released without charge in relation to the Gatwick drone incident could win at least £75,000 from the newspapers who identified them, according to a leading libel lawyer.

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews/c ... ar-BBRpVkg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[BennyD]

I think somebody said it was a big overreaction. But it hasn't been. There were many sightings of a drone and all it took was an aircraft to take off and a drone to crash into it - and we could have been looking at 200+ dead. You don't take a chance with life, when something like that happens.

Overreaction? No. Should they have had something in place before now to deal with a drone? Yes.

Of course it was an overreaction. There were, apparently, over 200 sightings (from various sources seeing the same drone) but no mention of how many in close proximity to the runway. Every aircraft that takes off faces the possibility of a bird strike from birds ranging in size from a sparrow to a buzzard but none of these birds have, by themselves, brought down an airliner. A flock of birds brought down the A320 that landed in the Hudson, but that was a freak occurrence and it is highly unlikely that a drone can bring down an airliner as they don’t tend to fly in flocks. If you are so scared of drones then my advice is don’t fly; there are things up there a lot more likely to kill you than drones.

[Hipper]

BennyD, whilst I respect your views, based on the experience you tell us you've had, but I wonder if you are bringing a bit of military 'gung ho' to the discussion.

You've made it clear, and I've no reason to doubt you, that a drone is most unlikely to bring down a modern passenger jet. It's all a matter of risk assessment and I understand that. However there is also the question of risk perception by joe public and the image of safety cultivated by the airlines and airports. There is also the consideration that, unlike a random bird strike, someone controlling a drone has some purpose behind flying it, and that purpose was unknown and could have included an attempt to damage flying aircraft. Imagine you are a passenger, not too keen on flying, that had heard of such a possibility.....

Cancelling flights was the right solution until control and a better understanding of the situation could happen.

[BennyD]

Whilst I appreciate your measured response, there is very little chance of anyone being able to guide a drone into a moving airliner and pilots aren’t just sat in the front for the view, they are making decisions in real time. The only real way to ensure a drone strike is to put it over either threshold at very low level. However, in such a case, a pilot taking off would hold on the runway until the threat was removed, and a pilot on approach would have the choice to ‘go round’ and come in again. The decision to shut down an International airport because of drone sightings in the ‘overhead’ was a massive overreaction and caused untold misery and disruption to hundreds of thousands of people, especially when the people dealing with the situation can’t even reliably inform the population that there was a drone in the first place. Btw, you will be pleased to hear that ‘gung ho’ isn’t, and never was, a flying style in commercial aviation. I’ve never known a pilot that wanted to die in an aircraft, and I certainly don’t.

[tiger76]

Another plonker this morning on the Severn Bridge,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-46720717