Drones threatening commercial a/c?
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From: WILTSHIRE
DCSI Jason Wigly (sp) , just interviewed by the BBC happened to mention " that there is also a possibility that there were no drones " ?????
edited to say he appeared a bimbling idiot
edited to say he appeared a bimbling idiot
Last edited by red9; 23rd December 2018 at 16:36. Reason: addition
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From: Enjoy the experimental gene therapy! Cya!
"Sussex Police say there is a 'possibility there was never a drone' despite finding damaged one near runway"
Almost as funny as the 'plastic bag drone' that bothered Heathrow a while ago!
Almost as funny as the 'plastic bag drone' that bothered Heathrow a while ago!
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From: Swansea
Joined: Apr 2004
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From: UK
So, the possibility there was never a drone? as in never a possibility in the claim of one appearing whenever it was supposedly last seen? or for the whole period LGW was on lock-down? that cannot be the case surely....that reporting must be a mistake or confusion of some kind?.
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From: Ferrara
This is the UK in late 2018 - anything can happen................ one thing for sure - if they DO arrest anyone else DCSI Jason Wigly will be the FIRST person the defence call...................
lack of photo coverage from the police (who normally leak like a sieve) maybe indicates that it's going to be an interesting investigation
lack of photo coverage from the police (who normally leak like a sieve) maybe indicates that it's going to be an interesting investigation
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From: Hampshire
I can think of one question Sussex police should be asked:
In the early stages of this saga, the police said that when the drone appeared and a police helicopter was put up, the drone would vanish. They seemed pretty confident at that time that a drone existed and was visiting Gatwick. And now not so confident? Hmm.
In the early stages of this saga, the police said that when the drone appeared and a police helicopter was put up, the drone would vanish. They seemed pretty confident at that time that a drone existed and was visiting Gatwick. And now not so confident? Hmm.
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From: Doncaster
"Sussex Police say there is a 'possibility there was never a drone' despite finding damaged one near runway"
Almost as funny as the 'plastic bag drone' that bothered Heathrow a while ago!
Almost as funny as the 'plastic bag drone' that bothered Heathrow a while ago!
He said there was "always a possibility" the reported sightings of drones were mistaken, However, he said officers were working on a range of information from members of the public, police officers and staff working at Gatwick who had reported seeing a drone.
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From: UK
Joined: Oct 2009
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From: somerset
Given the enormous pressure to find the culprit( assuming it wasn’t all false sightings and hysteria) then it seems perfectly reasonable for the police to question someone if there’s suspicion it could be them. It doesn’t have to be the police who leaked their names either- any neighbour, acquaintance etc can gossip on social media and the press pick that up in no time - it’s an awful consequence of the speed of communication and the lack of any self control in some people posting whatever they hear/see/think without actually knowing facts. In the past it was just gossip over the garden fence or down the pub- now it’s instantly spread to millions.
Joined: Jun 2009
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From: switzerland
No Drones at all??
According to both the BBC News Channel and the BBC News Webpage, there are no actual photos or videos of a drone over Gatwick Airport!!
a) This would make the determination of the type of drone exceedingly difficult.
b) It does raise the possibility that this is some kind of heightened sensitivity causing repeat mis-reporting.
a) This would make the determination of the type of drone exceedingly difficult.
b) It does raise the possibility that this is some kind of heightened sensitivity causing repeat mis-reporting.
Joined: Jun 2009
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From: switzerland
No Drones at all??
The Guardian is also reporting:
Confusion deepened as a senior police officer in the case said it was “always a possibility that there may not have been any genuine drone activity in the first place”. DCS Jason Tingley added that although the damaged drone was a significant line of inquiry, wet weather could have washed away evidence. He also noted that there were no pictures or video of the drone incursions into the airspace around Gatwick despite 67 sightings. He said there was “no available footage and [officers] are relying on witness accounts”.
Confusion deepened as a senior police officer in the case said it was “always a possibility that there may not have been any genuine drone activity in the first place”. DCS Jason Tingley added that although the damaged drone was a significant line of inquiry, wet weather could have washed away evidence. He also noted that there were no pictures or video of the drone incursions into the airspace around Gatwick despite 67 sightings. He said there was “no available footage and [officers] are relying on witness accounts”.
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From: Australia
I would suggest that the information supplied by crews and ATC would be on the whole reliable, being somewhat skilled at identifying what is around them and possessing documented levels of eyesight.
Last edited by currawong; 24th December 2018 at 14:18.
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From: Ferrara
Not necessarily - it's winter there - dark early (15:30 Zulu was lights on), and it's been a foul week for weather around LGW - I was there (or nearby) at the time - low cloud, showers, very poor light levels all day . There are birds, blowing trash bags, leaves in the air. It's very very hard to judge distances
Hard enough to spot a drone in a clear blue sky - and once one person says "is that a drone?" then you've got everyone pre-programmed to "see" one
I suspect that someone MAY have been flying drones around the area - one of the local guys told me there are a couple of oil well sites they've been protesting about a few kms away from LGW and the protesters use drones to spy on the oil works - but they may have been well outside the airfield boundary.
Hard enough to spot a drone in a clear blue sky - and once one person says "is that a drone?" then you've got everyone pre-programmed to "see" one
I suspect that someone MAY have been flying drones around the area - one of the local guys told me there are a couple of oil well sites they've been protesting about a few kms away from LGW and the protesters use drones to spy on the oil works - but they may have been well outside the airfield boundary.
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From: The Winchester
We don’t know (yet) if any of the reported observations were made by ATC and pilots.
There don’t appear to be any reports of confirmed sightings made by those equipped with binoculars/telescopes/image enhancement equipment.
There have been instances in the past of a flawed/mistaken observation of something being seen in the sky being published in a manner that has led to a cascade of “ copy cat” observations from other eyewitnesses.
I’d suggest until the authorities come up with something more concrete it is as valid a theory as to the chain of events at LGW as any other.
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From: Bristol'ish
Joined: Feb 2005
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From: UK
In many countries , there is the presumption of innocence and confidentiality of the investigation . Is that not the case in the UK ?
It it is the case then the person from either the police or the justice department that released the names and addresses to the journalists should face strong disciplinary action .
I fell very sorry for this couple, remember all too well when a similar cock-up ended in tragedy when a journalist released the name (and the village where he lived) of the air traffic controller working the aircraft during the Ueberlingen collision.
The father of one of the victims showed up in his house and stabbed him to death in front of his wife and kids. I always wondered how the person that leaked his name and the editor that published it still feel about it today ?
It it is the case then the person from either the police or the justice department that released the names and addresses to the journalists should face strong disciplinary action .
I fell very sorry for this couple, remember all too well when a similar cock-up ended in tragedy when a journalist released the name (and the village where he lived) of the air traffic controller working the aircraft during the Ueberlingen collision.
The father of one of the victims showed up in his house and stabbed him to death in front of his wife and kids. I always wondered how the person that leaked his name and the editor that published it still feel about it today ?
Joined: Aug 2002
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From: UK
Walking the North Cornwall coast path not too long ago, saw a guy on a headland who was clearly operating a drone about 400 metres ahead of us, kept eyes on it for ages. Walked onwards to pass him 5 mins later....... turns out he was photographing a Peregrine Falcon hovering and repositioning itself along the cliffs in darting manoeuvres. In fact it might have been 800m ahead or 300m when first spotted. Ranging is not easy without a surface reference point. Just saying.
Joined: Aug 2006
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From: Swansea
It was recently used to prosecute the "Stansted 15" - the anti-deportation protesters who surrounded an aircraft at Stansted. Its use in that case has attracted a lot of criticism in some quarters. The "15" were convicted and sentencing is expected in February.