Drone forces two flights to divert away from Dublin Airport
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Two airborne passenger jets had to be diverted to Belfast Airport on Friday afternoon after a drone was spotted near Dublin Airport, its operator has confirmed.
In addition, all flights due to take off were held for around 10 minutes until the all-clear was given.
One of the flights was an Aer Lingus flight from Frankfurt, and the other was a Ryanair flight from Birmingham.
A spokesperson for the Dublin Airport operator daa said in a statement: “Flight operations at Dublin Airport were suspended for around 10 minutes just after 12 noon on Friday following the confirmed sighting of a drone in the vicinity of the airfield.
“This led to two flights - one Aer Lingus flight from Frankfurt and one Ryanair flight from Birmingham - being diverted to Belfast.
“A number of other aircraft were required to hold for a very short period.” They added: “The public are reminded that it is illegal to fly a drone without permission within 5km of Dublin Airport.” It is understood that the daa’s new drone detection system is in place and up and running but was not needed as the drone left the area around the airport shortly after it was spotted.
In March, both daa CEO Kenny Jacobs and Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan said technology to bring down drones would be introduced in “weeks”.
The vow came after seven weeks of instances where drones had been detected within Dublin Airport airspace forcing it to close six times and leading to massive disruption and in some cases flights being rerouted to other airports.
Also in March, the government gave the daa permission to install anti-drone technology in the area which would allow them to take control of drones flying within 5km of the airport and either send them back to where they came from or to bring them down in a controlled manner.
Mr Jacobs said at the time the new technology would be in addition to a drone detection system that Dublin Airport has been operating around its perimeter for years.
In March, the government also said that it was considering tasking an existing State agency to select and deploy counter-drone technology more broadly to protect critical infrastructure, including airports, in the medium to longer term.
At the end of last year the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) warned that reckless use of a drone or inappropriate use of its camera may result in prosecution.
While launching its ‘Drone Safely this Christmas’ campaign last December, the IAA said that anyone buying a drone must register as an operator with the aviation regulator.
Jim Gavin, director of people and operations at the IAA, said at the time that drone use has increased significantly in recent years.
“Piloting a drone comes with responsibilities and no matter what their use or purpose, drones can raise challenges, from both safety and privacy perspectives,” Mr Gavin said.
“Operating a drone in public requires training, as they can have serious consequences if they are flown inappropriately, or collide with a person, an animal, or an aircraft.”