Police totally clueless on drones operating in Kerala
Moreover, web mapping services like Google Maps have minute details of the activities in the area.
Thiruvananthapuram: The police do not have the details of drones operating in the state as the permission is registered directly with the digital platform of the Director-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) named 'digital sky.'
Hence, City Police Commissioner Kori Sanjay Gurudin said that station house officers had been asked to prepare a list of those who use drone cameras in city limits following rumours of seeing drones near strategic locations of the city in the wee hours of Friday. The station house officers should make sure that operators follow the instructions of the directorate of civil aviation, he said.
However, the police are not still clear about the drone as the radars installed at the Air Force station at Mukkunnimala and the international airport did not record it. The headquarters of the Southern Air Command at Aakulam also did not detect any unusual radar activity on Friday. There was also no electronic evidence of such a drone, sources said.
The unidentified flying object (UFO) was allegedly sighted multiple times in the night skies between Kovalam and Kochiveli coastal areas. Though the police made an intensified search along the beach and nearby places, they could not find anybody operating the drone.
Moreover, web mapping services like Google Maps have minute details of the activities in the area.
The Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR), the set of regulations issued by DGCA, have to be complied with by all who use Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS), popularly known as drone, in controlled and uncontrolled airspaces.
A Unique Identification Number (UIN), which is the equivalent of a number plate, and an Unmanned Aircraft Operator Permit (UAOP) are required for all drones except those in the Nano category. They can fly up to a height of 400 feet during the morning time.
The DGCA will also allow model aircraft, with a maximum take-off weight of up to two kg and without any payload, to operate without UNIN provided they are flown below 200 feet and only inside the premises of an educational institution.