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Heathrow installs anti-drone system that can locate UAV pilots
- dang 7y agoUrl changed from https://www.engadget.com/2020/01/14/heathrow-airport-anti-drone-system/ https://www.engadget.com/2020/01/14/heathrow-airport-anti-dr..., which points to this.
- aussieguy1234 7y agoThe first link wasn't paywalled, but the new link is
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- skunkworker 7y agohttps://outline.com/qLzUjp https://outline.com/qLzUjp
- pmoriarty 7y ago"Away from transit hubs, common [drone-disabling] solutions include the use of radio waves to jam the signal used by a pilot to control a drone, or take over control of the unit. Other methods include dispatching eagles or giant nets to pull craft out of the sky." Wait... drone-catching eagles? Is that for real? If so, I wonder how the eagle's trained how how its target is communicated to it. It's not like drones are an eagle's natural prey. I'd love to see a video of an eagle catching a drone in action.
- codyogden 7y ago> drone-catching eagles? Is that for real? Yes. It's definitely for real. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5DEg2qZzkU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5DEg2qZzkU
- mongol 7y agoThat is amazing. I don't understand how they can not be hurt by the rotors though.
- TkTech 7y agoThese aren't gas powered or industrial drones, they're used against things like the DJI Phantom. The Eagle's claws are far, far stronger then the blades and the low torq. They can also be given titanium talons like police dogs, if it becomes necessary.
- jsjohnst 7y agoI’ve been hit by the blade of a DJI Phantom before on the arm. It didn’t break the skin or cause bleeding, but did leave a welt (and was obviously a bit painful).
- hackcasual 7y agoThe Dutch retired their drone eagles. They're not used very often and the upkeep is quite extensive
- matheusmoreira 7y ago> use of radio waves to jam the signal used by a pilot to control a drone Aren't jammers illegal? This could also cause a crash if the drone is being piloted in real time.
- pinkfoot 7y agoSurely any drone pirate worth his/her salt would use a CDMA radio?
- StavrosK 7y agoNo, that's too high latency to control the drone reliably after GPS is jammed (and if it's not jammed, the drone will just return to you when it loses signal anyway).
- pinkfoot 7y agoRadio waves, traveling at the speed of light, have too much latency?
- StavrosK 7y agoOh you meant setting up a CDMA base station somewhere, faking a cell tower and controlling the drone that way? I misunderstood, that sounds like a practical and affordable solution that will surely escape detection and be better than a $50 handheld controller.
- MacsHeadroom 7y agoI wouldn't be so certain that setting up a fake cell tower would escape detection. You'd have people triangulating your position and preparing enormous fines as soon as you turned it on, well before controlling a drone with it. Unless you were being sarcastic? It's hard to tell on the internet.
- 7y ago
- panarky 7y agoCan't locate the pilot if the drone is autonomously following GPS waypoints.
- onion2k 7y agoDrones still send and receive data from the controller in autonomous modes (the user couldn't cancel the flight otherwise) so they probably still can.
- StavrosK 7y agoYou can build your drone to do whatever you want, including continuing the flight if signal is lost. It's all open source software anyway, and cheaper than a closed-source DJI or whatever.
- MacsHeadroom 7y agoNot necessarily. Plus drones can easily be controlled over cellular internet. I don't know about the UK, but where I am it's easy to get a 4G SIM preloaded with data using bogus personal information.
- jowsie 7y agoYou don't need any personal data in the UK. They're 50p in the shops. You do need to activate them with an over the counter top up though. They accept cash.
- holoduke 7y agoI could make a 2 meter wingspan drone (plane) for under 1000 dollars. That drone will have a range of about 200km. An avarage airspeed of 100km/u and payload capacity of 5kg. It flies autonomously using GPS. It still can (to a lesser degree) without by using barometer and compass. You can use special equipment to spoof or disrupt GPS signals. But no way that will work on long distances. My point is. If you want to fly over an airport and drop a bag of eggs it's perfectly possible. Even with all the counter measures taken at such places.
- michaelt 7y agoSure, but if only 50 people in the country ordered a rare Model X drone with a Model Y flight controller and a Model Z battery, the net could close in pretty quickly. Especially if your environmentalist views are on record. On the other hand, if you used a mass-produced bestselling drone, tracking you down will be a heck of a lot more difficult.
- detritus 7y agoWhat controls do state actors in Britain have over otherwise banal tech orders from China, in order to trace them post hoc?
- pasabagi 7y agoI think you could quite easily make something out of generic parts. The traditional material for remote control planes is tissue paper and balsa wood. The controller could almost certainly be made with a generic micro-controller, and battery cells are more or less the same whether they come from a phone or a drone (afaik).
- londons_explore 7y agoI was under the impression most people wanting to be malicious with drones will make them controlled by LTE over the internet so they can be hundreds of miles away.
- tonyedgecombe 7y agoThe funny thing is there is still some debate about whether there actually was a malicious drone flying around Gatwick.
- StavrosK 7y agoYeah, I'm not sure I buy this story. Someone with enough experience to build a drone would be unlikely to go bother an airport for no benefit, and some idiot buying a random DJI drone wouldn't be able to get near the airport as DJI drones refuse to fly within a few km of an airstrip.
- tpmx 7y agoLooks like it's this system: http://www.aveillant.com/products/gamekeeper-16u/ http://www.aveillant.com/products/gamekeeper-16u/