Another Heathrow drone attack in planning

[Mavic Mac]

This may have been posted in another thread or I may be posting in the wrong forum

Saw an article today that a splinter group of EXTINCTION REBELLION is planning another drone attack on Heathrow starting Friday, Sept 13 and lasting for a week, or longer. The plan is to fly the drones at head height to stop inbound and outbound flights.

Will have to wait and see if
A) They do it
B) If they do what new restrictions on drone ownership and operations will be put into place

Article originally was published in the Daily Mail Online

 

[kensteele]

why do they use a mavic for the stock pic in the article; the phantom looks so much more menacing as a rogue drone.

 

[Bill combs]

This may have been posted in another thread or I may be posting in the wrong forum

Saw an article today that a splinter group of EXTINCTION REBELLION is planning another drone attack on Heathrow starting Friday, Sept 13 and lasting for a week, or longer. The plan is to fly the drones at head height to stop inbound and outbound flights.

Will have to wait and see if
A) They do it
B) If they do what new restrictions on drone ownership and operations will be put into place

Article originally was published in the Daily Mail Online

i wonder if this is being done by anti-drone nuts or the gov in an attempt to gain public outrage and ban drones completely or restricting it even more?

 

[Meta4]

Will have to wait and see if ..
B) If they do what new restrictions on drone ownership and operations will be put into place

There are already well publicised laws against what they are proposing to do.
New laws wouldn't make any difference.

i wonder if this is being done by anti-drone nuts or the gov in an attempt to gain public outrage and ban drones completely or restricting it even more?

Obviously it's not.

 

[Peter Hughes]

This may have been posted in another thread or I may be posting in the wrong forum

Saw an article today that a splinter group of EXTINCTION REBELLION is planning another drone attack on Heathrow starting Friday, Sept 13 and lasting for a week, or longer. The plan is to fly the drones at head height to stop inbound and outbound flights.

Will have to wait and see if
A) They do it
B) If they do what new restrictions on drone ownership and operations will be put into place

Article originally was published in the Daily Mail Online

Hmmm, just the thing any rational person would do, plan a hugely disruptive and illegal operation and then publicise it in the Dail Fail! Wait and see I guess.

 

[zocalo]

A group claiming to be part of Extinction Rebellion was talking about doing something similar several weeks ago. Unsurprisingly, once it was pointed out that "endangering an aircraft" is a serious crime with lengthy jail terms and fines, *and* opens you up to *much* larger civil damages suits from Heathrow Airport (e.g. it will ruin your life), it all went quiet. I don't think this is going to be any different.

Also, this is clearly being reported as self-proclaimed members of Extinction Rebellion using drones as a means to an end, not reckless drone pilots. Same broad brush of tar, but not really aimed at our community, so I don't think we need get too worried about yet more anti-drone press here.

Quite frankly, it could even be a scam by someone looking to peddle some anti-drone technology / snake-oil to UK airports. It's not like the Daily Mail is known for its in-depth fact checking before going to the presses, and wouldn't be the first time they've been used as a useful idiot in this way.

 

[Slade]

This may have been posted in another thread or I may be posting in the wrong forum

Saw an article today that a splinter group of EXTINCTION REBELLION is planning another drone attack on Heathrow starting Friday, Sept 13 and lasting for a week, or longer. The plan is to fly the drones at head height to stop inbound and outbound flights.

Will have to wait and see if
A) They do it
B) If they do what new restrictions on drone ownership and operations will be put into place

Article originally was published in the Daily Mail Online

These people are dangerous and need to be made extinct. ?

 

[kensteele]

Unsurprisingly, once it was pointed out that "endangering an aircraft" is a serious crime with lengthy jail terms and fines, *and* opens you up to *much* larger civil damages suits from Heathrow Airport (e.g. it will ruin your life), it all went quiet. I don't think this is going to be any different.

yep, sounds about right. all you have to do is point out the huge fines and jail times to the criminals and they change their ways and have second thoughts. the solution to curbing crimes is to stiffen and increase the penalties and put criminals on notice and that will put an end to all this lawlessness and criminal activity.

huge ridiculous excessive fines are designed to punish law abiding citizens who happen to break the rules. criminals don't pay fines. i can understand if the $25,000 fine schedule were replaced with something that looked like this:

1st offense, $500 for flying your drone over 400 feet
$2,500 for second offense
$5,000 if it is careless
$10,000 if it is reckless

but it doesn't, instead we all know why the fines are so high.

 

[Peter Hughes]

A group claiming to be part of Extinction Rebellion was talking about doing something similar several weeks ago. Unsurprisingly, once it was pointed out that "endangering an aircraft" is a serious crime with lengthy jail terms and fines, *and* opens you up to *much* larger civil damages suits from Heathrow Airport (e.g. it will ruin your life), it all went quiet. I don't think this is going to be any different.

Also, this is clearly being reported as self-proclaimed members of Extinction Rebellion using drones as a means to an end, not reckless drone pilots. Same broad brush of tar, but not really aimed at our community, so I don't think we need get too worried about yet more anti-drone press here.

Quite frankly, it could even be a scam by someone looking to peddle some anti-drone technology / snake-oil to UK airports. It's not like the Daily Mail is known for its in-depth fact checking before going to the presses, and wouldn't be the first time they've been used as a useful idiot in this way.

Too true, hence their being known as the Daily Fail!

 

[zocalo]

yep, sounds about right. all you have to do is point out the huge fines and jail times to the criminals and they change their ways and have second thoughts.

I think you're missing my point; levels of fines and how they are applied isn't the the issue, it's that there's a world of difference between the kind of punishment this kind of protesters typically risk and what they're likely to get if they actually try this and get caught.

Members of Extinction Rebellion and similar movements often seem quite willing to risk a "slap on the wrist" type fine, or maybe a night or two in jail, in order to make their point. In this case, once it was pointed out that flying a drone over an airfield could carry a *much* stiffer penalty than they might get from, say, chaining themselves to some railings or blocking a public highway, the idea seemed to get scrapped. Keep in mind that post-Gatwick the chance of a lighter sentence or getting much public sympathy are also pretty much zero; examples will be made, and the media will villify them. Which doesn't seem like the kind of press that genuine Extinction Rebellion members would want.

 

[pagan1]

i wonder if this is being done by anti-drone nuts or the gov in an attempt to gain public outrage and ban drones completely or restricting it even more?

I have been thinking the same thing AS thing don't seem to add up as all the drone pic are of small drones EXCEPT the ones of the police drones used in the area all the time . extended flying time is a must here

 

[Slade]

I think you're missing my point; levels of fines and how they are applied isn't the the issue, it's that there's a world of difference between the kind of punishment this kind of protesters typically risk and what they're likely to get if they actually try this and get caught.

Members of Extinction Rebellion and similar movements often seem quite willing to risk a "slap on the wrist" type fine, or maybe a night or two in jail, in order to make their point. In this case, once it was pointed out that flying a drone over an airfield could carry a *much* stiffer penalty than they might get from, say, chaining themselves to some railings or blocking a public highway, the idea seemed to get scrapped. Keep in mind that post-Gatwick the chance of a lighter sentence or getting much public sympathy are also pretty much zero; examples will be made, and the media will villify them. Which doesn't seem like the kind of press that genuine Extinction Rebellion members would want.

Put these terrorists in a cell with a guy name Bruno. Let that sink in. No pun intended.

 

[gnirtS]

i wonder if this is being done by anti-drone nuts or the gov in an attempt to gain public outrage and ban drones completely or restricting it even more?

Neither. Its a load of unemployed, soap dodging unwashed hippies who want to take everyone back to the stone age.

 

[kensteele]

i don't know anything about the group. if they are real terrorists, nothing will stop them.

but i get your point, a lot of protestors simply trying to get attention need to be told where you draw the line, i get that. we do that here all the time in america.

 

[Meta4]

i don't know anything about the group. if they are real terrorists, nothing will stop them.

This group can cause a lot of trouble by doing what they have threatened.
They also get a lot of attention by simply threatening to do it.

 

[gnirtS]

The laws and resources are available to stop them. I'd query the will of the police to stop them though.
When the soap-dodgers blockaded major city centres this year for days on end the police mainly refused to act to reopen major roads and so on because of "human rights".

 

[zocalo]

This group can cause a lot of trouble by doing what they have threatened.
They also get a lot of attention by simply threatening to do it.

They're already getting a lot of attention. They're basically executing the "Civil Disobedience 101" playbook, in particular by blockading streets, bridges, offices of those seen as wrecking the environment, etc. in strategically chosen locations. With a few exceptions the general public can just go around the scene via a different route with minimal disruption, but it requires a suitable response from the police, etc. to move them on so the authorities have to take note, which is the entire point.

A few of them might get a slap on the wrist type fine, but the media coverage (and there's been lots of it) has generally been neutral to slightly positive since they are almost entirely passive, with (so far at least) no serious violence from either side. For gnirtS's benefit, from the coverage and one of the protests I've seen it's also definitely not the "unwashed hippy" set making up the bulk, although they are present. There are a lot of quite prominent politicians, celebrities, parents with young kids, and older school kids taking part as well; it's a complete cross-section of the public that think more needs to be done for the environment, and fast. It seems to be working too; I've been noticing their logo not just grafitti'd onto the usual walls/bridges, but also on placards in house windows, farm gates, etc. quite a bit lately. Not too many, but definitely starting to spread.

Basically, I don't think they need to falsely claim to be about to do a stunt like this, and since they are pretty big on gaining more public support, I don't think the majority of them *would* do it. The public backlash against Gatwick was significant, and that's definitely not what they seem to be after. Maybe a hardcore set that is more militant and sees air travel as a major pollutant might (they should look at maritime shipping or some forms of construction some time!), or someone looking to use them to further some other agenda as a black flag operation, but the core of the movement? I just don't see it.

 

[gnirtS]

Although im loathed to give these uneducated cretins any publicity, BBC did a very soft, non confrontational interview with them in the week. (Ignore the name Hard Talk, BBC hasnt had any quality interviewer capable of tearing into anyone for years. Paxman has gone, now even Andrew Neil has gone).

The drone threat is here:-

Go to roughly 18mins onwards for drone discussion where he repeatedly refuses to say they wont do it.

Most of the body are made up of unemployed unwashed hippies or rich kids living off their parents, none of whom have ever experienced the real world. Pretty much none of them have any formal scientific training in the field and none seem to actually have read the reports, the research or understand it. They just spit out soundbites and when pushed cannot back up any of the arguments.

I particularly like the hypocrisy of rich celebs flying in just to tell the mere mortals they shouldnt fly any more.

The idiots in Cardiff cost local businesses hundreds of thousands of pounds and many more people unable to get to work or actually do work due to where they blockaded roads.
It seems if i leave my car parked even on the side of a major road i can get fined but if i block the entire road for days deliberately the police have no issue with it.

Right to protest is fine but the second that protest costs other people money or time or affects people who ARENT interested in their nonsense the police should get involved and remove them. And apply the law evenly so the same fines for obstruction of highway, public order offences apply to them as it would apply to any normal member of the public.

 

[RayOZ]

This group is a bunch of pests. Some people, who don't contribute to society finds ways to disrupt it.
Just today, one of them shutdown traffic in Brisbane by abseiling down a bridge. It's not just drones, they would use whatever means to cause problems for everyone else, while claiming they are saving the world.

 

[offshorecl1]

Its a big con!!!