DRONES

We tend to think of drones as military bits of kit, that are used in far away places such as Afghanistan and Pakistan. However, technology is technology; and once the genie is out of the bottle, it is hard to put it back in.

This week saw the first conviction in Denmark of someone breaking the drone laws. These are in fact quite extensive; drones must fly at least 150 meters from any building or public highway, cannot fly higher than 100 meters, must be at least 5 km from a civilian aerodrome and 8 km from a military one, and must not put anybody's lives or property in danger. In built-up areas and similar (such as festivals, campsites etc) they are forbidden.

The man in question, who was fined kr.3,500, had got his drone to fly around his neighbourhood and look in through people's windows. It was the first such fine in Denmark; I suspect there will be many more in the future.

Walter Blotscher