Paris landmarks targeted in French night drone mystery

[BLACKEAGLE]

The Eiffel Tower was among several landmarks buzzed by drones in the French capital

Drones have been seen flying over several sensitive landmarks in Paris in a night-time mystery that French police say is being taken seriously.

At least five of the unmanned aerial machines were spotted between midnight on Monday and 0600 on Tuesday, and none of the operators has been caught.

The first appeared over the US embassy and there were later sightings near the Eiffel Tower and Place de la Concorde.

French police believe the drone flights could be linked.

Small drones are easy to buy but their appearance in recent months over sensitive locations has worried French authorities.

Last month a drone was seen over the Elysee Palace, home of President Francois Hollande, and in October a series of nuclear plants was targeted across the country.

The Invalides military museum was among the Paris landmarks that the drones flew over
An inquiry has begun into the drone flight over the US embassy, a short distance from Place de la Concorde. The Invalides military museum and the Bastille monument were also buzzed, reports said.

Flights over central Paris are banned below 6,000m (19,700ft) without authorisation and the drone was spotted some 100-300m above the US embassy, French media say.

"We did all we could to try to catch the operators but they weren't found," a police source told AFP news agency.

Drones are capable of providing high-quality aerial film. It is unclear whether they were being used maliciously or simply by enthusiasts.

Analysts say the authorities are more likely to be concerned that a member of the public could be hit by a drone than by any threat to security.
BBC News - Paris landmarks targeted in French night drone mystery

 

[BLACKEAGLE]

25 February 2015 Last updated at 11:03 GMT

Paris night drone mystery deepens

Some of the latest sightings were again around the Invalides military museum

Drones have appeared over landmarks in central Paris for the second night running and police are no closer to knowing who is operating them.

There were five sightings by between 23:00 on Tuesday and 02:00 (01:00 GMT) on Wednesday, French media report.

Up to three drones were seen near the Invalides military museum, Place de la Concorde and two of the old city gates.

Flying drones over Paris at night is illegal and daytime flights require authorisation from the city.

Five drones were seen the previous night in similar areas, including the Eiffel Tower and above the US embassy, close to Place de la Concorde.

However, some of the latest drone flights have been captured on film and will be analysed by a 10-strong team of investigators set up after the first incidents.

The new sightings were also on the fringes of central Paris, at the key transport gates of Porte de Clignancourt in the north and Porte de Saint-Cloud in the south-west.

Small drones are inexpensive and easy to buy but their appearance in recent months over sensitive locations has worried French authorities.

It is against the law for any aircraft to fly lower than 6,000m (19,700ft) over central Paris. Flying any aircraft under that ceiling - including drones, police helicopters, and air ambulances - requires permission from city authorities.

Flying a drone at night is banned completely.

Analysis: Hugh Schofield, Paris correspondent
The security threat from these drones is minimal. Bird's-eye images of Paris landmarks are available online in far higher quality than anything these devices could produce. And small, shop-bought drones are not strong enough to deliver a significant payload of explosives.

The more likely risk from these drones is that one might get out of control and crash onto a street, injuring a pedestrian or causing a car accident. That is the main reason why flying drones is banned over populated areas of France.

The police can not afford to ignore these overflights however. They are probably the work of drone enthusiasts giving the authorities the runaround, but not certainly. It could also be an organised group - eco-warriors or jihadists, for example - testing out how the security forces respond to drones.

Last month a drone was seen over the Elysee Palace, home of President Francois Hollande and in October last year, a 24-year-old Israeli tourist was fined €400 ($290) and spent a night in jail after flying a drone over the city's historic Hotel Dieu hospital and a police station.

Drones were also spotted flying over at least 13 nuclear power plants in France between October 2014 and January 2015.

Those flights were thought to be the work of environmental activists but no group claimed responsibility.

Greenpeace paraglided over a French nuclear site in 2012 in order to drop flares, and filmed the stunt with a drone. French interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve said at the time that methods were being developed to counter illegal drones, but did not go into detail.

Drones present a problem for authorities in built-up areas, in that shooting them down could endanger the public. It is possible to jam GPS or radio signals guiding them.
BBC News - Paris night drone mystery deepens

 

[DeltaForce103]

Considering you can literally buy a drone of Amazon, it may as well have been civilians trying to get aerial footage of Paris landmarks. A whole new etiquette and specialized security solutions need to be developed for the usage of drones in public areas as they are bound to become increasingly inexpensive.

 

[Waynefire]

As the previous poster mentioned, it could be a local wanting to get a look at the highlights of the city. However, at the same time it could be a terrorist who is scouting out something. It would be concerning because the terrorist have already mentioned they want to see Paris as one of the targeted cities.

 

[Scorpion]

3 Al-Jazeera journalists arrested for the night drones over Paris past 2 nights

Trois journalistes de la chaîne de télévision al-Jazeera ont été interpellés et placés en garde à vue après avoir fait voler un drone mercredi 25 février dans l'après-midi dans le bois de Boulogne à Paris, affirme l'AFP citant des sources proche de l'enquête.

Ces interpellations interviennent après le survol, deux nuits de suite, de drones au-dessus de Paris. Des vols qui ont donné lieu à l'ouverture d'une enquête par le parquet de Paris. "Aucun rapprochement n'est pour l'heure possible entre ces arrestations et les survols nocturnes", déclare l'une des sources à l'AFP.

"Le premier pilotait le drone, le deuxième filmait"
Les trois journalistes du service international d'al-Jazeera, dont la nationalité n'a pas été précisée, sont âgés de 34, 52 et 68 ans. Ils ont été interpellés vers 15h30 dans le bois de Boulogne, dans l'ouest de Paris.

"Le premier pilotait le drone, le deuxième filmait, le troisième regardait", selon cette source à l'AFP.

7 questions sur le mystérieux survol de drones à Paris
Par ailleurs, un restaurateur du nord-ouest parisien s'est fait confisquer mercredi son drone sur décision de justice, selon une source proche de l'enquête.

L'homme avait été interpellé mardi sur dénonciation d'un voisin pour avoir fait voler son drone lundi soir à Paris. Aucun lien n'a été fait avec les survols mystérieux signalés cette nuit-là.

Ce restaurateur a été présenté mercredi à un magistrat dans le cadre de la comparution sur reconnaissance préalable de culpabilité (CRPC), une procédure simplifiée dite du "plaider coupable". Son engin lui a été confisqué.

Les survols de drones sans autorisation sont interdits à Paris.

Paris : 3 journalistes d'al-Jazeera interpellés après un vol de drone - L'Obs