In front of a small sea of screens, slightly hidden at Oslo Lufthamn, sits one of Avinor’s new drone hunters. Sigurd Einar Aron Haugrud Rognan follows closely what is happening in front of him. – If we observe an unauthorized drone within the no-fly zone, the first action is to notify the tower at the airport, says Rognan. Drone hunter Sigurd Einar Aron Haugrud Rognan at Avinor’s monitoring center in Gardermoen monitors drone activity at Norwegian airports. Photo: Eirik Haukenes / news And if the drones are close to the airport, they call the police straight away so that they can move out and arrest the person involved. Because Avinor’s latest system captures drones more easily and quickly than was previously possible. Easier to catch drones and that’s exactly what happened to a drone that is in the police’s impound room in Møre og Romsdal. Chief of staff at the police in Møre and Romsdal, Thorry Aakenes, shows off a drone they have taken after an illegal flight Photo: Eirik Haukenes / news The pilot flew too close to an airport without first asking permission from the tower. Now a fine of NOK 12,000 awaits, and the drone may never be allowed to fly again. – There is a lawyer who will make an assessment on it, but now it has been seized, and then it will be assessed whether it should be destroyed, i.e. confiscated forever, says Chief of Staff Thorry Aakenes. Word about new system At Gardermoen, 60 miles away from the seizure room in Møre og Romsdal, are the people who discovered the drone. But drone manager at the Airport Operations Centre, Roar Svenkerud, is reluctant to talk about the system. – We can’t share too much about it, we can’t do that. The drone manager at the Airport Operations Centre, Roar Svenkerud, is inside the monitoring room at Gardermoen. Photo: Eirik Haukenes / news First out was Oslo Airport. They put the system into use in February 2022. Now several airports around the country have been connected to the system, but which airports have had the system installed, Svenkerud will keep it a secret. – It’s out there, that’s clear. We sit and monitor it. It’s important to know the regulations It buzzes from a drone that is on its way up into the air at the airport in Kristiansund. With the remote control in hand, Per Kvalvik can safely maneuver the tiny craft wherever he wants. Because as a professional drone pilot, he first asks the local control tower for permission to send the drone up. Per Kvalvik is a professional drone photographer and follows the rules. Here he is in the process of contacting the tower at Kristiansund airport to notify about drone flights. Photo: Eirik Haukenes / news – Now I’m applying to fly using the app called Ninox Drone, he says while filling in the necessary information. There are over half a million drones in Norway, and many owned by people who do not follow the regulations. – Those who fly illegally, we must get rid of them, says Svenkerud at the monitoring center at Avinor. These are the drone regulations: Photo: Luftfartstilsynet These are the drone regulations: Hans Petter Heimro is an aircraft operational inspector at the section for unmanned aviation at the Norwegian Aviation Authority. He tells news that the most important thing before firing up the drone is to register as a drone operator. This applies to anyone who is going to fly a drone over 249 grams, OR has a camera on the drone. This will therefore apply to the vast majority of people who will fly with drones. There are also requirements for insurance for such drones. – Norwegians must register at flydrone.no. While those who live in EU countries, such as Sweden, must be registered in their home country. 20,450 people have registered in the Norwegian register. Among them are 3,080 foreign citizens. If the drone is over 249 grams, you must also take an online course with an exam to learn the various rules. You also have to pay a fee. There is no requirement for an exam if the drone is under 249 grams, even if it has a camera. The Norwegian Civil Aviation Directorate is now working on getting a common register system for the Schengen countries in Europe. Those coming from outside Schengen, including the UK, must register directly in Norway. – Those who do not live in the EU, or in the Schengen area, must register in the EU country they will first fly to. If this is in Norway, they must register at flydrone.no, says Heimro. Where can you fly? – There are many different rules about where it is allowed to fly and where it is not allowed to fly. Something we are very concerned about is that it is not allowed to fly closer than five kilometers from an airport, without permission from the control tower there, explains Heimro. He also emphasizes that it is not allowed to fly over military territory. In addition, there are a number of rules about distance to other people, buildings over which you have no control and rules against flying over roads and other infrastructure. Read more about the drone regulations in Norway. Drones can be dangerous for aircraft Last year, Avinor’s drone hunters registered 1,450 illegal drone flights at Norwegian airports. And the small drones easily become a threat to large aircraft. Drone that is used by the professional drone pilot Per Kvalvik. He is careful to notify the nearby airport in advance. Photo: Eirik Haukenes / news When a drone is discovered inside the restricted zone, it can lead to major delays in air traffic, sometimes runways have to be closed completely. Svenkerud says that the worst consequence is if the drones hit a plane. Therefore, a safety zone of five kilometers has been created around all airports, and it is also not allowed to fly higher than 120 meters above the ground. – We have discovered drones that have been 3-4,000 meters up in the air, says Svenkerud. There is other air traffic that travels there. Drones must give way At Kristiansund Airport, the professional drone pilot Per Kvalvik is on his way down with his drone. – I received a message from the control tower: Land now! Unexpected traffic is on its way in, he says. And that is exactly what Avinor wants everyone to do. Drone pilot Per Kvalvik in Kristiansund takes down his drone after being notified by the airport tower that an unexpected aircraft is coming in. Photo: Eirik Haukenes / news Svenkerud says they see a big difference between the professional drone pilots and those who operate on a hobby basis when it comes to following the rules. – We see that some hobby pilots are probably ignorant, and a few who just hitch a ride, says Svenkerud. Regardless, it has consequences. If you are caught, fines and confiscation of equipment await. Foreigners can be sent out of the country.
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Here are Avinor’s new drone hunters who will stop illegal drone flying at airports – news Møre og Romsdal – Local news, TV and radio
