– If you have a hammer in your hand, you want to hammer in a nail. I had a drone in my hand. This is what the Russian man answered in the courtroom on Monday, when asked why he had flown with a drone in Kirkenes. He is on trial for breaching the sanctions regulations after flying a drone on Norwegian territory. The trial is being held in Nord-Troms and Senja district court in Tromsø, where the man was arrested on 15 October, one day after the actual drone recording took place. Since then he has been in custody in the same place as another Russian accused of drones, the oligarch’s son Andrey Yakunin. Yakunin’s trial starts on Tuesday. On Monday, Norway’s ambassador was also summoned to the carpet in Moscow. The reason must be precisely that several of their citizens have been arrested for flying drones. They call the arrests “Russophobic”, according to the Tass news agency. The man explained in court on Monday that his employer, a Russian supervisory body for the environment, technology and nuclear power, paid for the trip. He was on his way to Svalbard to carry out an annual inspection of mining operations in the Russian settlement of Barentsburg, he said. The man said he has photography and drone flying as hobbies. The picture shows the Sydvaranger mine in Kirkenes. The man himself works to inspect mines for security purposes.Overview of Kirkenes The man told the court that he saw, among other things, a Russian boat in Kirkenes, and wanted to capture pictures of it with the drone.Another overview of Kirkenes. I believe it was done on a hobby basis. The prosecution has no evidence that the man may have been in Norway with the purpose of espionage or intelligence. PST nevertheless believes that it is important to mark this type of case with unconditional imprisonment due to so-called general preventive considerations. – It is important to mark this with unconditional imprisonment to avoid that there will be more cases of drone flights by Russian citizens, says police attorney Kathrine Tonstad to news. Kathrine Tonstad represents PST in the trial. PST believes the man must be sentenced to an unconditional prison term. Photo: Knut Anders Finnset / news PST, however, does not believe that the man’s role as an inspector in a Russian state body is relevant in this case. – As we see it, there is a defendant who has used the drone for purely hobby use. He likes to take pictures. There is no claim that there is anything more behind this case. His position is not particularly relevant in relation to the use of drones, says Tonstad. Facts about the flight ban There has been a flight ban for Russian flights in Norwegian airspace since 28 February 2022. The ban applies to all types of flying, such as commercial scheduled flights, helicopter flights and flying with drones. The restrictions mean that it is not permitted to fly to/from or over Svalbard, Jan Mayen and the Norwegian mainland. The restricted area also includes the airspace above Norwegian maritime territory (the sea area from the baselines out to 12 nautical miles). Between the restricted areas that have been established, there is international airspace where all aircraft have the opportunity to fly, including Russian ones. The restrictions apply to all aircraft operated by Russian airlines, including where there is code-sharing with other airlines, and regardless of whether the aircraft are registered with a Russian or foreign registration mark. Code sharing, or in Norwegian route cooperation, is a cooperation agreement between two or more airlines where, for example, one airline sells tickets for the flight, and another actually operates the flight. In addition, the restrictions will apply to any aircraft owned, leased (chartered) or otherwise controlled by Russian citizens or companies. Upon application, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs can waive the flight ban, for example for humanitarian flights. Emergency landings are not covered by the ban. Source: Norwegian Civil Aviation Authority. – No reaction at the border control What there is evidence for, and which the man has acknowledged, is that he has flown a drone on Norwegian soil. As a Russian citizen it is illegal. The man explained that he has photography as a hobby. In addition to the drone images, he has also photographed in and around Tromsø Airport, and taken pictures of Bell helicopters in Kirkenes. He also explained that he has a special interest in aircraft, and according to him, the airport in the city he lives in is decorated with photos that he has taken. The man said that he, his wife and their families come from Donetsk, which is now in Ukraine. During their upbringing, this was part of the Soviet Union. He has served in the Russian armed forces, and received his education there. When the Union dissolved, the man automatically became a Ukrainian citizen. He quickly applied for Russian citizenship instead, and was granted it, he said. Ola Larsen is the man’s defender. He believes that any punishment must reflect that the man has only flown a drone on one occasion. Photo: Knut Anders Finnset / news The defendant also claimed that no one in the border control at Storskog reacted or commented that he had brought a drone into Norway, despite the fact that all assets were checked. Nobody should have informed him that drone flying was prohibited for him as a Russian citizen. Based on this, the man could not have known that it was not permitted for him to fly a drone in Norway, explained his defender Ola Larsen. Larsen believes that a possible punishment should be milder than the one given in the case that went to Hordaland district court earlier in November. There, the drone pilot was sentenced to 90 days in unconditional prison. He had flown the drone in 16 different places, while the man who is on trial in Tromsø only has the drone in one place on the same date, in Kirkenes. – The family is suffering The accused man is said to have shared some of the drone images on the Russian social media VK. This proves that he did not know it was illegal, the defendant and the defense believe. When the man was approached by the police, he got scared and deleted the drone images from his account. Nevertheless, some of the visual material from the trip to Norway is out on the internet, he believes. – When it dawned on me that I had done something that was forbidden for Russian citizens, I was very scared. I don’t quite remember what I did then, the man said in court about when the police approached and later arrested him. – I wouldn’t have brought the drone if I knew I couldn’t use it in Norway. The man also indicated that his family has ended up in a difficult situation as a result of the case. He said that he is the sole breadwinner for his family with his wife and two minor children, and would not have exposed them to such a risk if he had known about the rules. Now they have no income and are having a hard time, according to him. The man brought pictures of himself and his son with him, and was clearly affected and cried when the first day of the trial was over. PST ultimately believes that the man himself should have been aware of the flight ban. On Tuesday, PST will present what they believe will be a reasonable punishment for the man. The defendant did not want to be interviewed by news. All quotes from the defendant are reproduced from his statement in the courtroom.
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Russians who flew a drone in Kirkenes deny criminal responsibility – were on a business trip for the Russian authorities – news Troms and Finnmark
