– We have now conducted over 100 interviews as part of that investigation, says Amund Preede Revheim, section leader at the North Sea and Environment Section in the South-West Police District. Revheim emphasizes that they have a significant investigation underway. – We have used a lot of resources already, and are using significant resources, he says. Avinor has confirmed to Dagbladet that on Wednesday evening drones were seen over the Johan Sverdrup oil field in the North Sea, west of Stavanger. It is supposed to be about large drones, according to the newspaper. The pilots of two helicopters asked to turn around because drones were suspected in the area. – A danger we must avoid – This is done because of the safety of our passengers and crew. Unidentified objects in the airspace in which we operate pose a risk of mid-air collisions. This is a danger we must avoid, writes CHC’s general manager, Dag Johan Sætre, in a text message to news. The airspace around the Johan Sverdrup oil field was not closed, and helicopter traffic continued. On Thursday, traffic runs as normal. – We are aware that drone observations were made in the North Sea last night. This meant that some of the helicopters turned around, says leader of LO’s helicopter committee, Henrik Fjeldsbø. Difficult to investigate The police inform news that all observations are investigated and assessed by the police. There are difficult cases to investigate, says Revheim. – We carry out interrogations, obtain photos and videos and investigate who has been in the area. Since this is far out at sea, boats and planes are what are most interesting to us. Amund Preede Revheim. Photo: Sindre Kirkaas Normann / news Revheim says that the police appreciate vigilance from the public in the security policy situation we are in. – We want information about abnormal observations to be reported. It is important to document as well as possible when it comes to time, place, sky direction and weather conditions. We want the observation to be documented with a photo or video. – Definitely a risk Fjeldsbø in the helicopter committee describes the observations as “unwanted activity”. Henrik Fjeldsbø. Photo: Arild Eskeland / news – This is clearly a risk. It is unwanted and unidentified activity, and both pilots and passengers feel discomfort in relation to this. Fjeldsbø says that if new observations are made, the helicopters will be directed in other directions, or return to land or the rig. The helicopter company CHC transports offshore workers to oil and gas fields on the Norwegian continental shelf. Photo: CHC – The positive thing about yesterday’s incident is that we see that the systems are working. Observations are made, notifications are made and decisions are made on a safety-related basis. The helicopters are turning, and we are not taking any risks. Sissel Rinde, information director at Equinor. Photo: EQUINOR Equinor takes the matter seriously. Sissel Rinde is Equinor’s press contact, and writes to news that the company reports observations to the Petroleum Safety Authority and the police. – We take seriously the unidentified drone activity that has been observed at some of our installations and facilities. Furthermore, Rinde writes that, for security reasons, Equinor does not comment on the circumstances surrounding any observations.
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The police have made over 100 inquiries after drone observations – news Rogaland – Local news, TV and radio
