Click to see a picture of a drone
A large red drone, flying too high, was seen by pilots only about 60m from the wing tip of the AirNZ plane. This is not only illegal but also dangerous. The plane was flying from Christchurch to Auckland with 166 passengers on board. The plane has just taken off from Christchurch airport at about 5.45pm on Friday evening, and was climbing to 6,000 feet. Fortunately the pilot saw the drone and was able to avoid it.
People flying unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) or drones are not allowed to fly above 120m (400 feet )or in an airspace used by commercial planes. The operator of the drone must have a clear view of it at all times. Although it was not yet dark, it was cloudy at the time and impossible for anyone on the ground to see it.
Pilots are worried about UAVs. They are worried there will be an accident if operators of UAVs break the rules. The CAA – Civil Aviation Authority and Police are investigating. They want to find the operator and make sure this situation never happens again.
Finally, did you remember to change the time last night? We moved our clocks one hour forward for summer time. Click here to find out more about Daylight Saving.
Vocabulary
• illegal (adj) – not legal, against the law
• wing tip (n)– the end of the wing (compare pencil tip)
• unmanned (adj) – no pilot, no man flying it
• aerial (adj, n) – in the air
• operator (n) – person controlling a machine
• investigate (v) – try to find out (especially a crime)