📋 Tender Overview
The presence of birds, balloons, kites and laser rays near airports has always been a constant concern for those responsible for air operation worldwide. In recent years, a new external interference has entered the radar of the authorities: the drones. To deal with this growing challenge, the federal government has launched a manual that details procedures to identify and capture these remotely piloted aircraft, contributing to the mitigation of risk to air transport.
Brazil has a solid experience in mitigating external risk to aviation, especially those related to fauna. However, drones represent a new and significant challenge, given their metal structure, which can cause serious damage to aircraft highlights Raquel Rocha, coordinator of operational safety and load of the National Civil Aviation Secretariat of the Ports and Airports Ministry.
Drones flying over areas near aircraft routes can cause various inconvenience such as cancellation of flights and even aeronautical incidents, impairing passengers and the entire air modal.
Prepared within the Brazilian Aviation Security Team (Baset) manual for the identification and capture of drones in airport environments aims to support civil aviation organizations in promoting safety, emphasizing the importance of secure practices and highlighting legal, normative, technical and operational responsibilities. It offers a solid foundation for the adoption of good practices in facing this emerging and constant evolving issue.
According to Raquel, the publication suggests educational campaigns, but also guides the use of equipment to prevent the presence of drones, such as capture nets, electromagnetic pulses, collision drones, high pressure water cannon, viscous foam and even birds of prey trained to capture these devices. There are also preventive measures pointed out by the manual such as Geofencing - a georeferenced barrier that warns the drone operator when entering a forbidden area.
In addition, a step by step on how to deal with incidents is also presented, detailed in steps ranging from object identification to investigations, underfalls such as verification of the incident, decision making, response and restoration of the service.
Incidents incidents with drones are not recent. Between 2013 and 2022, at least nine episodes were recorded in which unmanned aircraft endangered the operation of airports, the safety of political authorities and even refineries.
The manual plays light on the legality of drone neutralization, which finds considerable legal barriers - drones slaughter by the armed forces is allowed only in exceptional cases and strict compliance with a legal duty that provides for the prior use of interception or capture measures. The slaughter () law does not apply to drones, preventing the overthrow of these devices by gunfire on soil.
The full manual is available at (click on the link to access).
Special Advisory of Social Communication Ministry of Ports and Airports
