February 6, 2017, 2:21 pm | Read time: 4 minutes
More and more people are buying drones for personal use. In a few years, more than a million will be buzzing through the air in Germany alone. Police at home and abroad are increasingly preparing for drone defense–using both high-tech and low-tech methods.
It’s becoming more common for drones to buzz over the heads of Germans. By 2020, well over a million drones will be in operation in the country.
What many hobby pilots see as a pleasant pastime is a security issue for the police. Officers are increasingly called to accidents involving these mini flying objects or to deal with crimes committed using photo drones. Everything from voyeuristic flights over a neighbor sunbathing on her balcony to potential terrorist attacks is possible.
Experts discussed possible countermeasures in Kaufbeuren, Allgäu, at a conference organized by Bavaria and Israel. Just as there is a booming drone industry, an anti-drone industry is also emerging. Recently, Deutsche Telekom entered the market as a major player. The telecommunications company offers its business partners a “drone protection shield.” However, several smaller companies are also working on technology to neutralize dangerous drones as early as possible.
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Previously, drones were mainly known from the military sector, but now these “unmanned small aircraft” have entered private households. According to experts, this development is just beginning. In the next three years, the number of civilian drones in Germany is expected to triple to 1.2 million, reports Bavaria’s police inspector Thomas Hampel, citing current estimates.
Authorities are watching this development with concern. “This is a significant issue for internal security,” says Hampel. In Bavaria alone, 86 security-related incidents involving drones were recorded last year. The police are particularly concerned that terrorists might use the small helicopters for future attacks.
But even daily work in inspections is changing due to the sometimes multi-kilogram flying devices. The more drones buzz through the air, the more frequently accidents occur. Just a few days ago, a driver collided with a drone on the Munich Autobahn ring, and in November, a drone crashed near a family in Munich’s Olympic Park. There is a significant risk to air traffic. According to pilot reports, there is at least one risky encounter between an aircraft and a drone somewhere in Germany every week.
For its defense system, officially launched just over two months ago, Telekom now has around 90 customers, according to its own information. The target group includes companies with critical infrastructures such as data centers, operators of soccer stadiums, and large authorities. They can now “secure their premises against overflights by remote-controlled flying objects and thus prevent espionage, smuggling, and vandalism.”
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The technology for the protection shield largely comes from the specialized provider Dedrone in Kassel. Video cameras, radio scanners, and microphones are used to detect drones. The software allows drones to be reliably distinguished from birds, large helicopters, and other aircraft, Telekom promises.
But after detecting the flying object, the second–and ultimately decisive–step follows. There are several options for actual defense. The mini helicopter can be shot down, or a transmitter can disrupt the signals so that the drone crashes. There are also interceptor drones that capture the intruder with a net.
The Dutch company Guard from Above estimates that five percent of drones are used by criminals. To bring these flying objects down, the Dutch rely on a completely different “technology”–they train eagles. The Dutch police are already using the trained birds of prey. Guard from Above founder Sjoerd Hoogendoorn says he offers “a low-tech solution for a high-tech problem.”