U-Flyte’s PI Tim McCarthy chairs and presents at the world’s first Drone Disruption Summit held at Heathrow, London on October 15th 2019.
About the summit
“The drone industry is booming with a forecasted 218% increase in sales between 2016 and 2020. With the increased number of drones, comes the increased potential for their misuse, pilot reports of drone encounters have increased 1,220% since 2013 in the U.S.
The two-day shutdown at Gatwick Airport on the 19th December 2018 cost airlines $64 million. Since the initial shutdown, there have been several well-publicized similar events in Dubai, Milan, Frankfurt, and Newark showing the drone attacks in December were not a one-off occurrence.
The drone threat has prompted Gatwick to invest in technology worth $6.5 million in the 2 weeks the attack. MPs have since stated that the government is legislating for the purchase of drone detection technologies. International aviation organizations have not yet widely adopted counter-drone technology, leaving airports vulnerable to drone threats and incursions.
These events have raised the profile of the disruptive powers of drones, and airport management teams and governments are aware that they need to step in.
The Drone Disruption Summit explores the spectrum of threats and opportunities that drones present to the aviation industry and the actions that can be taken to mitigate the risks of nefarious drones.”