UAE tightens regulations on drone importation

UAE aviation regulators will no longer allow the importation of drones that fail to meet the specifications for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
This after UAE airports were estimated to have incurred losses of about Dh350,000 (SR357,386) for every minute air traffic was halted due to unauthorized drone activity in their airspace.
Dubai international airport was closed thrice last year as the drone incursions upset flights at one of the world’s busiest aviation hubs: a 30-minute stoppage each in June and September and a longer 115-minute closure in October, which delayed 40 flights.
The third incident also forced nearby Sharjah international airport to shut its airspace for an hour and twenty minutes.
Last week, UK aviation authorities were forced shutdown a runway after drone flew close to London Gatwick airport, which affected several British Airways and easyJet flights.
Drones will not be allowed into the UAE market unless “it has a certificate of adherence to specification released by us and our stakeholders, such as the UAE Ministry Interior, Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, and the General Civil Aviation Authority,” Essa Al-Hashmi, the director of conformity department of the Emirates Authority for Standardization and Metrology, said.
“Our new standards will come into effect from mid-September following which all drones will need to have a unique serial number. Therefore, no drones will be allowed to enter the country that do not meet our specification,” Al-Hashmi said.
The new UAE standards also impose that leisure and commercial drones should not have video or voice recording capabilities and a system to track their geographical location would also be required.
Drone models used research and development as well as security purposes will be exempted from the new specifications.
Those caught breaking the UAE’s drone law risk up to three years jail time and a fine of up to Dh100,000.
“A flying object near any aircraft is considered to be an uncontrolled risk,” Ismail Al Balooshi, assistant director general of safety at the General Civil Aviation Authority, earlier said.
“The natural action is to shut down the area. In this instance it would be the termination of all flights to and from that specific airport.”

Source: Arab News