(a) whether the Government has brought out any specific policies or guidelines to prevent drone threats to airports and if so, the details thereof;
(b) whether the Government has mandated a standardized operating protocol across airports in India to ensure that drone attacks do not happen; and
(c) if so, the details thereof?
The Minister of State (IC) in the Ministry of CIVIL AVIATION
(Shri Hardeep Singh Puri)
(a) to (c) Civilian flying of drones is regulated through Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR) Section 3 - Air Transport Series X Part I issued by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation on 27.08.2018. The CAR on civilian flying drone became effective on 01.12.2018 and mandates that drones should fly in the visual line of sight in day conditions. The CAR, inter-alia, seeks to ensure the security of vital installations including airports.;
In keeping with the provisions of the CAR, the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) has prepared a template for Security Programme for Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) vide AVSEC order 10/2018. Further, the Ministry of Home Affairs in May 2019 has issued Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for handling of threats from sub-conventional aerial platform like microlites, hang gliders and Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS), commonly known as drone, to provide protection to vital installations in the country . In order to regulate rogue drone activities and strengthen the existing security mechanism, the National Security Council Secretariat(NSCS) has issued National Counter Rogue Drone Guidelines on 11.09.2019 which have been uploaded on the Ministry of Civil Aviation website.