Police at British airports will be armed with drone-catching bazookas

Police at British airports will be armed with drone-catching bazookas which can trap rogue miniature aircraft in nets as fears grow of Gatwick copycats

  • Metropolitan Police at Heathrow are testing armed with drone-killing bazookas 
  • The SkyWall 100 counter-measure system designed to counter civil drone threat
  • It is lightweight and portable, so it can be used by a single operator on foot 

Police at Britain’s biggest airports are set to be armed with drone-killing bazookas in the wake of the Gatwick attack which grounded tens of thousands of passengers. 

Metropolitan Police at Heathrow Airport are testing anti-drone weapons which fire a mortar-like projectile containing a net to snare a flying drone within a range of 130 yards.

After the crisis that brought misery to more than 140,000 travellers last week, senior government figures have now agreed to enlist the use of military warfare technologies in a bid to stop copycat attacks. 

A team of officers at Heathrow have already been armed with the SkyWall 100 system (file photo)

THE COUNTER-DRONE BAZOOKA

The SkyWall 100 counter-measure system designed for civil drone threat.

It is lightweight and portable, so it can be used by a single operator on foot.

It uses compressed gas to power a ‘smart launcher,’ along with a programmable projectile.

After launch, a parachute floats the whole package safely down to the ground for collection.

So far, the SkyWall 100 is the first system that will be released.

Other models include the SkyWall 200, a semi-permanent device that can be carried by two people, and the SkyWall 300, a permanent installation.

Source: Openworks 

According to The Sunday Times, a team of officers at Heathrow have already been armed with the SkyWall 100 system, which will put into use in a matter of weeks. 

SkyWall 100 is a drone-capturing system which was developed three years ago by UK-based OpenWorks Engineering.

The operator mounts the bazooka-like mechanism onto a shoulder to locate the drone in question with the help of a smart scope.

While the operator closes in on the target, the scope provides constant feedback for a more precise aim.

The computer tracks the flight path of the drone, and calculates the necessary projectile trajectory to intercept it.

Then, the projectile is launched, opening up into a net in the air to capture the drone. 

A parachute then floats the whole package, including the projectiles and the drone, safely down to the ground for collection.

SkyWall 100 deploys a parachute after ensnaring the drone, so it can be recovered intact on the ground for intelligence gathering 

The operator mounts the bazooka-like mechanism onto a shoulder to locate the drone in question with the help of a smart scope (pictured). Then, the projectile is launched, opening up into a net in the air to capture the drone 

A parachute then floats the whole package, including the projectiles, and the drone, safely down to the ground for collection. This allows for capture of the drone without destroying it, so officials can perform forensic investigations

This allows for capture of the drone without destroying it, so officials can perform forensic investigations.

If the operator’s aim is off, and they happen to miss the drone, the parachute will still deploy and return to the ground so the parts can be reused.


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The counter-drone system can even be equipped with audible and visual alarms.

The creators say this system is cost effective, as it has a low initial cost and the projectiles can be refurbished and reused. 

With a new portable defence system by Open Works Engineering, capturing a drone has never been so easy. SkyWall can pinpoint and take a drone down bazooka-style – but using a net for capture and a parachute to safely fly it down, the intact object can be taken into custody for analysis

According to the creators, a system like this provides the optimal way to handle a potential drone threat.

‘The best way to neutralise a drone is to physically intercept it,’ Openworks says.

‘This neutralises any type of drone, whether flown manually or autonomously. SkyWall gives you a physical barrier in the sky.’

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