Drones - Peter Burt in the Metro

at a UK installation, newly released files show. The unmanned aerial systems
were either sighted or secured at sites across the country amid concerns over
the security threat posed by the technology. Twenty such reports between 2020
and last year have been released to Metro.co.uk under the Freedom of Information
Act. In two instances, the drones landed ‘in the area’ and were secured by
personnel. Multiple other reports were made of the aerial vehicles near
facilities or nuclear objects such as reactors, boats and submarines. A passing
detail in another response shows there was a report of a swarm – where
interlinked drones take part in the same operation or attack – at a nuclear
licensed site in the UK. The incident took place between January 2014 and July
2020, according to the Office for Nuclear Regulation, which gave no further
details. The reports come at a time of heightened tensions between the West and
China and Russia, which have each been linked to concerted physical and cyber
spying operations in the UK. Peter Burt, who has studied drone use and is part
of the Nukewatch monitoring network, wants the UK authorities to provide a
fuller picture of the incidents and the potential threats posed. Mr Burt told
Metro.co.uk: ‘There have certainly been cases of coordinated swarms of drones
spotted flying over nuclear facilities in other countries, for example in
France and the United States, so this raises questions about the security of
our own nuclear facilities. I think it’s a legitimate question to ask whether
similar incidents have occurred in this country and, if they have, who do we think
is behind them? ‘I have had scant information back from the Ministry of Defence
when I have submitted Freedom of Information Act requests about this issue and
I think there is a clear public interest in more information being disclosed.’

Metro 15th
May 2022
https://metro.co.uk/2022/05/15/drones-reports-at-uk-nuclear-sites-include-a-swarm-and-red-lights-16633580/