Unauthorised drone-flying over Changi Airport causes 37 flight delays

SINGAPORE — The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) said that “unauthorised drone-flying” over the Changi Airport had caused 37 flights to be delayed over the past two days, while one arrival flight had to be diverted to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

In a statement on Wednesday (June 19) evening, the authority said that the operation of one of the two airport runways was suspended for “short periods of time” between 11pm on Tuesday and 9am on Wednesday, “to ensure the safety of aircraft operations and passengers”.

During that time, Changi Airport continued to operate with one runway while operations on the other runway were suspended.

In total, 37 scheduled departure and arrival flights were delayed.

CAAS could not disclose how many drones were flying and it is not known who the operator is.

Investigations are ongoing, the authority added.

A multi-agency team including the CAAS, Changi Airport Group, Singapore Armed Forces and the Singapore Police Force was earlier activated for search-and-locate operations.

The flying of drones without a permit is banned here if they are flown within 5km of airports or military airbases, or at altitudes above 200ft (61m).

CAAS said that errant operations of unmanned aircraft may “pose threats to aviation or endanger the personal safety of others”.

It warned that anyone found contravening regulation could face a fine of up to S$20,000 or a jail term of up to 12 months, or both.