French government on high alert after unexplained drone flights over nuclear power stations
Source: Independent
An epidemic of mysterious – and potentially disturbing – drone flights over French nuclear power stations remains unexplained despite the recent arrests of three young model aircraft enthusiasts in central France.
The illegal flights by the tiny, pilotless helicopters, mostly at night, were initially dismissed as a nuisance. But a recent spate of five co-ordinated “visits” in one evening to nuclear reactors hundreds of miles apart has now placed the French government on high alert.
<snip>
An emergency inter-ministerial meeting has considered several possible explanations for the flights, ranging from the irritating to the alarming. This followed five drone incursions in the space of six hours at nuclear sites ranging from the Channel coast in Normandy to the Franco-German border in Alsace. The hundreds of miles between the flights suggested elaborate advance planning by a group of several people.
<snip>
Many of the flights have taken place at night but the authorities have filmed and photographed some of the intrusions. Officials say they have been surprised, and alarmed, by what the images have revealed. They are not the “toy” drones that can be easily acquired and operated from a smartphone. Up to 400,000 such drones are believed to exist in France. The intruders are something much more complex and expensive – helicopter-like drones with powerful engines capable of flying for dozens of miles. They have a triangle of three white lights, a larger red light and a searchlight, possibly linked to a camera, which throws intermittent beams of light on the “target”.
<snip>
Read more: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/french-government-on-high-alert-after-unexplained-drone-flights-over-nuclear-power-stations-9850138.html
= new reply since forum marked as read
I wonder if the physical configuration of these drones was a deliberate cosmetic choice, because a triangle of white lights with an inner red light is going to send UFO enthusiasts into a frenzy, although I can't immediately think why that would be desirable/advantageous to the drone operator. Hmmmm...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_triangle_%28UFO%29
Let's see, in the past 3 or 4 months alone.....
They have pissed-off their airline pilots for trying to outsource pilots who'll fly for pennies.
They have pissed off their farmers with farming sanctions against Putin.
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-10-25/whatever-we-decide-disaster-us-france-admits-putin-winning-europe-blinked
They have have pissed-off their citizens for a cop-killing of a austerity protestor.
http://rt.com/news/201179-france-activist-death-clashes/
They have pissed-off Putin for reneging on their contract and will have pay a huge fine. And get no monies.
They have pissed off the EU Parliament for busting their budget and thumbing their noses at them.
And they have apparently pissed-off the wine gods as the south of France has been inundated of late.
The CEO of their second largest industry was killed by a snow plow
And Hollande's populairty is plummeting due to his ''wanderings'' and for other stupidities.
- In fact, they should be well past high alert. They should be at [font size=4]ludicrous alert![/font]
