ELOM:2023:019 | Drone flight in CTR outside the daylight period | North Holland
Decision: 15 August 2023 PPS North Holland
Aviation case category: Unmanned aviation
Formal links: -/-
Content indication: Settlement proposal for flying in the Rotterdam CTR outside the daylight period not accepted. Sentencing by the court in line with PPS’s demand.
PPS Decision
in the case against a drone operator, referred to below as the suspect.
Reason for the investigation
The investigation was launched after a police officer spotted a drone flying outside the daylight period in a no-fly zone.
Suspected offence
Violation of Article 7 (1) Unmanned Aircraft Regulations and Article 18(1) Air Traffic Decree 2014.
Facts and circumstances
Based on the documents, it can be established that a police officer saw a drone flying in the Rotterdam CTR on [date in year] 2022 at around 9.30pm in The Hague. When this drone fell to the ground, the suspect approached the police officer to say that he was the owner and operator of the drone.
The police officer saw that the drone was a DJI Mini Pro 3. The suspect was found to have registered as an operator of the drone with the RDW. The daylight period was well past [around 9.30pm] on [date in year] 2022.
The suspect stated during his questioning that he was not aware that he was not allowed to fly there because the app he used indicated that it was a green zone and did not block the flight. He did not intend to fly his drone for a long time. He just wanted to see what his son was doing. It only became clear to him after the flight that he was flying in a no-fly zone and that it is not permitted to fly between sunset and sunrise.
Decision
On 27 March 2023, the PPS issued a €150 settlement proposal to the suspect for flying (outside the daylight period) in the Rotterdam CTR. It was taken as a mitigating circumstance that the suspect was flying in the edge of the CTR and at an altitude of about 10 metres.
The suspect did not accept this proposal. The PPS therefore decided to take the case to court. The suspect was summoned to the aviation hearing on 15 December 2023.
At the court hearing, the public prosecutor demanded that the suspect, who had not appeared, be sentenced to a fine of €180, in the alternative three days' substitute custody. The court sentenced the suspect in accordance with that demand.