SEAFARERS using recreational drones while at port could find themselves in trouble in a number of countries, but Australia may be an exemption.
A recent case documented by Gard, a marine insurance P&I club, saw a ship’s officer arrested, fined, and threatened with deportation in Norway for flying his personal drone over a commercial port.
The officer, a European national, engaged in the activity whilst their vessel was berthed, and was in breach of Norwegian legislation, which stipulates all drones must be registered and have undertaken the necessary exams prior to use.
Further incidents in the Scandinavian country have seen Russian citizens detained for flying drones near certain sites, including oil platforms and airports, including an incident in which an individual with dual Russian and British citizenship was jailed for flying a drone in Svalbard.
As to whether seafarers could land themselves in similar trouble for flying drones over Australian ports is a slightly more complex question, and dependant on several factors.
It must be noted firstly that it is not required to register a drone in Australia if intending to fly it for recreational purposes.
The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA), a branch of the Australian Government responsible for overseeing aviation safety, outlines the set of rules and restrictions for recreational drone operators.
Airports, military areas, marine parks, populous areas, and helicopter landing sites are listed as areas where drone flying is either not permitted or is subject to certain restrictions.
However, ports and their terminals are not listed as drone-prohibited areas by CASA. For example certain areas of some of Australia’s major ports, including the Port of Melbourne and Port Kembla, are listed as “Safe To Fly” by CASA’s official AALTI drone safety app.
Port Botany and the majority of the Port of Brisbane are both listed as “Do Not Fly” zones by CASA, but this is because they happen to be covered by drone restrictions in areas surrounding controlled airports, rather than their status as ports.
However, whilst certain ports are considered “Safe To Fly” areas, other key restrictions could prevent the activity regardless, including a restriction on flying a drone over the head of a person, and keeping the drone at least 30 metres from another person.
This is also before mentioning the various restrictions and regulations at each port that would affect drone flying, especially if the drone has a camera attached, as a number of terminals require permission from the terminal operator before capturing photographs or footage of the site.
Beyond this, drone flying would likely be considered a dangerous activity by port operators regardless for the risk it would pose to terminal operations and safety.
Seafarers would likely need to seek the approval of terminal and harbour authorities first before considering flying a drone in Australian port areas.
