Drones appear over Paris landmarks for 2nd night, mystery deepens

PanARMENIAN.Net - Drones have appeared over landmarks in central Paris for the second night running and police are no closer to knowing who is operating them.

There were five sightings between 23:00 on Tuesday, Feb 24 and 02:00 (01:00 GMT) on Wednesday, BBC News reports citing French media.

Up to three drones were seen near the Invalides military museum, Place de la Concorde and two of the old city gates.

Flying drones over Paris at night is illegal and daytime flights require authorisation from the city. Five drones were seen the previous night in similar areas, including the Eiffel Tower and above the US embassy, close to Place de la Concorde.

However, some of the latest drone flights have been captured on film and will be analysed by a 10-strong team of investigators set up after the first incidents.

The new sightings were also on the fringes of central Paris, at the key transport gates of Porte de Clignancourt in the north and Porte de Saint-Cloud in the south-west.

Small drones are inexpensive and easy to buy but their appearance in recent months over sensitive locations has worried French authorities.

It is against the law for any aircraft to fly lower than 6,000m (19,700ft) over central Paris. Flying any aircraft under that ceiling - including drones, police helicopters and air ambulances - requires permission from city authorities.

Flying a drone at night is banned completely.

Last month a drone was seen over the Elysee Palace, home of President Francois Hollande and in October last year, a 24-year-old Israeli tourist was fined €400 ($453) and spent a night in jail after flying a drone over the city's historic Hotel Dieu hospital and a police station.

Drones were also spotted flying over at least 13 nuclear power plants in France between October 2014 and January 2015.

Those flights were thought to be the work of environmental activists but no group claimed responsibility.

Drones present a problem for authorities in built-up areas, in that shooting them down could endanger the public. It is possible to jam GPS or radio signals guiding them.