Flying robots over Eiffel tower, Buckingham Palace, JFK Airport, landing at German Chancellor Merkel's feet, on White House lawn

*update* 05Aug2014
TorontoStar - A drone dropped a package of drugs into a prison yard while inmates were outside, sparking a fight The package was dropped July 29 at the Mansfield Correctional Institution in Ohio. It contained almost 7 grams of heroin, over 57 grams of marijuana and more than 140 grams of tobacco, JoEllen Smith, a spokeswoman for the Department of Rehabilitation and Correction, told the Mansfield News Journal.

(quote)

25 Feb 2015 - Second night of mysterious drone flights over Paris - The Eiffel Tower, site of drone flights on Monday and Tuesday nights
Mysterious drone flights over Paris continued on Tuesday night with five sightings reported by police and eyewitnesses in the centre of the French capital. Police opened an investigation into the flights on Tuesday, following five sightings on Monday night. Such flights over the capital are forbidden and magistrates ordered an inquiry to be opened on Tuesday following Monday night's flights over the same sites.

February 26, 2015 - Paris has a drone problem - At least 5 drones were reported by witnesses and police each night for two consecutive nights this week: small drones were spotted above some of Paris’ most famous landmarks, including the Eiffel Tower and the Invalides military museum, as well as the US embassy and major traffic junctions along the city's border. At least 5 drones were reported by witnesses and police each night, but their operators have yet to be identified. Paris police obtained video footage of some of the drones Tuesday night and are studying it as part of the ongoing investigation. At this point, it's unclear whether the drones were flown as a prank, a harmless flyover, or part of a coordinated or sinister operation, but French authorities are taking no chances.

France has relatively stringent laws governing the use of civilian or commercial UAVs and is home to more than 1,200 commercial drone companies. (The US, by comparison, only recently adopted regulations for small commercial drones.) Operators can fly drones without a license below an altitude of 500 feet, but not above highly populated areas or sensitive government locations. In Paris, it’s illegal to fly any aircraft below 19,600 feet without a license, and flying UAVs at night is banned altogether. Offenders face a maximum one-year prison sentence and a €75,000 ($85,000) fine.

But these regulations haven’t stopped rogue operators from flying UAVs above sensitive sites. Between October and January, drones were reported flying above at least 13 nuclear power plants, and the operators’ identities remain unknown. In January, a drone was spotted above the Élysée Palace, home to President Francois Hollande. Speaking to reporters this week, Le Foll stressed that mystery drones aren’t a uniquely French problem, pointing to similar incidents in Germany and the US, where a drone crash landed in front of the White House earlier this year. Authorities say the drones spotted above the plants posed no immediate threat, but there are concerns that they could fall and injure civilians when flown above densely populated areas, like the UAVs spotted in Paris this week.

"likely to see even more rogue flyovers as drones become more mainstream"; "expect to see more people pushing the boundaries."
While the motives behind this week's spate of UAV sightings remain a mystery, it is clear that drones have become increasingly popular among amateur aviators. FNAC, the country's leading electronics retailer, described drones as "le hit" of the holiday shopping season last year. Christian Sanz, founder and CEO of the San Francisco-based commercial UAV maker Skycatch, told The Verge that we're likely to see even more rogue flyovers... you can expect to see more people pushing the boundaries, so long as they can't be detected."

UK, Wednesday 18 March 2015 - A drone was flown over the Queen Victoria Memorial at Buckingham Palace A Nottingham man is to appear in court on suspicion of flying a drone over several famous UK sights, police say. Nigel Wilson, 42, has been accused of 17 breaches of the Air Navigation Order, Scotland Yard said. He is suspected of failing to maintain direct, unaided and visual contact with a drone which was flown over the Palace of Westminster, the Shard and the Queen Victoria Memorial at Buckingham Palace. He is also accused of flying a "small unmanned surveillance aircraft" over packed football stadiums without permission from the Civil Aviation Authority. Over a period of just 3 months he's charged with flying the drone at 8 football grounds including Liverpool's Anfield, and Arsenal's Emirates Stadium. He has been summoned to appear before Westminster Magistrates Court on 16th April.

The allegations follow a string of unexplained drone sightings over sensitive locations in France, including top tourist spots and nuclear facilities. Two weeks ago, a dozen more drones were spotted in Paris, bringing the total number of suspicious incidents to 60. The sightings were made near the River Seine, the Place de la Concorde, the Invalides military museum and the Paris ring road. It is unclear whether the spate of French drone flights is the work of pranksters, tourists or something more malicious.

Last December the British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA) warned that due to the vast increase in drone use, it was only a matter of time before a major accident with a passenger jet in the skies above Britain.

March 18, 2015 First on CNN: the man said he watched his drone reach 100 feet high over 10th street NW in DC and then fly West. He lost control of the drone… waking up to news reports of the drone going down on White House grounds. No charges against him.
In an interview with authorities, at about 3 a.m. the night of the incident, the man said he watched the drone reach 100 feet high over 10th street NW in DC and then fly West. The man lost control of the drone and was unable to recover. He went to sleep on the Jan. 26 not knowing where the drone was and reported the incident after waking up to news reports of the drone going down on White House grounds.

Saturday, Mar 21st 2015 dailymail.co.uk - Palm-sized machines and self-flying vehicles go on display in Germany
The QH micro quadcopter is small enough to fit in the palm of a hand; while the X-Star quadcopter from MaxAero travels at 12 metres per second; other drones on display include Potevio's hexacopter and a drone that flies autonomously and learns its terrain developed at the University of Zurich. From drones so tiny they fit in your hand to crafts that plot their terrain using 3D mapping - the latest and greatest flying machines have gone on display in Germany. Manufacturers are using this year's CeBIT technology event to showcase their remote-controlled and autonomous quad and hexacopters to potential partners and customers. These include the QH micro quadcopter that measures just 1.7-inches (4.5cm) and the X-Star MaXAero drone that flies at 12 metres per second. MaxAero's X-Star drone flew around the event in Hanover with a HD camera attached. It takes off and lands using a one-click control and comes with Wi-Fi and GPS built in. An LED indicator panel on the remote-control additionally reveals real-time flight status and battery level... The firm said: 'The X-Star Smart Unmanned Aircraft System is built for an optimal aerial experience and carefree flight manoeuvers. 'Powered by an advanced built-in Smart Flight System, the X-Star is extremely reliable and easy to fly.' And it isn't just manufacturers displaying their machines, robotic researchers from the University of Zurich are also using the show to reveal their latest innovations. During one demonstration, students from the university's Robotics and Perception Group released a drone that flies autonomously.

March 4, 2013 NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - A mystery in the sky over New York City on Monday got attention of commercial airline pilot in control of Alitalia Flight AZA 60, a Boeing 777 on his final approach to John F. Kennedy International Airport
The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating a report from the pilot who claimed he saw an unmanned or remote-controlled aircraft while on his final approach to John F. Kennedy International Airport.

The pilot, who was at the controls of Alitalia Flight AZA 60, a Boeing 777, spotted what may have been a drone about four to five miles southeast of the airport at an altitude of 1,500 feet while on final approach to Runway 31 Right at about 1:15 p.m. The pilot is heard telling air traffic controllers on radio calls recorded by the website LiveATC.net, "We saw a drone, a drone aircraft." But a man named Fyezil who drives an airport shuttle van told 1010 WINS’ John Montone he often sees kids flying model aircrafts in the area. "I see it many times," he said. "Sometimes, I see them flying so high."

Flying robots is fitted with cameras and sensors that map its surroundings in 3D, which in turn help the drone learn the terrain. The group is led by Professor Davide Scaramuzza and its lab was founded in February 2012 as part of the Department of Informatics at the university.

'Our mission is to develop autonomous machines that can navigate all by themselves using only onboard cameras, without relying on external infrastructure, such as GPS or motion capture systems,' explained the group.

'Our interests encompass both ground and micro flying robots, as well as multi-robot heterogeneous systems consisting of the combination of these two.

'We do not want our machines to be passive, but active, in that they should react to and navigate within their environment so as to gain the best knowledge from it.'

[readers' comment -
- “Not a pretty sight , peeping toms dream , drones with C4 instead of cameras . remote controlled robberies by drone."
- "Can some futurist come up with a scenario of what the world will be like with all these mini drones around us?"
- "i want them to come out with a drone hunting drone......that would be cool.”]

At a campaign rally in Dresden on September 15, a small quadrocopter flew within feet of German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Defense Minister Thomas de Maiziere, hovering briefly in front of them before crashing into the stage practically at Merkel's feet.

Last December the British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA) warned that due to the vast increase in drone use, it was only a matter of time before a major accident with a passenger jet in the skies above Britain.

(unquote)

Photo courtesy Getty Images, CNN, tumblr.com, caminomyway.com, EPA, and Boris Horvat / AFP / Getty Images