An act of mischief, or something more sophisticated? Singapore investigates drones that disrupted 63 flights at Changi airport

Two instances of drone activities have caused dozens of flights at Changi to be delayed or diverted in the past week

Authorities are probing the incidents, which some observers say could signal the involvement of more sophisticated groups

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Singapore’s Changi Airport. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 9:14pm, 25 Jun 2019Updated: 11:35pm, 25 Jun 2019

Drones buzzing around Singapore’s busy Changi Airport have caused 63 flights to be delayed or diverted in the past week, triggering an investigation and raising questions about the motives of the offenders.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore on Tuesday said 18 flights at the airport were delayed and seven were diverted the night before, “due to bad weather and unauthorised drone activities”.

It had earlier confirmed drones were seen flying near the airport last Tuesday and Wednesday. Those incidents caused the intermittent closure of a runway, delaying 37 flights and diverting one arriving plane to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

“A multi-agency team including the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore, Changi Airport Group, Singapore Armed Forces and the Singapore Police Force was activated for the search and locate operations,” the regulator said.

Singapore’s Changi Airport is among the world’s busiest. Photo: AP

Investigations are ongoing. No details on the number of drones involved and the perpetrators have been provided by the authorities.