Tourist zone drones a hazard for Australian airports

Australia's aviation authority has warned tourists operating airborne drones in holiday areas are posing a hazard to local aviation.

The problem centers on the Queensland tourist areas such as Sunshine Coast north of Brisbane and tropical cities of Townsville and Cairns.

The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) said on Friday that tourists were using the drones to take panoramic photographs and videos of the coastline they are visiting.

Spokesman Peter Gibson told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that headlands offering perfect ocean views were often on the final approach to airport runways.

"We're starting to see tourists bringing their drones with them on holidays, particularly to seaside towns," Gibson said.

"Of course they're flying them around to get pictures of the scenic coastlines but they're also flying them in places where aircraft are operating -- flight paths, into or out of airports, or other locations where there are aircraft down low and of course that's a real risk to air safety."

He said they posed a risk of collision for approaching aircraft and could also distract pilots. Endi