Passenger jet and drone within 20 meters over central London: report

A commercial jet with 165 passengers aboard came within just 20 meters of a drone as it flew over Central London towards Heathrow Airport, it was reported Thursday.

Investigators classed the incident as a "very near miss" and give it the highest risk A category.

The Airbus A320 was flying at just under 1,500 meters when the pilot spotted the drone through a flight deck window, estimating its distance at 20 meters.

A report by the independent UK Airprox Board said the incident appeared to be "a very near-miss and that the drone operator should not have been flying in that location at that altitude."

The board said in its official report that there had not been time to take any avoiding action.

"The board considered that the pilot's estimate of separation, allied to his overall account of the incident, portrayed a situation where a collision had only been narrowly avoided and chance had played a major part; they therefore determined the risk to be Category A," the report added.

The near-miss occurred around 12.45 p.m. on July 18, but the official report has only just been published by the authorities.

Just six days earlier another Category A drone near-miss occurred. Minutes after an A319 jet took off from Liverpool John Lennon Airport, a drone passed the right side of the airliner, apart five meters from the tip of the wing.

In both the London and the Liverpool incidents, the owners of the drones have not been traced.

Within the next few weeks the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) in Britain is to release an updated code for drone flyers.

A spokesman said Thursday: "Our recommendation is that a drone should not be flown at over 400 feet (122 meters) and there are strict rules about them being used close to airports, flight paths and over built up areas."

"Many people may not realise it, but incorrectly flying a drone could lead to a prison sentence of up to five years," said the spokesman. Endit