Int'l conference on drones opens in Warsaw

A two-day international conference on drones "as a source of new jobs and economic growth" began in Warsaw on Wednesday, local media reported.

Opening the conference, Poland's Infrastructure and Construction Minister Andrzej Adamczyk said that drones are a rapidly growing innovative market with huge economic potential, according to the Polish Press Agency.

Drones can be used in many areas of life, from the military and national security to emergency response in cases of fires or floods, Adamczyk said. These aerial vehicles are also useful in taking measurements and surveying as well as in recreation, he added.

The conference follows up on a previous gathering in the Latvian capital Riga in March last year.

According to Adamczyk, it also offers an opportunity to examine the current situation on the market for unmanned aerial vehicles and to evaluate whether, how and when it would be possible to create a single market for drone services across the European Union.

The conference was organized by the Polish Ministry of Infrastructure and Construction together with the country's Civil Aviation Authority and the European Aviation Safety Agency.

Poland aspires to be an international leader in the production of drones. Experts believe that the local market for drones is worth more than 160 million PLN (38 million U.S. dollars) and has huge potential for further growth, analysts said. Endit