US probes report of drone spotted in NYC
2013-03-05 22:27
New York - The FBI and the US Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) are investigating a pilot's report that he spotted a small
unmanned aircraft near a major New York City airport.
The Alitalia pilot told controllers that he saw the drone
as he approached the runway at John F Kennedy International Airport on Monday.
The pilot said the aircraft was about 8km southeast of
the airport and was flying at an altitude of about 457m.
The pilot reported that the aircraft was about 1m long,
an FBI spokesperson said on Tuesday.
The pilot can be heard on radio calls captured by LiveATC.net,
a website that posts air traffic communications, saying, "We saw a drone,
a drone aircraft."
The FAA said the pilot did not take evasive action and
the plane landed safely.
Some remote-controlled planes flown by hobbyists are
longer than a metre.
Under FAA rules, model planes are restricted to altitudes
of 121m or less.
- AP
