Royal Navy: Drone which flew close to HMS Prince of Wales seized after breaching Liverpool flight restrictions

Merseyside Police and Ministry of Defence (MoD) officers spotted the drone in restricted air space on Wednesday (December 4), the force said. The pilot was located and the device was seized, it said, adding that the incident will be investigated.

Merseyside Police said the flight restriction zone is part of the policing operation while the aircraft carrier is docked at Liverpool Cruise Terminal. The force added: “The restriction will remain in place until 10am on Monday 9 December, meaning it will be an offence for any unmanned aircraft to fly below 2,000ft (609 metres) above sea level in the designated area, without the explicit permission of Merseyside Police.

“We would like to remind all UAS (unmanned aerial systems) operators of their responsibility to follow the regulations set by the Civil Aviation authority (CAA). Failure to do so could lead to do your drone being seized, or prosecution.”

An un-crewed aircraft flew close to HMS Queen Elizabeth while she was stationed in Hamburg, Germany, with drones also being spotted flying over US airbases in Suffolk and Norfolk between November 20 and 24. Lord Vernon Coaker previously confirmed a criminal investigation was launched to find out where they came from.

He added: “A civilian drone was observed in the vicinity on November 22, it got no closer than 250 metres from HMS Queen Elizabeth. The Ministry of Defence is aware of these reports and working closely with the US visiting forces, Home Office police forces and other partners to respond to recent events. We will work with civil authorities to prosecute those responsible. We take any safety issue seriously and maintain robust measures at Ministry of Defence sites. This includes counter-drone capabilities. This remains a live criminal investigation.”

HMS Prince of Wales received the Freedom of the City during her week-long stay in Liverpool, with the ship’s company marching through the city on Friday as part of a parade, though a public viewing was cancelled due to the blustery conditions caused by Storm Darragh.