Drone pilot who nearly downed last-ever Hurricane fighter is fined

Drone pilot who nearly downed the last-ever Hurricane fighter plane in Battle of Britain Memorial Flight flypast is fined £3,000

• Mark Bagguley, 49, flew his drone ‘dangerously close’ to the ‘priceless’ warplane
• The iconic Hurricane was the last of 14,533 build during the Second World War  

A reckless drone pilot who almost downed the last Hurricane fighter plane during a Second World War memorial fly-past has been fined £3,000. 

Mark Bagguley flew the device ‘dangerously close’ to the warplane, which soared at 365ft above a crowd of 20,000 in Buxton, Derbyshire, last July as part of the town’s annual carnival.

The ‘priceless’ Hurricane was the last of the original 14,533 fighters to be built. It is one of just 12 that are still airworthy.  

Bagguley’s actions were called ‘mind-blowingly reckless’ by a judge and police said there could have been a fatal ‘catastrophe’. 

The 49-year-old engineer from the Derbyshire town avoided jail and was sentenced at Derby Crown Court to six months, suspended for 12 months, on Thursday. 

The Hawker Hurricane – which was the last of 14,533 built during the Second World War – was taking part in the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight fly-past in Derby when a drone flew ‘dangerously close’ to it

Mark Bagguley failed to follow a no-fly order when he used his drone to film a crowd at the Buxton Carnival in July last year. He is pictured arriving at Derby Crown Court 

The court heard Bagguley had been filming the crowd when the RAF’s Battle of Britain Memorial Flight flew over the crowd.

At the time, the fly-past had been protected by a short-term airspace restriction which banned all flying in the area, including drones.

An investigation identified Bagguley as the operator of the machine.

In one of the first cases of its kind, he was arrested and charged with endangering an aircraft and operating an aircraft out of the visual line of sight. 

Police said people on the ground, as well as the Hurricane pilot, would have been killed had the drone downed the historic fighter plane. 

‘The way the pilot flew his drone was unsafe, illegal and totally unacceptable,’ said PC Matt Moore, flight safety manager for the drones team at Derbyshire Police.

‘Any drone in the air will pose a danger to any manned aircraft. We had 15,000 to 20,000 people present at Buxton at the time. That would have caused a catastrophe in its own right.’

The plane flown during the fly-past is one of two operated by the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, based at RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire. 

Annabel Linton, prosecuting, said the Hurricane was ‘the last ever built’ and was ‘considered priceless’.

The offence only came to light after a member of the public who had been photographing the plane spotted the drone when he examined his images from the fly-past.

The ‘priceless’ Hurricane is one of just 12 left airworthy and was the last of the 14,533 fighters built to defend the Britain’s skies against the German Luftwaffe in the war. It is pictured alongside other Second World War planes during a memorial fly-past 

He reported it to the Civil Aviation Authority, who told him to contact the police.

Officers scoured social media to find the pilot, and discovered aerial pictures Bagguley had taken that day.

READ MORE: Incredible photos reveal the history behind the famous Hawker Hurricane plane and their key role in the Battle of Britain

Flight data from the drone was then overlaid with the flight path of the Hurricane, which proved it was the device involved.

Bagguley initially denied the offences when police interviewed him. But he later pleaded guilty to endangering an aircraft during a hearing at Chesterfield Justice Centre in January. 

He claimed he was aware of a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) alert that warned people of the fly-past and prohibited the flying of drones in the area. 

But the engineer said he thought he had time to film the carnival before the Hurricane arrived.

In a letter of apology read to the court, Bagguley said: ‘I owe the pilot an apology for unnecessarily putting his and other people’s lives at risk that day.

‘I can only thank God that no collision occurred.’

Sentencing, Judge Jonathan Bennett said he had never encountered such an ‘unusual case’ or offence. 

Judge Bennett added: ‘It was mind-blowingly reckless, particularly in the case of an intelligent, middle-aged man. He is no youngster messing about with a new toy.’

As well as his suspended prison sentence and fine, Bagguley was also told to pay costs of £450 and a victim surcharge of £154.

In addition, he was ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work.

Source: Read Full Article