Los Alamos warns drone pilots about flights in restricted airspace

Scientists at the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) have issued a warning that people are not to fly drones over the restricted airspace, The Associated Press reported.

In a press release Monday, the lab said pilots will lose their drones if they are flown in their restricted airspace, adding that they will protect their assets from unauthorized drone flights that could pose a threat, the news release said. 

“The drone flying public should be reminded that all airspace over the Laboratory is protected against unauthorized drone or UAS [unmanned aircraft system] flights,” LANL Senior Director Unica Viramontes said in the statement.  

“We can detect and track a UAS, and if it poses a threat, we have the ability to disrupt control of the system, seize or exercise control, confiscate, or use reasonable force to disable, damage or destroy the UAS,” Viramontes added.

Federal Aviation Administration rule states that drones are prohibited from flying in restricted areas that are designated as national security-sensitive facilities.

LANL, famed for being the birthplace of the atomic bomb, also warns of collateral interceptions of drone flights that could occur at the airspace.