Counter UAS TIG February meeting in Athens

ENLETS’ Counter Unmanned Aircraft Systems (C-UAS) Technology Interest Group met in Athens as part of the i-LEAD Final Conference and TIG Meeting between the 15^th-17^th February 2023.

This was the first occasion the C-UAS group had a possibility to gather following the COVID restrictions. Although the group has been continually active online, there are many elements missing when using an online-only approach. As well as putting faces to names, the TIG shared the latest activities between the members from 24 countries.

Group Makeup

The ENLETS C-UAS TIG holds a special position in Europe within the drone and C-UAS knowledge. The group’s diversity and specialist expertise makes it a unique focal point on the domain’s landscape.

The group’s participants include Law Enforcement practitioners from different EU member states, and representatives from the United Nations, Europol and Interpol. From the beginning of the previous ENLETS Programme, the EU Commission also took an advisory board role for ENLETS C-UAS.

The group’s formation means we can better understand the global environment and law enforcement’s strategic and technical challenges. Similarly, it puts the group in a strong position to know about the latest technological developments and to ensure all information is promptly shared and discussed in the relevant meeting. To aid the smooth communication of information, the group is structured with several sub-groups covering multiple angles pertinent to the topic. These include:

Regulations, U-Space, Detection, Neutralisation, Forensics and Analysis.

Meeting Points:

During the Athens event, the Finnish team introduced a novel approach to improving skills and preparations for activities through a virtual lens. Utilising virtual reality and augmented reality increases the opportunities for new kinds of C-UAS actions. Find out more at www.anarkylabs.com

During the remainder of the meeting, the 18 TIG members present introduced their latest activities –covering lessons learned and good practices. Importantly, the secure physical meeting allowed colleagues to share more details than they usually disclose in the virtual setting. It also allowed the group to strengthen personal relations and get to know more about colleagues during private time.

The topics the group discussed in the meeting were:

We’ve referenced the value the meeting delivered, but we can’t forget the useful outputs that were implemented while working in a virtual setting. During COVID, we saw several great innovations, ideas and outcomes were shared with all TIG members. Examples includes several inventive drone related projects in Belgium, a new kind of risk assessment application made in Luxembourg and many experiences gained from national drone operations. However, the physical meeting was needed and the group’s time was really well spent. From the participants’ feedback, they hope for more similar opportunities to gather as a physical group. Future meetings also offer the chance to demonstrate and test certain technologies.