Irish immigrant’s forced NYC drone landing sparks deportation

Talk about the risks of flying a UAV without proper documentation. A 38-year-old Irish national and 12-year resident of New York is being detained by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) awaiting deportation over a visa infraction uncovered after his battery-depleted drone made an unexpected landing. Readers thus inclined can click a link supporting the pilot’s case toward the end of this post.

The Kafka-meets-immigration-police-via-quadcopter saga was related this week by the IrishCentral news site. It said the tale began in July when Irish citizen, Queens resident, and passionate aerial photographer Riccardo Pellecchia took his drone out to capture shots of New York. As phenomenally bad luck would have it, the battery of his UAV ran out during the flight and came down within a facility operated by electric company Con Edison. 

Read: White House seeks to enlarge actors authorized to track and zap suspect drones 

That forced landing…