Drones at Oslo Airport, Norway: A case study on how to balance safety and business development

The use of drones is rapidly increasing both commercially and for recreational purposes worldwide. In 2018, Oslo airport (ENGM) in Norway had to deal with several unauthorised drones entering controlled airspace within the five-kilometre restriction zone around the airport, resulting in closure of airspace and diversions of aircraft. With about 135,000 aircraft movements and over 28.5 million passengers in 2018, drones represent a challenge for the air traffic control (ATC) at the airport. Avinor Air Navigation Services is the company in charge of handling the air traffic control at Oslo airport. The company has chosen to handle the drone challenge with a proactive approach at the operational level as well as at the strategic level. This paper looks at the increase in drones illegally entering controlled airspace, using the 13th June, 2018, incident at the Oslo airport (ENGM) as a case study. Through this case study, Avinor Air Navigation Services argues that drones have become a disruptive challenge to the aviation industry