A new drone incident has occurred in Italy, this time involving an Argentinian man who is being accused of flouting Rome’s strict no-fly zone rules after crashing a drone into a monument in the center of the city.
The 39-year-old Argentine was flying his drone in Piazza Venezia when he lost control of the device and crashed it into the roof of the Palazzo Venezia, a 15th century building from where fascist dictator Benito Mussolini delivered some of his most famous speeches. Carabinieri Captain Matteo Alborghetti told CNN that the tourist “was probably unaware of the ban on drone overflight” over Rome and the Vatican.
Fortunately, there were no repercussions, no one was hurt, and the roof of Palazzo Venezia was not damaged.
Matteo Alborghetti, Carabinieri Captain
The drone was recovered by the building’s security staff before being seized by police, who reported the tourist for failing to comply with a drone no-fly zone over the city, according to Italian media reports.
People who want to film or take photos of the Italian capital from above with a drone must obtain permission and be registered with Enac, the national civil aviation agency. Piloting a drone in the center of Rome and the Vatican is completely forbidden because of all the precious monuments.
Last week, two Mexican tourists aged 18 and 26 crashed their drone into the Leaning Tower of Pisa. The brother and sister faced police action for violating rules banning flights around the famous landmark in the Tuscan city.
Also in Pisa, on Monday April 25th, a 32-year-old Romanian tourist was stopped while he was flying his drone over the Piazza dei Miracoli, near the famous leaning tower, CNN reported. ”He wanted to take more evocative images of the Tower,” Virgilio Russo of the police headquarters told the American news outlet.
In 2020, a 40-year-old Polish tourist crashed his drone inside the Colosseum despite being warned that it was forbidden to fly the device inside the ancient amphitheater. In July last year, a 61-year-old man was charged with an “attack against transportation safety” after flying his drone over Rome at an altitude of 2,000 meters. The man, who was a member of a Facebook page for drone fanatics, was reported after a professional pilot spotted his device.
Fortunately there have been no reports of damage to monuments due to the impact of crashing drones. The penalties imposed have also not been reported, but fines for violating drone regulations range from €516 to €64,000 ($552 to $68,540).
The monument where the Argentinian’s drone crashed is known for housing the “Mussolini balcony” where the Italian dictator declared war on Britain and France on June 10, 1949. These days, the Palazzo Venezia houses a museum inside.
The incident occurred on Saturday April 23rd, on the eve of the 77th anniversary of the liberation of the country from German occupation and the fascist regime, which was celebrated on Monday April 26th.
