Rogue drones disrupt camel races and emergency operations in Queensland

The galloping of camels, then the unmistakable buzzing of a drone.

Photographer Ann Britton inadvertently captured a small quadcopter filming the action up close at the Winton Camel Races in Western Queensland in July.

"The drone was basically there at the same level as the crowd. And I'm like, 'Oh, that is so cheeky.'"

Race organisers, unsure of who was at the controls, requested three times over the PA that the drone land.

Ms Britton had planned to fly her own drone from a safer distance and with permission but decided to keep it grounded during the search for the unsanctioned pilot in the grandstand, worried about the risk of collision.

"I've done the hard yards and I've got my commercial licence. I find it a privilege that I can fly that drone, capture these moments," she said.

"It's not a toy."

A pattern of rogue drone sightings has raised concerns about the potential for a serious accident.

The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) has reiterated the safety risks and penalties that come with disobeying the rules.

Drone flies too close to chopper

Winton-based helicopter tour pilot Kate de Koning said she was happy to liaise with drone pilots at events, but those who did not communicate or follow the rules made her uneasy.

While she set up her gazebo at this year's Boulia Camel Races, an unidentified drone flew near her face.

But that paled in comparison to a potential catastrophe at last year's event.

Landing her helicopter after one tour, Ms de Koning happened to look up and see a drone a couple of metres above her spinning blades.

"That just meant that they were definitely flying around while I was coming in to land, which made me so nervous."

Her helicopter tour takes off and lands many times each day near the racecourse.

"I was shutting down at that point in time, but they didn't know that," Ms de Koning said.

Race organiser Beck Britton said there was a zero-drone rule for patrons, but it was difficult to enforce.

"I suppose it's one of those really, really difficult situations because human nature, if you see a drone being used, most people are going to assume that, 'OK, well, they're using a drone, I can use a drone.'"

Ms Britton said organisers would consider how to more clearly communicate the policy.

Authority issues warning to overeager pilots

All drone pilots must follow national rules, whether or not they have gone through formal training.

"If you have a recreational drone, which is several million people these days, you really cannot fly out over gatherings of people," CASA spokesperson Steve Creedy said.

Properly licensed operators are the exception.

"If you see a drone over an event, it could be a commercial drone that has an approval, so not every drone is necessarily a bad thing. But recreational drones, absolutely not," Mr Creedy said.

He said users needed to be aware of other aircraft, even when outside the range of controlled airports.

"If you become aware of a crewed aircraft nearby, you have to move away and land your drone as quickly as you can and as safely as you can," Mr Creedy said.

There are no age or licence requirements to use small drones, but pilots are expected to be familiar with CASA rules before flying.

Drones risk emergency responses

Acting Superintendent Cameron Herbert said the Queensland Fire Department occasionally saw drones fly into emergency-incident areas or found aerial footage uploaded to social media afterwards.

"[That] enables us to at least investigate that and try and make these operators aware that, during an emergency incident, we need clear airspace, particularly with bushfire season coming up," he said.

He said drones not only risked the safety of crewed aircraft but forced them to land, potentially delaying life-saving operations.

"We just would request that all amateur drone operators just stay away from emergency services incidents, whether it be a large bushfire or smaller incidents around structure fires, even road traffic crashes," he said.