The federal prison bureau needs help stopping contraband drones
The Federal Bureau of Prisons issued a Request for Information on Wednesday soliciting ideas and proposals for "countering, mitigating and/or interdicting the impact and possible nefarious intent of unmanned aerial systems." That is, the Feds need some help countering the drones they suspect are routinely delivering drugs, weapons and other contraband into America's 122 prison facilities.
"Recent advances in unmanned air vehicles have presented a new and evolving threat to the BOP's mission," the bureau stated. "From small devices of less than a pound that can provide unauthorized imagery and surveillance to larger systems that can carry 20 or more pounds of contraband, these devices represent a new and unprecedented challenge for BOP personnel." As such, the anti-UAV system would need to operate within a mixed-use airspace up to 18,000 feet, be able to detect incoming drones up to a mile away and operate either autonomously or be remotely controlled. Or they could just shoot them out of the air with GPS jammers.
[Image Credit: Associated Press]
