Daily update, 1 October: a drone restriction for Hull Fair, drones and lasers on the Norfolk coast

A drone restriction for Hull Fair

This morning's story covered The Air Navigation (Restriction of Flying) (Hull Fair, Humberside) Regulations 2026, which come into force on 9 October 2026. During the restricted periods, the regulations say "no unmanned aircraft is to fly below 1,100 feet above mean sea level within the area bounded by a circle having a radius of 0.5 of a nautical mile which is centred at 534456N 0002224W."

Hull City Council lists the hours in local time: 4pm to 11pm on 9 October, 12 noon to 11pm on 10 October, no restriction on 11 October, 2pm to 11pm each day from 12 to 16 October, and 12 noon to 11pm on 17 October.

The regulations exempt drones "flown in accordance with a permission issued by Aerial Defence Ltd" and those "operated by or on behalf of a Police Air Support Unit." The council says requests for permission "should be made at least 24-hours before the proposed flight", and that "Counter drone equipment will be deployed throughout the fair."

The full piece, with the contact details for permission requests, is on our news page.

Drones and lasers on the Norfolk coast

BBC News reported this morning that "An international team of researchers is using drones and laser technology to investigate how natural habitats could help protect England's east coast from the sea."

The BBC says: "Experts from the University of East London (UEL) and Waseda University in Tokyo have been surveying the Norfolk coast at Hunstanton and Holkham." It reports that "Using technology that can capture detail accurate to 2mm, they are mapping the coast and making 3D models to understand how environments including forest and saltmarsh can reduce wave energy."

According to the BBC, "As well as carrying out drone surveys over The Wash, researchers have been carrying out coastal surveys in the saltmarshes." It adds: "Using a terrestrial laser scanner, they have been scanning the pinewoods at Holkham, which were planted as a natural sea defence in the 1800s."

The BBC reports that "The research, funded by the Royal Society, aims to provide guidance for the government and sustainable ways of protecting those living on our coast." It also says: "The researchers say the results could shape future defences across the world."

The BBC describes Dr Ravindra Jayaratne as "a reader in coastal engineering at UEL" and says he "said the project aimed to tackle coastal erosion and flooding".