A surveillance service using the medium size unmanned aerial system CAMCOPTER® S-100 started in March 2021 in Romania’s Black Sea area to support border police activity.
This service is made available by the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA), and is used for the early detection of situations, events and incidents. The service also increases response and intervention capacity in specific missions related to: state border surveillance and control; monitoring of naval traffic; search and rescue at sea; and protection of the maritime environment, as well as ensuring the interests of the Romanian state in the contiguous area and the exclusive economic area.
The technical characteristics of these aerial systems allow for the execution of long-distance and long-term surveillance missions, with capabilities for real-time recording, collecting, analysing and sharing data and information through the EMSA RPAS Data Centre platform.
The service is allocated for a period of 6 months, with EMSA’s contractor, SCHIEBEL Aircraft GmbH, providing an end-to-end service, including all equipment and specialised personnel needed to deliver the operation under the command of the Romanian Border Police.
The service will also have a significant contribution during the specific missions conducted by the Romanian Border Police within the Multipurpose Maritime Operation 2021 on the Black Sea, in coordination with the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex),EMSA and the European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA), and in collaboration with relevant national institutions, such as the Romanian Naval Authority and the National Agency for Fishing and Aquaculture, along with the corresponding authorities of the Republic of Bulgaria, aiming to develop greater interoperability of participants in activities related to coast guard functions.
The implementation of this highly complex service was carried out in cooperation with the Romanian Air Force and the Romanian Air Traffic Control Service (ROMATSA), which provided specialised support in accordance with the institutional competencies. The flight operations are therefore carried out safely and in compliance with the applicable legislation.
