An Iberia CRJ-1000 approaching Melilla on 22 September was placed in a holding pattern after the control tower detected an unidentified drone crossing its glide path from Moroccan territory, according to reports confirmed by Spain’s airport operator AENA on 24 September. Although no flights were cancelled, the incident has sparked diplomatic notes between Madrid and Rabat. Melilla airport already struggles with low-cloud diversions; the addition of cross-border drone activity raises fresh safety questions. Spain has asked Moroccan authorities to restrict surveillance-drone altitude near the frontier, while the Guardia Civil has stepped up patrols and deployed its own drones for situational awareness. For companies flying staff to Melilla or planning day trips to nearby industrial parks, contingency buffers are advisable until new de-confliction protocols are in place. Charter operators must ensure drone NOTAMs are reviewed pre-flight. The episode also underscores a larger trend: the growing use of UAVs by security forces on both sides of the border. Aviation insurers are watching closely and could adjust premiums for routes into the North-African enclaves if incidents recur. Transport ministry sources say Spain will press for an ICAO-mediated air-risk corridor and may install drone-detection radars at Melilla before next summer.
Source: RUSSPAIN
