DUBAI // An unmanned aircraft will monitor an upcoming football match from the skies in a bid to tackle the rising phenomenon of hooliganism.
Dubai Police is to trial the aircraft at the Etisalat Cup final between Al Jazira and Ajman at Dubai's Al Wasl Stadium, said Major General Mohammad Eid Al Mansouri.
Devised by major Maher bin Haider, from the police's emergency section, it is capable of flying for one hour, sending pictures of what is going on the whole time.
The aircraft is the first of its kind in the UAE and is part of the emergency section's drive to keep up with modern technologies in all spheres, including football hooliganism, which runs counter to "our society and our traditions", Maj Gen Eid Al Mansouri added.
Brigadier General Ahmed Khalfan Al Mansouri, the head of the emergency section, said the aircraft was a daring and unprecedented move that has gained the police leadership's seal of approval.
newsdesk@thenational.ae
