UK tourists on holiday in France warned country 'cannot cope'

There are fears Paris "can't cope" with a hostile drone attack ahead of the Summer Olympic Games in France later this year. Concerns are mounting about the efficiency of the anti-drone shield meant to protect the French capital from a potential terror attack.

Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin singled out drones as "without doubt the main threat to be dealt with" as 300,000 spectactors - including UK tourists - prepare to line the streets of Paris and the banks of the River Seine during the Opening Ceremony in July.

But according to several security sources, recent tests have exposed some worrying flaws in the 'Parade' system. “On two of the sites where Parade was tested, it didn’t work as well as expected. Put in other words, Parade stopped the drones, but within a much smaller perimeter than expected,” one source told the French weekly Marianne.

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“It’s annoying that this is coming out publicly but unfortunately, contrary to the official line, things aren’t really working as we’d like,” a senior security source told AFP. Drones represent a very high-level threat because they are easy to use, there are a huge number of them in France and converting them into weapons is simple and very affordable. It doesn't require much logistical organisation," defence consultant Marc Chassillan said.

"Parade consists of a set of radars and cameras capable of detecting and characterising the threat. The system is complemented by a goniometer that detects radio transmissions guiding the drone," Chassillan explained. "Then there are the countermeasures: jamming to immobilise or modify the trajectory [of the drone], or the intervention of a police drone equipped with a net to capture the malicious device," he said.

“Many solutions which work well in the military sphere aren’t effective in a crowded stadium environment," said Jeffrey Starr, of D-Fend Solutions, which specialises in counter-drone mitigation technology for major gatherings. Radars aren’t effective because we are dealing with crowded skies - from birds to cameras and even authorised drones, which will undoubtedly be used to capture images.

"Often, in closed urban venues, you don’t have line of sight and you cannot attempt to deny an approaching drone until it is too late.”