Another drone crash in Somalia perhaps.

Drone crashing in Somalia story hitting the wires, almost becoming a Sunday night occasion this.

There must be lots of parts in the market over there. If its true the attrition rate in East Africa is pretty high. Could it mean smaller platforms are being used?

Kismayo — Small surveillance aircraft known as Drone has been reported to have crashed in Al Shabaab controlled Kismayo port town, about 500 kilometers south of Mogadishu.

Reports emanating from southern Somalia suggested that Al Shabaab has taken the crashed drone Saturday afternoon.

Local residents told Shabelle that the unmanned aerial vehicle came down after fighters loyal to Al Shabaab, which alleges to be Al Qaeda’s proxy in the horn of African nation, fired with anti-aircraft missiles.

No deaths or injures were so far reported. Officials of Al Shabaab told the local press that the small aircraft was a surveillance one.

No country has claimed to have the crashed drone, but the United States has recently said it will increase using drones to target al Qaeda elements in Somalia and Yemen.

Gary Mortimer

Founder and Editor of sUAS News | Gary Mortimer has been a commercial balloon pilot for 25 years and also flies full-size helicopters. Prior to that, he made tea and coffee in air traffic control towers across the UK as a member of the Royal Air Force.