Hunting is as much a game of patience as it is a sport, so when the opportunity presents itself one has to be on one’s toes and act fast and, ideally, with precision.
German cheap and despicable publicity stunt
Whether this is what happened yesterday when a model radio-controlled aircraft used to spot trapping sites was shot down is hard to say. The plane could have been mistaken for a bird. There again, it might have not.
Whatever the reason, the €2,000 camera plane came crashing down making it the second time it was shot at and hit in two days. The first time it could be fixed but this time it could not even be found.
The model airplane was used by the Committee Against Bird Slaughter, CABS. It had proved to be useful revealing various trapping sites, Axel Hirschfeld CABS spokesman said.
Police officers from the administrative law enforcement unit were informed of the location of clap nets that were captured by the aircraft’s camera. There they found a number of protected species, Mr Hirschfeld said.
The Hunters Federation spoke of a “German cheap and despicable publicity stunt”. Federation secretary general Lino Farrugia said it was about time the government and the police stood up for Maltese nationals “against foreign intrusion”.
Mr Farrugia said the drone was mostly used in military operations to spy and, now, to invade Maltese privacy.