"Our drones were deliberately and systematically shot down by anti-drone jammers, so-called 'jammers,'" said the Mirnovec pyrotechnics company, which was hired for the New Year's drone show program in Budva.
In a statement submitted to Vijesti, they state that they are a company with a serious reputation, which has been in business for 35 years, and that they unfortunately experienced something that has never happened to them anywhere in the world.
They apologized to everyone who came to see the show. They announced that they would put on a show together with the organizers soon, emphasizing that it would be better and more spectacular than the one that was planned.
"Already upon entering Montenegro, it was clear that we were not welcome. A truck with drones appeared at the border crossing on Sunday evening (28.12). As always and everywhere, we had an ATA carnet for drones (Montenegro is a signatory to the convention on the use of ATA carnets). We also had approval to use the airspace in Budva on 31.12, issued by the Civil Aviation Agency of Montenegro," the company announced.
They add that they were told that if they wanted to enter Montenegro, they had to obtain permission from the Ministry of Economy, which they did the next day.
"When we arrived at the border that evening with the aforementioned permit, we were told that even that was not enough, but that we had to wait for the approval of the head of the customs office for temporary import. We were left waiting again, so on Tuesday morning, December 30.12, we started preparing the documentation for temporary import. After we had finished that, we were directed to the internal customs office in Kotor. When we arrived in Kotor around noon, we were told that we still had to go to the customs office in Bar. At that moment, that was impossible, because we no longer had time to get to Bar during the customs office's working hours," says company representative Frano Koletić.
He points out that in the end, customs officials agreed to complete the documentation for temporary import and that they entered Montenegro that day, in the early evening hours, after two and a half days of waiting at the border crossing.
"On Wednesday, December 31.12, we placed the drones at the agreed location (parking lot in front of the marina). During the day, we experienced minor provocations and inconveniences from some Port Authority employees, but we ignored them. The drones were set up and ready for takeoff before dark. All necessary testing and checks were carried out during the day and immediately before takeoff. Everything was according to plan," the company said.
They explain that when the drones, during a slow, selective lift, exceeded the height of the building (about 15 meters), behind which was the take-off area, they entered the frequency jamming zone using a "jammer" (a system for jamming drone signals) and began to fall.
"Immediately after this unfortunate event, we contacted the drone manufacturer, the American company VERGE AERO, whose authorized representatives we are for Europe and the Middle East. Their engineers connected to the computer on the ground, analyzed all errors related to this show, and determined that the drones, due to signal interference, began to return to the takeoff point (as they were programmed to do), colliding with drones that were still in the takeoff phase," the company said.
They add that over 200 drones fell and were damaged due to this disruption, after which the show was interrupted.
"Their conclusion is that the jamming was carried out with professional signal jamming devices, such as those usually owned by police and military units, airports and special government services. Such equipment is difficult to access for individuals, as it is considered a weapon," they emphasize in the statement, adding:
"We don't know who did this and for what reason, nor do we care. We are solely concerned with our own business and in this case we are collateral damage, and we have suffered serious material damage."
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They emphasize that they are sorry for the large number of visitors who came to see the first drone show in this region and who, unfortunately, were disappointed.
Finally, they explain that they are a company that has been involved in fireworks and special effects for 35 years, and that they have implemented thousands of projects around the world (Germany, Italy, Spain, Malta, Russia, China, South Korea, Austria, Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, Canada, USA, Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arabia, etc.). The company also provided a list of drone show projects that they have implemented so far.
"We are one of the first companies in Europe to start performing drone shows. So far, we have implemented over 100 projects across Europe and Qatar, where we also have a company (974 Dron Show) that exclusively performs drone shows. This year, we were hired by the Budva City Tourist Organization for a New Year's show with 600 drones," the Mirnovec pyrotechnics company said in a statement.
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