Secret Service to test small drone at Donald Trump's golf club
- Published
The US Secret Service plans to test a security drone when President Trump visits his New Jersey golf club later this month, according to a document seen by Reuters.
A small drone will be trialled by the agency at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster.
The President is expected to make a long visit to the club.
The Secret Service has said that it is experimenting with various drones for security monitoring.
In this case, the drone will fly at an altitude of between 300 and 400 ft (91 to 121 metres), observing the perimeter of the protection zone at the club.
It is equipped with optical and infrared cameras and will be physically linked via a microfilament tether to a power source.
The Secret Service has said it will notify people at the club that the vehicle is in operation.
It is also aware that private residences will be within range of the drone's surveillance equipment.
Images and video recorded by the drone will be overwritten within 30 days unless they are part of a law enforcement investigation at that time.
The BBC's Rory Cellan-Jones tested a number of consumer drones last year, although one that he was holding via a tether did not survive.