Connecticut Teen's Video Of Gun-Firing Drone Spurs Investigation
CLINTON, Conn. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- An 18-year-old Connecticut man may be in trouble with federal aviation officials after posting a video online that shows shots being fired from a drone that had been jury-rigged with a handgun.
The FAA said Tuesday it is investigating whether Austin Haghwout, of Clinton, violated its regulations, which prohibit the careless or reckless operation of a model aircraft.
Haughwout's father told WFSB-TV, a CBS affiliate in Hartford, last week that his son created the drone with the help of a Central Connecticut State University professor and researched the laws before inventing the contraption.
"I mean it's all a work in progress. That's what makes this so difficult," Dan Gettinger, who studies drones at Bard College, told WCBS 880's Alex Silverman.
Connecticut Teen's Video Of Gun-Firing Drone Spurs Investigation
The 14-second video shows a four-propeller drone with a semiautomatic handgun strapped on top hovering as it fires four shots in a wooded area.
"The next to last thing we need is guns that people can send flying around," Michael Ruscoe, of Milford, told WFSB. "There's no accountability for it. Someone can be flying this thing from God knows where."
The FAA said it is working with Clinton police, who are also investigating. Haughwout did not immediately return telephone messages and emails from WCBS 880 seeking comment.
Haghwout made news last year when police charged a woman with assault after she confronted him about flying a drone at a Hammonasset Beach.
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