On Challenges for Penal System Employees when Countering Illegal Unmanned Aircraft Flights
Kostarev D.F., Subbotin S.P. On challenges for penal system employees when countering illegal unmanned aircraft flights. Penitentiary Science, 2026, vol. 20, no. 1 (73), pp. 33– 39. doi 10.46741/2686-9764.2026.73.1.004
the article analyzes modern challenges related to the threat of the use of unmanned aircraft for illegal purposes: delivery of prohibited items to convicts and monitoring of the service by the personnel for supervision and protection at penitentiary facilities. This is becoming especially relevant for correctional facilities of the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia. The authors emphasize the need to develop and optimize mechanisms to counter possible threats. Purpose: to identify problems that arise when intercepting flights of unmanned aircraft on the territory of penitentiary, and to develop measures for boosting security. Methods: analytical, legal, statistical, expert, and forecasting. Results: the study shows that there are problems related to legal, technical and organizational aspects of countering the threats posed by unmanned aircraft to ensure proper functioning of the penal system. The dynamics of the illegal flight suppression demonstrates the formation of a stable negative trend, while the approaches to protecting correctional facilities do not fully take into account potential risks. Conclusions: to ensure security of penitentiary institutions, one needs an integrated approach that includes a legal framework, training and timely professional development of correctional personnel, and introduction of modern technologies for tracking and blocking (suppressing) flights of unmanned aircraft.
Keywords: unmanned aircraft; security of correctional institutions; protective systems.
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