CASE C47 · ES · 2025
Puertos del Estado (Spain): first conference on drone use across the state port system, including lighthouse and infrastructure inspection
Spain's state ports body held its first conference on drone use and reported that 10 of 28 port authorities operate drones. Gijón uses them for infrastructure inspection, Vilagarcía for seven lighthouses and Tarragona for thermal imaging and live feeds. No time or cost effects were given, and no quay-wall inspection was described.
| Owner | Puertos del Estado and Spanish Port Authorities (Tarragona, Gijón, Vilagarcía de Arousa, Valenciaport, Barcelona, A Coruña) |
| Provider | — |
| Location | Spanish state-owned ports (conference at the Port Authority of Tarragona) |
| Aircraft | In-house fleets (e.g. Tarragona: 8 drones); models not stated |
| Sensors | RGB camera, thermal infrared, gas detection (Barcelona) |
Before
Periodic checks of lighthouses and port infrastructure, pollution surveillance and works supervision were done by staff on foot or by boat.
With drones
Port authorities run in-house pilots and fleets: Gijón for surface and infrastructure inspection and building digital twins, Vilagarcía for periodic inspection of seven lighthouses, Tarragona for thermal imaging with live feeds to the port control centre.
Outcomes
| Metric | Value | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| adoption | 10 of 28 Port Authorities operate unmanned aircraft; 19 attended | Reported |
| fleet examples | Tarragona: 20 trained pilots and 8 drones, regular flights since September 2023; A Coruña: 20 certified pilots, 25 authorisations for external drones | Reported |
| inspection coverage | 7 lighthouses in the Rías de Arousa and Muros–Noia inspected by drone | Reported |
| time / cost | not quantified | Reported |
- Conference summary from the state ports body; no time, cost or defect figures.
- No quay-wall, breakwater, crane or underwater inspection is described; much of the use is safety, environmental surveillance and mapping rather than structural inspection.
- A national guidance document on drone use by port authorities was still being drafted; U-space airspace management and regulation were named as open challenges.
Sources
- Puertos del Estado hosts in Tarragona the first conference on the use of drones in the state-owned port systemPuertos del Estado Full text read
Sources checked: 2026-10-22