Green Day literally runs offstage after drone spotted inside stadium; drone operator caught; feds on the case

Cellphone video showed pop-punk band Green Day literally running offstage Wednesday in Detroit after a drone was spotted inside Comerica Park.

“There was an individual that flew a drone into Comerica Park, so Green Day was taken off stage,” Detroit police Cpl. Dan Donakowski said, according to the Detroit News. “Shortly after that, they went back on stage to perform. DPD located this individual outside of Comerica Park. He is being detained pending further investigation.”

‘How you guys doing? Everybody OK?’ lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong asked crowd of around 35,000 fans after the drone incident.

The paper said the band members were rushed from the stage at 8:50 p.m. — about 20 minutes into the concert and during the second chorus of the hit single “Longview.” The News said after a few minutes, a message showed up on the concert video screens saying, “Show Pause. Please standby for details.”

The delay lasted about 10 minutes, then Green Day returned to the stage, the paper said.

“How you guys doing? Everybody OK?” lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong asked crowd of around 35,000 fans after the drone incident, the News said, adding that the band kicked into “Longview” at the spot when the drone interrupted them. The paper said that after the next song, “Welcome to Paradise,” Armstrong told the crowd, “There ain’t no motherf***er that’s gonna stop us, I’ll tell you that.”

The News said in a follow-up story that federal authorities are investigating the suspect.

Detroit Police Sgt. Daren Zhou said the drone pilot was questioned but not arrested, the paper reported. “We’ve forwarded the case to the [U.S. Federal Aviation Administration],” Zhou said, according to the News.

The paper said the FAA bans flying drones in and around a radius of three nautical miles from stadiums or venues starting one hour before and ending one hour after the scheduled time of major event.

FAA spokesperson Eva Ngai told the News that although the agency lacks the authority to pursue criminal charges, it can fine “drone operators who endanger other aircraft or people on the ground” to fines “that exceed $30,000. In addition, the FAA can suspend or revoke drone operators’ pilot certificates.”

The paper, citing the FAA’s website, added that drone operators who conduct unsafe or unauthorized operations face fines up to $75,000 per violation.

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