Bird's eye view out for a duck

The drone working at the Basin Reserve ruffled gulls' feathers. Photo / Getty

Sky TV's drone camera was grounded at Eden Park last night because there was no safety plan for filming the cricket with it.

The device - a 'flycam' - was intended to be used for giving a global TV audience a bird's eye view of the Black Caps versus Sri Lanka one day international .

Eden Park Trust spokesman David Kennedy said stadium bosses had erred on the side of caution.

"The operators had been asked to provide a health and safety plan to demonstrate that flying a drone within a stadium environment can be undertaken safely," Kennedy said.

"We have requested confirmation that if any approvals are needed from the CAA that they are in place. We are waiting to hear on this matter."

Sky TV sports producer Alan Henderson said the drone's grounding was disappointing.

"We would have loved to have used it and intended to do so because the viewers like it."

Earlier this month, seagulls attacked a TV drone on the second day of the second test between the Black Caps and Sri Lanka at the Basin Reserve in Wellington.

Nearly every time the device was sent aloft a group of gulls swooped on Sky's new camera technology and launched a series of attacks.

Sky TV spokeswoman Kirsty Way said the company would persist with drones at sporting events despite the setback.

"The use of drones is still very much at an experimental stage in New Zealand," Way explained. "Our intention is to continually enhance the experience of viewers and we will follow all the appropriate rules."

It was unclear whether permission would be granted for using drones at Eden Park for television coverage of the Cricket World Cup.

"We are working with CWC to determine appropriate operating protocols for the possible use of the drone," Kennedy said.

The rising use of drones by media outlets and private individuals is currently regulated under model aircraft rules. Russell Blackstock