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The first near miss between a passenger aircraft and a drone near Heathrow is being investigated amid fears that drones could pose a danger to commercial flights.
The UK Airprox Board (UKAB), which is due to publish its findings on Friday, is expected to record an incident risk rating of A – the highest of five categories – defined as a ”serious risk of collision”.
The report, seen by the Sunday Times, said the pilot of the Airbus A320 spotted the drone, which failed to show up on air traffic control systems, at 2.16pm on July 22 while flying at an altitude of 700ft.
The pilot reported the incident to the UKAB who launched an inquiry, however the owner of the drone has never been identified.
It is understood that the aircraft in the Heathrow incident was not considered to be in immediate danger, although a collision with an engine or cockpit window could have put the jet at serious risk.
The pilot of a 74-seat ATR 72 reported that a quadcopter drone flew within 80ft of his aircraft at about 1,500ft as he was approaching Southend airport in May.
In December 2012 the crew of a Boeing 777 approaching Gatwick reported seeing “two white or silver discs” at 1,000ft to 1,500ft, The Sunday Times reported.
Airline pilots’ union Balpa demanded better protection for the public against the risks of drones earlier this year.
General secretary Jim McAuslan said: ”The UK should become a ‘safe drone zone’ so we can make the most of the major business and leisure opportunities offered by remotely piloted aircraft, while protecting passengers, pilots and residents.
”The technology is developing quickly and we could see remote aircraft the same size as a Boeing 737 being operated commercially in our skies within 10 years.”
The Civil Aviation Authority issued updated rules last month spelling out the limits to the use of drones in congested areas.
CAA rules require that the person flying a drone to have “direct, unaided visual contact” at all times and that it must not be flown in the vicinity of airfields or over congested areas and crowds.
Where CAA permission has been granted for aerial work, such as photography, the drone must go no higher than 400ft and a distance not beyond the visual range of the operator, or a maximum distance of 500 metres.
A spokesman for the regulator said it was dependent on people using their common sense.
“We can’t police these things being used day in, day out,” he said. “The infrastructure is just not there. People can buy these things, they don’t need to be licensed or registered, and you don’t need any qualifications to fly them.
“Obviously we know there are more and more operating but we need to get the level of risk in perspective. I wouldn’t want to overplay the risk to passenger jets using airports
“Clearly there has been this one incident at Heathrow but it has been investigated and I don’t think we can draw any conclusions from that.”
The CAA can take legal action against drone owners who breach the rules.