Planespotting is a hobby in which aviation enthusiasts enjoy aircraft by jotting down tail-numbers or taking photographs to document them. It is practiced by many hundreds of thousands around the world.
Reports are coming in about a pair of British men being arrested near the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi, India. Their detention is due to suspicious behavior, which may be nothing more than the hobby of planespotting.
It is being said that the men were staying at the Radisson Hotel near the airfield and were in possession of equipment that can independently track aircraft, as well as cameras, binoculars and maps of the airport. Hotel employees witnessed this and alerted authorities. There is no connection to terrorist activity shown at this time.
Stephen Hampston and Steven Martin say they were just enjoying local aviation as enthusiasts. It is believe that Steve Martin is the same person who has two photos uploaded to the airliners.net photo database website.
If they are indeed planespotters, they would not be the first to get into legal trouble. A group of 14 British and Dutch planespotters from were detained in Greece in 2001 after trying to enjoy the sights at an Air Force base in Kalamata. Their eventual charges, and convictions of illegal information collecting brought sentences of 3 years to eight of the men. They were later acquitted in their appeal.
More on this story as it develops.
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