At a port terminal, rail yard or vehicle storage compound, a drone-in-a-box gives security a moving camera that can reach any row, stack or siding within minutes. It flies scheduled patrols and checks fence and gate alarms, and flags people and vehicles where they should not be. Geofences keep it away from cranes, live tracks and restricted airspace.
- TAPA EMEA recorded 430 cargo crimes and about €36.9 million in losses across EMEA in December 2024 alone.
- Europol has documented how criminal networks infiltrate EU ports and extract illicit goods from containers.
- The ISPS Code, binding in the EU through Regulation (EC) No 725/2004, requires port facilities to monitor their restricted areas.
- Airspace near ports is often restricted, so geographical zones must be checked before any flight.
- Nestua's software runs in development builds. The drone and base station are still being built.
What security problems do ports and yards face in Europe?
Cargo crime is a constant problem across European supply chains. The Transported Asset Protection Association (TAPA EMEA) reported 430 new cargo crimes in its incident database for December 2024. Of these, 113 had a reported loss value, together totalling €36,859,299. November 2024 was higher still, at €40.3 million. Yards where trailers, containers, wagons or new vehicles stand overnight are natural targets.
Ports face a second threat: infiltration by organised crime. A 2023 joint report by Europol and the security steering committee of the ports of Antwerp, Hamburg/Bremerhaven and Rotterdam describes how criminal networks corrupt port insiders and extract drugs from containers inside terminals. That makes unauthorised people moving among container stacks a security concern in its own right.
The rules reflect this. Regulation (EC) No 725/2004 makes the IMO's ISPS Code binding in the EU. At security level 1, port facilities must monitor the facility, including anchoring and berthing areas, and monitor restricted areas so that only authorised persons have access. Directive 2005/65/EC adds port-wide security assessments and plans. Managing bodies of ports and rail infrastructure managers are also listed in the NIS2 and CER Directives.
Why do static cameras and guard patrols leave gaps?
- Moving blind spots. Container stacks, parked wagons and rows of vehicles change daily. A camera that covered an aisle yesterday may be blocked today.
- Scale. Terminals, marshalling yards and vehicle compounds cover large areas. A vehicle patrol sees one aisle at a time.
- Operating hazards. Guards on foot among straddle carriers, trains and moving vehicles are at risk themselves, which limits where and when they can patrol.
How would a drone-in-a-box patrol a port or yard?
A drone-in-a-box unit consists of the drone, a weatherproof base station and an edge node that controls that one drone. A large terminal or yard would use several units, which can be connected through the optional cloud for multi-site oversight. In Nestua's design:
- Scheduled patrols. In the browser mission editor, operators lay out waypoint routes on a satellite map along fence lines, gates, empty-container depots, sidings and vehicle rows. Missions are uploaded, started and stopped from the browser, and each action is audited.
- Geofenced no-fly zones. Polygon geofences exclude ship-to-shore cranes, quay edges, live running lines, overhead catenary, public roads and any restricted airspace. Circle geofences cover masts and light towers. A breach either blocks the command or triggers return-to-launch.
- Alarm-triggered checks. When a fence, gate or seal alarm fires, the operator sends the drone to the location. A command only counts as done after the drone's MAVLink acknowledgement.
- Person and vehicle detection. A YOLO model on the edge computer's NPU detects people and vehicles. AI rules can notify, record, hover over a stack or return to launch, within the safety policy and geofences, and every action is logged.
- Operator verification. Operators watch WebRTC video in the browser alongside a live map with the drone's trail. Local ring-buffer recording allows clips to be exported, and recordings can carry telemetry subtitles showing time and position.
Why does offline-first matter at a port or rail yard?
Port and rail operators handle security-sensitive information: terminal layouts, restricted areas and ISPS plans. Many will not want aerial video on a third-party cloud. In an offline-first design, control, AI, video and logs run on the edge node at the site, and uploading recordings off-site is disabled by default. Patrols keep working if the site's connection fails. Steel stacks and cranes can also degrade radio links. Nestua's own digital link uses forward error correction, adaptive bitrate and per-packet authenticated encryption with hard mutual pairing, but range in a real terminal must be tested on site.
Regulatory and privacy notes
- Airspace. Member States can define UAS geographical zones under Article 15 of Regulation (EU) 2019/947, and ports near airports or military sites are often affected. Automated patrols from a box are normally a "specific" category operation that needs authorisation. See our EU drone regulations guide.
- ISPS and port security. Any drone use should be agreed with the port facility security officer and reflected in the approved plan.
- NIS2 and CER. Port managing bodies, port facilities and rail infrastructure managers appear in both directives. Whether a particular operator is in scope depends on national transposition.
- Privacy. Dock workers, drivers and crew will be filmed. GDPR, the EDPB Guidelines 3/2019 on video devices and national labour rules apply.
This page is general information, not legal advice.
What to evaluate for a port or yard
- Is the site inside a geographical zone or controlled airspace, and what authorisation route applies?
- Can geofences follow crane rails, quay edges and catenary precisely, and be updated as the layout changes?
- How well does the radio link hold up among steel stacks? Ask for an on-site test.
- What are the flight time, the camera's night performance and the weather limits? Ask vendors for tested figures.
- Can gate, fence and seal alarms trigger verification flights?
- Can clips and the event journal be exported for police, insurers and ISPS audits?
- Does the system run fully on site, and who can enable remote access?
Sources
- TAPA EMEA, "€36.8m of products stolen from supply chains in EMEA in 31 days" (December 2024 data): tapaemea.org
- Europol and Security Steering Committee of the ports of Antwerp, Hamburg/Bremerhaven and Rotterdam, "Criminal networks in EU ports: risks and challenges for law enforcement" (2023): europol.europa.eu
- Regulation (EC) No 725/2004 on enhancing ship and port facility security (ISPS Code, Part A section 14.2): eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2004/725/oj
- Directive 2005/65/EC on enhancing port security: eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2005/65/oj
- Directive (EU) 2022/2555 (NIS2), Annex I, and Directive (EU) 2022/2557 (CER), Annex: NIS2, CER
- Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/947, Article 15: eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2019/947/oj
- EDPB Guidelines 3/2019 on processing of personal data through video devices: edpb.europa.eu