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Drones have the wonderful propensity to turn up almost anywhere. From sport stadiums to the lawn of the White House, unmanned quadcopters have managed to sneak into locations that are usually off-limits, practically unhindered.

This is great for drone enthusiasts, obviously, but law enforcement agencies are worried these devices could be used in criminal or terrorists acts (i.e. drug-delivering or explosive-rigged drones), or cause crashes by flying too high or too close to larger aircraft.

But how do you stop the unstoppable? Well, with a bazooka, of course. Northumberland-based OpenWorks Engineering has just announced the SkyWall 100: a shoulder-mounted compressed-gas gun designed to physically stop drones hovering around. It weighs 10 kilos (22lbs).

The bazooka's net-carrying projectiles can reach drones within a range of up to 100 metres. Reload time is about eight seconds.

The parachute feature ensures that drones would not just plummet to the ground—which would be hazardous in crowded places—but glide down gently. Judging by the photos provided to us, though, it looks like the parachute feature might still need some work.

Skywall’s accuracy relies on a laser-powered "SmartScope," which allows the gun’s on-board computer to calculate exactly the right moment to fire the projectile. (It sounds a bit like TrackingPoint's smart rifle.) The projectile itself keeps in constant communication with the gun, and does not unleash the net until it is close enough to the drone.

"The smart-projectile is not just a bullet with a net," OpenWorks technical director Alex Wilkinson told Ars Technica. "The SmartScope in the launcher is constantly updating the projectile as it tracks the target. Once in the air the projectile counts down until it is near to the target, at which point, rather than just ‘detonating,' it performs a carefully timed sequence of actions in order to ensure the net is deployed as it passes the target drone."

"This means that you don’t have to hit the drone on the nose, but you just have to be in the general area around it," he added.

In the future, SkyWall’s projectiles could get even smarter. For instance, OpenWorks is designing a special projectile with jamming capabilities, which the company thinks could be used as an anti-terror countermeasure. “When terrorists build an IED they fit it with some sort of receiver, like a mobile phone or a radio receiver, that allows them to trigger the device remotely. They could do the same with a drone,” Wilkinson said.

“The projectile we are developing would jam the immediate area around the drone, preventing the operator from triggering the drone, but without disrupting communications in the whole area.”

SkyWall 100, which should go on sale later this year, is the first of a series of drone-catching rifles OpenWorks is working on. The future models SkyWall 200 and SkyWall 300 would be, respectively, a larger gun mounted on a three-pronged frame and a permanent machine gun-like ordnance. The current version is the only one that can be operated by a single individual.

The net-spewing gun could effectively put an end to the British police’s complicated relationship with drones. While UK police are worried about the possible security threat coming from drones, their current rules when facing a “negligent drone use” scenario is to just wait for the drone’s battery to run out, as Wired UK revealed in November.