Drones track sharks off GC beaches
The SharkSmart drone program, which monitors four Gold Coast beaches for shark activity, has been hailed as a success.
The shark monitoring program was expanded this summer with Kirra Beach joining three other Gold Coast beaches, namely Burleigh Beach, Kurrawa Beach and Main Beach.
Across Queensland in 2025, the drone surveillance program spotted 862 sharks at 16 monitored beaches, with 124 of those greater than 2m in length.
The SharkSmart drones are designed to monitor and detect sharks as well as gather data on shark movements and behaviour, to help protect beachgoers.
The expansion to the SharkSmart drone program follows a successful trial where Surf Life Saving Queensland conducted 17,954 drone flights between September 2020 and April 2024 across 10 locations.
Minister for Primary Industries Tony Perrett said the drone program had been expanded to some of Queensland’s most popular and densely populated beaches.
“Our beaches are where Queenslanders and visitors love to relax, cool off and enjoy some rest and relaxation and now some of our busiest beaches are even safer thanks to the expanded SharkSmart drone surveillance program,” Mr Perrett said.
“We boosted the investment into the Shark Control Program by 151 per cent, resulting in more than $88 million of additional funding over the life of the plan to return it to its primary purpose: to protect swimmers at select beaches from shark attacks.”
The State Government says it will increase the number of beaches covered under the program to 20 for the 2026–27 season.
“We’re particularly proud to be expanding the drone surveillance program across our iconic beaches on the southern Gold Coast, where we’ve been able to obtain all the relevant permits to allow drone flights in restricted airspace,” said Mr Perrett.