They have been losing support for years. Red flags were noticed, feedback was given to them, they kept ignoring all of it. It's time to face consequences.

I feel like all successful field campaigns require a drone sacrifice sooner or later!

I went last year (Berlin) and going this year too (Helsinki), I have 4 submitted abstracts (there's no limit!). They kindly awarded me EC bursaries both times.
Highly recommend it, it was very well organized. For me, it's also a good opportunity to go back to Europe to visit family.