This is an excerpt from a report made to the Aviation Safety Reporting System. The narrative is written by the pilot, rather than FAA or NTSB officials. To maintain anonymity, many details, such as aircraft model or airport, are often scrubbed from the reports.
I witnessed what looked to be a near midair collision (NMAC) between a C172 and an unidentified drone and then I experienced an NMAC with the same drone.
The drone was a fairly large dark-colored drone. I am unable to provide exact details as I was just focused on maneuvering to avoid it in the moment and I am therefore unaware of the type or exact configuration, but it was large and dark in color with working lights that were on at the time of the event.
I was on downwind approximately abeam Taxiway 1 at 1,800 feet MSL when I witnessed the large drone nearly miss the 172 (multiple hundred feet lower than us) on left base for Runway XX. It was an unsettling moment as from my position the drone looked to be another plane. The drone was so close to the aircraft that I thought they were going to collide. The drone looked to have passed just under the aircraft.
Just shortly after that event as it approached our aircraft (also a C172) I realized it was not a plane but rather a large drone flying from base to downwind (against the traffic pattern) at the same altitude as ourselves (1,800 feet MSL). The drone was directly in front of our aircraft and it was flying at us.
I quickly took the controls and did a steep turn to the right to avoid the drone and we did not impact; however, it was certainly close and unsettling with a high chance for an impact and possibly poor outcome.
Of course, I hope this was an unintentional mistake by the operator of the drone, but realistically it seems unlikely that you would accidentally fly your drone directly at two aircraft at differing altitudes and differing locations within one minute of each other.
I reported the drone to local traffic on the CTAF immediately following the event for their awareness, and I was informed upon landing that the manager in the FBO promptly called the local police who were responding.
I am unaware of what ended up happening with the police.
Additionally, after landing I called Approach and alerted them to the event and provided details.
Primary Problem: Human Factors
ACN: 2050707
I see a couple of issues here. As a 40 plus year R/C model AIRCRAFT pilot and also a full size ATP rated pilot of over 50 years, both of which took considerable time to become proficient, as opposed to highly automated “Drones” that essentially fly themselves with little training.
The FAA’s nomenclature of lumping anything that fly’s by R/C as a “Drone” is very misleading and offensive to me.
This incident occurred at 1,800 AGL. R/C aircraft do not operate at such an altitude, do to it not being able to seen from the ground by line of sight. Actual non-aircraft drones are usually equipped with cameras and gps and can be flown quite a distance and altitude from the operators visual line of sight.
While I recognize a collision with either unmanned vehicle is potentially catastrophic.
The drone should have been equipped with a GPS transponder notifying the FAA of its location and altitude. (Why didn’t it work by notifying FAA of the drones location?)
R/C aircraft typically operate between 50′ and 400′ agl very near the R/C flying field, not mile(s) from it.
Essentially my major complaint is all R/C being called a DRONE. And as such regulated to fly equipped with a GPS Transponder unless operated within a FAA Regulated Flying Field, (FRIA). I only fly my R/C Aircrafts at R/C flying fields, whereas “Drones” can be flown from anywhere.
It should be just as hard and expensive and time consuming for a drown to fly over the public’s head as it is for GA pilots to do the same.
Regular occurrence at KSMX. Preferred RWY is 30 99% of the time. There is radio control airfield at the Rodeo grounds 2 nm SE of the airport. If you’re on a right downwind and the tower tell you to extend your downwind it puts you within 1/2 nm from. It happened to me turning right base and there was a drone 50 feet from my wingtip @ 1800′ AGL.
Drones are a very real “clear and present danger” around many airports, including my own. I fly from a very busy strip located on a peninsula. It has a part-time tower, so the airspace fluctuates between Class D and Class E.
I’ve encountered several drone operators, hobbyist and Part 107-certificated, flying off adjacent beaches well within the controlled airspace surface area.
You can guess how many were ‘authorized’ to do so…
This scenario is a case where ‘scrubbing’ the actual name of the airport in the ASRS report is a disservice to everyone that flies in that vicinity.
Instead of worrying about “maintaining anonymity”, NASA could use these reports to help spread the word about possible threats at specific locations.
Let’s hope that in the future, we don’t see a General Aviation News ‘safety scenario’ involving an NTSB report on a fatal mid-air at “Airport ZZZ.”
A single drone inflight encounter can be unnerving and itself dangerous.
BUT a drone-swarm… rapidly positioned into an airfield flight-path… intercepting aircraft during the most vulnerable low-speed, low-altitude flight… take-off and landing… will be a nightmare domestic terrorist ‘scenario’.
I wondered how long this was gonna take
I suspect it was a deliberate act of terrorism by the drone operator. Best solution would be for bonafide government authorities to be able to direct high powered RF toward such rogue drones and overwhelm the operator’s controls in order to crash it to the ground immediately. Screw due process when public safety if endangered.
Regards/J
Me thinks one is dangerous if one thinks the ends justify the means and as such it is ok to violate one’s oath to uphold the the constitution against all enemies, foreign or domestic.
However as I understand the laws and precident (I’m not a lawyer) in exigent circumstances such as this, the use of “deadly” force is valid by police. And on that basis I concur that this thing should have been brought down.