U.S.’s First Drone-Linked Aircraft Crash Is Being Investigated
A helicopter Crashed During landing in South Carolina this week. It is believed that a civilian drone might be involved in a helicopter crash. The investigation is going on. This crash is the first drone-related crash of an aircraft in U.S History.
On 14 February Wednesday Robinson Helicopter Co. R22 went down about 2 p.m. near Charleston, according to a statement by the Federal Aviation Administration . The incident involved a student pilot and an instructor .Neither the pilot nor the student was injured, though the helicopter’s tail appeared to have significant damage
The pilot of aircraft told investigators that a small drone appeared directly in front of them .They took evasive action to avoid a collision, and the tail of the helicopter hit a tree, triggering a crash landing.The National Transportation Safety Board is aware of initial reports that a drone may have been involved in the crash and is gathering information on the case, spokesman Chris O’Neil said in an email Thursday.
In the U.S., drones are typically restricted to flights within 400 feet of the ground and within sight of the operator. They also are supposed to stay clear of traditional aircraft. But in the thousands of FAA reports of possible drone safety incidents, many involved apparent illegal flights
While the type of drone that may have been involved in the South Carolina accident hasn’t been verified, the world’s largest civilian manufacturer, SZ DJI Technology Co. of China, issued a statement on the episode on Thursday night.
The use of drones near airports and “within controlled airspace poses a serious risk to aviation safety,” Canada’s Transportation Safety Board said in the report. ”For this reason, all recreational and non-recreational drone users must be knowledgeable about and comply with the regulations, including the requirement to operate within line of sight.”
“The likelihood that a drone will collide with an airline aircraft is increasing,” said a letter to U.S. lawmakers earlier this week from Airlines for America, a trade group representing large carriers, and the Air Line Pilots Association and the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, the unions that represent pilots and controllers.
The only confirmed drone-related aviation accident in the U.S. occurred on Sept. 21 above New York City. A drone struck an Army helicopter near Staten Island, according to the NTSB. The helicopter landed safely. The drone’s operator had flown the device out of his sight and didn’t see the helicopter, the NTSB found.
Confirming whether a drone was involved in such cases has been difficult. In the New York case, a piece of a drone was found lodged in the helicopter and its part number was used to trace it back to the owner.
