Another Drone Pilot does it Again
#2502
It makes a huge difference. Sparrows bounce off sometimes leaving blood and feathers and only occasionally leaving a dent but they don't weigh 2 oz. A duck, on the other hand can weigh as much as 3 pounds and not only put a nice hole in a leading edge but could damage the spar as well or pretty much remove a windshield. Something like a buzzard or goose is downright deadly at 5-6 pounds. The great thing about birds is they usually see you coming and try to evade. How many model aircraft, especially those with camera equipment, weight less than 3 pounds? I witnessed a model warbird hit an 8 inch irrigation pipe in Calusa, CA twenty years ago. I don't recall if it was a .40 or .60 sized craft but it put a heck of a hole in the pipe. That model would have been flying around 120 mph when it hit (we had a radar gun we sometimes played with). Fortunately, I think the quads aren't likely to act as much like a missile as an airplane but they still have mass with solid components and anything with mass will do damage at flying speeds. If model and aircraft are traveling in opposite directions it would be easy to have a collision speed of well over 200 miles an hour (300 feet per second). If one does penetrate an aircraft and stays, what are the odds the battery pack may have been damaged and become a fire hazard?
ADDED: I used to know a guy that had taken a duck through the windshield of a Cessna 172. The aircraft would not hold altitude at full power.
ADDED: I used to know a guy that had taken a duck through the windshield of a Cessna 172. The aircraft would not hold altitude at full power.
Last edited by jelge; 09-08-2015 at 01:40 PM.
#2503
Even the FAA admits that the first incident may or may not have involved a UAV. It's interesting to note that this aircraft is owned by an aerial imaging company, which stands to loose a lot of business from camera-equipped drones.
The second incident involved a very large military drone that is not available to the general public.
As far as I know, there have been no confirmed reports of a civilian UAV colliding with any full scale aircraft.
I think a midair collision between a UAV and a full scale aircraft will happen, eventually. However, I think the chance of a fatality in the aftermath of such an incident is unlikely. If a C-130 can survive an severe airborne impact with a 185 pound drone, a hobby grade drone has little to no chance to cause a fatal accident. Even if a UAV is ingested into a jet engine, the pilot will shut down the engine, the engine's integrated fire extinguishers will douse any fire, and the pilots will land the aircraft safely, just has they have dozens of times in a simulator. No twin-engine aircraft can certified unless it is capable of climbing on a single engine, and jets can generally take off on one engine after they reach a certain speed.
The second incident involved a very large military drone that is not available to the general public.
As far as I know, there have been no confirmed reports of a civilian UAV colliding with any full scale aircraft.
I think a midair collision between a UAV and a full scale aircraft will happen, eventually. However, I think the chance of a fatality in the aftermath of such an incident is unlikely. If a C-130 can survive an severe airborne impact with a 185 pound drone, a hobby grade drone has little to no chance to cause a fatal accident. Even if a UAV is ingested into a jet engine, the pilot will shut down the engine, the engine's integrated fire extinguishers will douse any fire, and the pilots will land the aircraft safely, just has they have dozens of times in a simulator. No twin-engine aircraft can certified unless it is capable of climbing on a single engine, and jets can generally take off on one engine after they reach a certain speed.
I do see the cheaper multi-rotors weigh up to 4 pounds. Many weight less than 2 pounds. The nicer camera platforms from DJI up to 6.5. Most of you will have more knowledge on what get flown where than me so which ones are most likely to be flown where manned aircraft are: the cheap light weight aircraft or the pricier heavy aircraft?
Last edited by jelge; 09-08-2015 at 06:41 PM.
#2504
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I often wonder about other things that float off into the air, like balloons, and kites.
When a thousand balloons are released do they automatically pop at 400 feet? It may be a slim possibility, but couldn't a balloon do damage to a jet engine or helicopter? Especially a mylar balloon.
Surely a kite could do damage. When I was a teen we let out kites on1000 foot fishing line and I remember one floated off.
When a thousand balloons are released do they automatically pop at 400 feet? It may be a slim possibility, but couldn't a balloon do damage to a jet engine or helicopter? Especially a mylar balloon.
Surely a kite could do damage. When I was a teen we let out kites on1000 foot fishing line and I remember one floated off.
#2505
I often wonder about other things that float off into the air, like balloons, and kites.
When a thousand balloons are released do they automatically pop at 400 feet? It may be a slim possibility, but couldn't a balloon do damage to a jet engine or helicopter? Especially a mylar balloon.
Surely a kite could do damage. When I was a teen we let out kites on1000 foot fishing line and I remember one floated off.
When a thousand balloons are released do they automatically pop at 400 feet? It may be a slim possibility, but couldn't a balloon do damage to a jet engine or helicopter? Especially a mylar balloon.
Surely a kite could do damage. When I was a teen we let out kites on1000 foot fishing line and I remember one floated off.
#2506
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Just out of curiosity,,,What do you think would have happened if that drone would have hit the C-130 in the cockpit? You are aware there are more aircraft out there than just the heavies aren't you? What if a 5-6 pound model collided with something not built as sturdy, like an RV-4 cruising at 190 mph? Not all jets have multiple engines either. What if one of these little drones gets into the rotor of a helicopter? What about someone tooling around in an ultralight? People have been killed because a model flew into them. It not just about the hazard to life. There is property damage as well and aircraft are generally very expensive to fix.
I do see the cheaper multi-rotors weigh up to 4 pounds. Many weight less than 2 pounds. The nicer camera platforms from DJI up to 6.5. Most of you will have more knowledge on what get flown where than me so which ones are most likely to be flown where manned aircraft are: the cheap light weight aircraft or the pricier heavy aircraft?
I do see the cheaper multi-rotors weigh up to 4 pounds. Many weight less than 2 pounds. The nicer camera platforms from DJI up to 6.5. Most of you will have more knowledge on what get flown where than me so which ones are most likely to be flown where manned aircraft are: the cheap light weight aircraft or the pricier heavy aircraft?
#2507
I didn't say fatalities would be common but it is a real possibility. Since there has been extensive damage and a few deaths caused by soft tissue impacts I think you are ignoring the new threat that hard objects bring into the equation.
#2508
When things are still unconfirmed I like to try to keep an eye on the evolving story. In keeping with that I am posting a new link to a story that claims an unconfirmed birdstrike on the the twin due to remains found on the aircraft.
http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news...-224805-1.html
I don't know what they are calling a "small, non-predatory bird" but, in 30 years of aircraft maintenance experience and 22 years piloting experience the following pictures show what I expect to see from sparrows, starlings, and killdeer. The small dent where the blue paint still looks okay was one of a flock of birds I flew through. The aircraft had evidence of 12 hits (blood and feathers) but this was the only one that showed damage. I have had many more birdstrikes but seldom know about it until I do a walk around the aircraft or wash it. I only felt or heard about half of them...maybe not that many. The internet is full of birdstrike pictures where real damage was inflicted. The boot on the leading edge of the twin would act like the bed liner in a pick-up truck and would have helped protect the aircraft.
http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news...-224805-1.html
I don't know what they are calling a "small, non-predatory bird" but, in 30 years of aircraft maintenance experience and 22 years piloting experience the following pictures show what I expect to see from sparrows, starlings, and killdeer. The small dent where the blue paint still looks okay was one of a flock of birds I flew through. The aircraft had evidence of 12 hits (blood and feathers) but this was the only one that showed damage. I have had many more birdstrikes but seldom know about it until I do a walk around the aircraft or wash it. I only felt or heard about half of them...maybe not that many. The internet is full of birdstrike pictures where real damage was inflicted. The boot on the leading edge of the twin would act like the bed liner in a pick-up truck and would have helped protect the aircraft.
#2509
Justice was served.................................. http://kfor.com/2015/09/12/drone-sho...fe-fundraiser/
Were the PITA protesters more upset about the group shooting at pigeons or the drone?
Were the PITA protesters more upset about the group shooting at pigeons or the drone?
#2511
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Justice was served.................................. http://kfor.com/2015/09/12/drone-sho...fe-fundraiser/
Were the PITA protesters more upset about the group shooting at pigeons or the drone?
Were the PITA protesters more upset about the group shooting at pigeons or the drone?
People
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#2513
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Ha,,,they can be one in the same I guess. They already have video from prior fundraisers where they sent actual "donors" in to film it undercover, not sure why they needed to use a drone to get more footage. Can't believe they didn't expect it to get shot at, like...duh!
#2514
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#2516
Justice was served.................................. http://kfor.com/2015/09/12/drone-sho...fe-fundraiser/
Were the PITA protesters more upset about the group shooting at pigeons or the drone?
Were the PITA protesters more upset about the group shooting at pigeons or the drone?
They were on private property. That drone was trespassing and videoing a private gathering. BOOM! And if those clowns came onto that private property to get their trespassing drone back arrest their adzes.
#2517
http://www.modelaircraft.org/gov/doc...09-11-2015.pdf
I just received the AMA email that contained this press release and I am glad to see the AMA being proactive and I think the press release has some factual and long overdue info.
I just received the AMA email that contained this press release and I am glad to see the AMA being proactive and I think the press release has some factual and long overdue info.
#2518
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Yea, I kind of figured, just gave me an opportunity to wise off, I always appreciate that.
#2520
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Well, it's happened again, numerous times according to the article but now, there will be action.Interested on what the final decision will be???http://www.cbsnews.com/news/faa-prop...drone-flights/
#2521
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Hope its a big fine. They were pretty bold about what they were doing. Will be interesting too see if other similar places modify their marketing strategies as well as their websites. I'm seeing more crop up advertising on Craigslist, probably don't think they will ever be in trouble.
#2523
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Hope its a big fine. They were pretty bold about what they were doing. Will be interesting too see if other similar places modify their marketing strategies as well as their websites. I'm seeing more crop up advertising on Craigslist, probably don't think they will ever be in trouble.
#2525
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