Drone Emergency Procedures

__Heliguy-Drone_Emergency_Procedures-Blog_Header-optimized.png__Knowing what to do in the event of an incident when flying your drone is paramount for all drone pilots. Having the correct emergency procedures in place can help you save a drone that’s undergoing a flyaway, prevent injury of a member of the public that enters your flying site and ensure an incident is properly reported, should they occur. Heliguy Insider will be looking into emergency procedures for commercial pilots, however, this information should also be known by hobbyists to increase drone safety. Emergency procedures should be documented in the Operations Manual of all commercial drone pilots. Keep reading for the process of what emergency procedures should be followed and examples of emergency scenarios.

Drone Emergency Procedures Process

Example Emergency Procedures

The following gives two examples layout that could be included as part of a commercial drone pilot's Operations Manual. Three example situations have been included. Please note, all Operations Manual must be an original piece of work.

Example 1 - Loss of Aircraft Control

Flyaways are uncommon events that may occur due to interference with the aircraft. This example is based on a structured table with the highest priorities at the top.

Example 2 - Pilot Incapacitation

Pilot incapacitation should be avoided at all cost by using systems such as the 'IMSAFE' model, however, incidents can occur.

Pilot Incapacitation

Pilot is unwell or unresponsive

Pilot Response

• If able, warn the crew of your status

• Check the area is clear and activate the RTH

Crew response

• Follow the instructions of the pilot

• If the pilot is unable to, ensure the landing area is clear and activate the RTH

• Monitor the aircraft until it has landed and shut down before attending to the pilot

Follow up action

• If required, inform the emergency services

• Follow the incident reporting tool

Example 3 - Public Enter Flying Area

Prior to every flight, the pilot and crew should ensure the area is clear. Using signs and having spotter will help avoid public entering the flight location. Each stage of this flowchart model should be structured highest to lowest priority.

Public Enter Flying Area

A person who is not under the control of the pilot enters the flight location.

Pilot Response

• If the individual is further than 30m from the landing site, the pilot should land immediately

• If the individual is within 30m of the landing site, the pilot should select an alternate site to safely land

Crew Response

• Immediately notify the pilot of the member of the public in the flight area

• Inform the member of the public they’re in the flight area and request they remain in position to enable the pilot to safely land the aircraft

• If required, assist the pilot with locating a new landing area with the required separation distance. Clearly guide the pilot to this location

Follow up action

• If required, inform the emergency services

• Follow the incident reporting tool

Suggested Topics

In addition to the three topics above, the following emergency scenarios may be applicable to your drone flight.

• Contact with aircraft

• Aircraft fire whilst in flight

• Controller Fire whilst in flight

• Aircraft structural failure

• Aircraft loss of power – battery, motor etc.

• Loss of GPS

• Loss of frequency

• Loss of aircraft lights at night

Incident Reporting

For both hobbyist and commercial drone pilots, you must report the occurrence of an incident or potential incident to the appropriate organisation. Incident reporting is vital to help prevent repeated incidents in the future and improve drone and general aviation safety. In addition to the various emergency services, there are three different bodies that incidents should be reported to. Deciding which agency to inform depends on the situation around the incident.

Mandatory Occurrence Reporting (MOR)

AIR Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB)

AAIB are a division under the UK government’s Department for Transport. They investigate aircraft accidents and serious incidents defined in the EU regulation 996/2010. For drone pilots, any serious injury, fatality or flyaway. needs to be reported via the AAIB contact telephone number.

UK Airprox Board (UKAB)

Summary

Having the correct emergency procedures in place is vital for both commercial drone operators and hobbyist. It can be the difference between a crashed drone and even the safety of the pilot, crew or the general public. Following an incident or potential incident, reporting to the correct body can help improve safety for others in the future and may even prevent larger problems in the future. It may also be a requirement under EU and UK regulation, so should be done whenever it’s required. For more information on UK drone regulation, head to our previous Insider post here.

To discuss emergency drone procedures and incident reporting, or any DJI or Freefly product, please give one of our team a call on 0191 296 1024 or email us at info@heliguy.com.

Keep checking back to Heliguy’s Insider Blog for more announcements, insights into drones and, of course, the latest news from the drone industry.