A student pilot and instructor said their helicopter’s crash landing in South Carolina last week was triggered by a civilian drone, which would make it the first drone-related crash of an aircraft in the U.S.
The two both told investigators that a small drone appeared directly in front of them during the Wednesday incident, according to a Charleston Police Department report. The instructor took over the controls and attempted to avoid a collision, and the tail of the helicopter hit a tree or brush, triggering a crash landing.
Neither the pilot nor the student was injured, though the helicopter’s tail appeared to have significant damage, said a person familiar with the incident, who wasn’t authorized to discuss the inquiry publicly.
The Robinson Helicopter Co. R22 went down about 2 p.m., according to a statement by the Federal Aviation Administration. The FAA didn’t confirm the possible role of the drone. 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.
The accident investigation is the second incident involving a drone in less than a week and comes as aviation groups are demanding tighter regulations on civilian drone use after reports of other possible near collisions involving the devices.
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.
The FAA said earlier last week that it was trying to confirm whether an air-tour helicopter in Hawaii clipped a drone. The incidents come just days after leading aviation-industry groups urged Congress to tighten regulations on hobbyist drones because of a video apparently showing one flying feet from an airliner near Las Vegas.