UAS Accidents and Incidents

 

UAS accidents and incidents have become more prolific because of the large quantity of UAS that are flying.  Flying manned and unmanned aircraft are inherently dangerous based on the type of operations that occur.  Over a period of six years the majority of hazards to unmanned aviation incidents in the FAA were equipment failures.  One third of the equipment issues were command and control link complications.  The command-and-control link is important because it allows the unmanned aircraft to communicate with the ground control station.  These issues must be fixed immediately because it means that the aircraft is operating without control inputs. 

A lesser but still important hazard is pilot error.  The FAA deemed that about 20% of the UAS issues between 2009-2014 were pilot error (Joslin, R., n.d.).  These pilot errors include procedural deviation, altitude deviation, and airspace violations.  These violations and deviations could be improved upon with stricter regulations and a longer program for the commercial rating.  These issues can also occur when a pilot lacks experience.  With less experience, pilots tend to make larger errors in deviation.

Figure 1: Pilot Error in UAS (Joslin, R., n.d.)

These risks increase when the unmanned aircraft goes from visual line of sight to Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS).   When the operator can not directly see the BVLOS UAS it is more challenging to identifying hazards that the UAS will encounter.  If the UAS goes from VMC flying conditions to IFR flying conditions the GCS may not recognize that immediately.  It is challenging to fly the UAS through the clouds, especially if cameras are the primary sensor to identify hazards.  To avoid this risk, remote pilots can review weather conditions prior to launching.  They can also benefit from updating weather as the flight continues by listening to ATIS from local airports. 

Human Factors do contribute to UAS mishaps and accident rates.  When pilots are fatigued or distracted it affects the overall mission.   This affects the remote pilots’ ability to focus on important details.  If a remote pilot misses an altitude restriction, they may fly through airspace already given to a commercial flight.  This is extremely important when operating in the terminal area for landing.  If an aircraft has a ground encounter or collision with another aircraft, it could be catastrophic.  The pilot should always access how they feel before launching a UAS BVLOS.

References

International Air Transport Association.  (n.d.) Aviation safety.  https://www.iata.org/en/youandiata/travelers/aviation-safety/

Joslin, R. (n.d.) Insights into UAS accidents and incidents. Scholarly Commons.  https://commons.erau.edu/aircon/2015/Friday/14/