Helicopter vs Drone..

[sar104]

Any helicopter pilots here?

I talked to a few pilots before, one of them even owns a Phantom 4, and they didn’t think such a drone would be a big issue (not more than a large bird).

Make a note never to fly with those pilots.

Bird - aircraft collision damage

 

[lasersbee]

Gosh it made a unusual puncture wound,,what gauge alloy that 4mm or close,,that being on the curvature of wing is a solid point to puncture, either bird with steel beak or one solid drone,,....I didn't get to read previous postings so hope this not in that category View attachment 116020

Just from the pic.. it was something other than a quad drone.
it looks like a small object impact. If it was a drone where are
all the scratch marks around the damaged area. If a drone can
make that hole at impact it can certainly scratch the paint in a
large area around that hole. The rest of the painted area looks
pristine and unscratched.

Jerry

 

[sar104]

Just from the pic.. it was something other than a quad drone.
it looks like a small object impact. If it was a drone where are
all the scratch marks around the damaged area. If a drone can
make that hole at impact it can certainly scratch the paint in a
large area around that hole. The rest of the painted area looks
pristine and unscratched.

Jerry

I'm not sure that's a sound conclusion. There is plenty of insubstantial, thin plastic, such as the legs and arms, on a Phantom. If that was caused by a drone, then the primary candidate for the hole would be a motor. It would also have to have been somewhat tilted, because had the battery hit it would have done a lot more damage.

 

[dolphin60]

It looks exactly like a BULLET HOLE....flying over Los Angeles probably some back yard pot grower got nervous....and yet let's blame a drone at over 1100 feet at night.

Birds usually dont fly at night.

 

[BigAl07]

Any helicopter pilots here?

I talked to a few pilots before, one of them even owns a Phantom 4, and they didn’t think such a drone would be a big issue (not more than a large bird).

They are definitely not thinking clearly. Ask them what something with the mass/size of a LiPo from the Phantom will do if it goes directly into their Tail Rotor or their windshield.

While the majority of the UAS is light weight materials the motor casing and battery are anything but.

 

[sar104]

It looks exactly like a BULLET HOLE....flying over Los Angeles probably some back yard pot grower got nervous....and yet let's blame a drone at over 1100 feet at night.

Birds usually dont fly at night.

It doesn't look at all like a bullet hole. And what do you suppose dented the stabilizer 15 cm from the hole?

 

[helimd]

It looks exactly like a BULLET HOLE....flying over Los Angeles probably some back yard pot grower got nervous....and yet let's blame a drone at over 1100 feet at night.

Birds usually dont fly at night.

As a 15,000 hour helicopter pilot, with an additional 5,000 fixed wing hours, I can tell you that a drone could easily cause that damage. During my time in the saddle, I've had birds fly into the rotor system, bending control tubes, birds flying into the windshield and ending up in my lap, etc. One of the examples shown in an earlier post involved a Sikorsky S-76 that took a bird through a plastic windshield (the original windshields are glass), causing the accident that killed all on board. That bird could not have impacted in a more catastrophic way, coming through the windshield and taking both engine throttles to idle, sealing the crew's fate.

I hope this incident is solved quickly. We certainly don't need a knee jerk reaction to this, with more regulations destroying our freedoms as drone pilots.

 

[BigAl07]

As a 15,000 hour helicopter pilot, with an additional 5,000 fixed wing hours, I can tell you that a drone could easily cause that damage. During my time in the saddle, I've had birds fly into the rotor system, bending control tubes, birds flying into the windshield and ending up in my lap, etc. One of the examples shown in an earlier post involved a Sikorsky S-76 that took a bird through a plastic windshield (the original windshields are glass), causing the accident that killed all on board. That bird could not have impacted in a more catastrophic way, coming through the windshield and taking both engine throttles to idle, sealing the crew's fate.

I hope this incident is solved quickly. We certainly don't need a knee jerk reaction to this, with more regulations destroying our freedoms as drone pilots.

Thank you for taking the time to give us your honest and detailed experiences. It's easy to sit back and "assume" this & that but t hear from someone with Real World incite really adds a LOT to the conversation.