Hobby drone grounds firefighting aircraft on Lake Fire

drone over wildfire

(Originally posted at 8:58 p.m. MT, June 24, 2015)

Wednesday evening, June 24, a hobby drone flown over the Lake Fire east of San Bernardino, California caused a safety problem, requiring all firefighting aircraft to be grounded, according to CAL FIRE Public Information Officer Daniel Berlant.

A collision between a drone and a helicopter or fixed wing aircraft could be fatal if it damages the windshield, the engine, props, or rotors.

Bob Collins, in an article at Minnesota Public Radio, thinks it is “overkill” to ground firefighting aircraft because a drone has been seen in the area.

…Of course, the hobbyist shouldn’t have been flying a quadcopter where the FAA had established a no-fly zone. But halting operations is overkill. Flying is inherently risky and it’s impossible to do it risk-free; risk is something aviators manage and staying on the ground because a knucklehead is flying a quadcopter is illogical and impractical.

It’s a dramatic way to make a point, but the quadcopters aren’t going to be banned out of the sky.

 

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7 thoughts on “Hobby drone grounds firefighting aircraft on Lake Fire”

  1. What is the max range a quad could be from someone controlling it? I thought most were quite limited in endurance and range., to where a drone operator could be apprehended. Or what feasible ways might there be to forcibly ground a drone? (Besides a 12 gauge flight controller or dropping a Bambi bucket on the drone operator.)

    1. It varies depending on the machine. Out of the box the range would be about 1/4 mile and endurance of about 15 minutes or so. With basic inexpensive modification, however, they can easily be flow several miles down range.

  2. What I hear Mr. Collins saying is that he thinks it’s OK to add more risk to the fire aviation world. He must think it’s acceptable to lose firefighters.

    I’m glad he’s not in charge of anything except selling dish soap.

  3. There is enough risk flying fires without somebody flying a small aircraft that is nearly invisible over a fire with lead planes, air tankers, ATGS platforms and helicopters. Mr. Collins needs to be in the cockpit with a pilot trying to get a visual on a UAV. It’s like trying to see a flea in the lawn from the second story balcony. If you can not see it avoid it by not flying. No fire is worth a life.

  4. Im curious as to who Mr Collins is?..is he a fire fighting pilot?.manager?..or?…im asking as i just dont kjnow who he is…are his words viable?..

    1. From the MPR website:

      “Bob Collins has been with Minnesota Public Radio since 1992, emigrating to Minnesota from Massachusetts where he was VP of programming for Berkshire Broadcasting Co. He was an editor at the RKO Radio Network in New York, and WHDH Radio in Boston. He is the founder of the MPR News’ website. He is a private pilot and flies an airplane he built.”

      I disagree with Mr Collins. Flying on fire ops is risky enough already. Why add even more risk?

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