Study says drone collisions more dangerous than bird strikes
New research commissioned by the FAA says a mid-air drone collision is more dangerous than a bird strike.
A drone strike could cause major damage to a plane’s engine or tail area.
A team of university researchers led by the Alliance for System Safety of UAS through Research Excellence (ASSURE), studied various impact scenarios.
A drone collision can cause more damage than similar sized birds while the presence of a drone’s lithium battery, when not completely destroyed on impact, is an additional fire risk.
“While the effects of bird impacts on airplanes are well documented, little is known about the effects of more rigid and higher mass small unmanned aircraft systems on aircraft structures and propulsion systems,” said Mississippi State University’s Marty Rogers, director of ASSURE.
“The results of this work are critical to the safety of commercial air travel here in the US and around the world.”
The research involved computer models and physical testing of various sized drones from small quadcopters to up to eight-pound fixed-wing drones.
“The windshields generally sustained the least damage and the horizontal stabilizers suffered the most serious damage,” the FAA said.
The results were presented to the house aviation subcommittee.
Subcommittee chairman Frank LoBiondo (R-New Jersey) said: “We will monitor the future of this research closely as they investigate the risks of ingestion of UAS into jet engines.”
Additional research will continue over multiple phases through 2021.
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Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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