FAA investigating near-miss involving drone over Falls
Officials at the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating a near-miss between a remote
controlled drone and a helicopter captured in an online video, a spokesperson for the organization said Friday.
In its first 10 seconds, the video depicts the upper Niagara River rapids, the precipice of the Falls and the sky above the local landscape. Then the drone - an unmanned aerial vehicle with four propellers and a camera - rotates left toward the Niagara Scenic Parkway and a local air tour helicopter flies in from the bottom of the frame.
Pat Proctor, vice president of marketing for the company, Rainbow Air Inc., said when he first saw the footage he was alarmed but, unfortunately, not shocked.
"I’m glad you and I are talking about this as an incident and not a disaster," Proctor said during an interview with a Niagara Gazette reporter.
Proctor noted that pilots with his company are highly-trained and familiar with scanning the skies in flight for any foreign objects. He said he became aware of the video, which appears to have been recorded last summer, after it was forwarded to him by other drone pilots he knows. The reaction from pilots from his company was harsh, he said.
"Their words probably can't be printed. They were super upset," Proctor said, adding the pilots likened the behavior to the non-permitted or irresponsible use of a firearm.
But Proctor was kinder in his evaluation of the pilot who captured the video – who remains unidentified – giving the individual credit for including an apology with the footage. In a description that accompanied the Youtube.com upload, the pilot said, in part: “I made a mistake. I thought I was safe to fly since I was not in a No Fly Zone ... I did not think of what was going on around the area. My drone was within eyesight, however it was quite far away.
"I was doing a Facebook Live (broadcast) at the time and I actually giggled, but that was my defense mechanism. I hope that anyone that saw that post understands that I do not take my mistake lightly.
"Once I landed the drone and processed what had happened, I was terrified. I couldn’t imagine crashing into a helicopter possibly causing it to crash and kill someone. I’ve learned my lesson. I hope others will learn from this as well," the pilot wrote.
Proctor said, if there is a positive aspect to the incident, it is that it provides an opportunity to educate the public, but it should not be the tour company's responsibility. Drone pilots are accountable for their own understanding of the rules of the skies.
"It's becoming more and more of a nuisance," he said of drone flights in the area. "We’ve seen these drones on more than one occasion."
The rules for flying are strict in the skies above Niagara Falls.
Only permitted aircraft, like the tour helicopters, are allowed in the airspace between the ground and about 3,500 feet, Proctor said. FAA regulations prohibit any drone flights in the area.
A permit is required to launch a drone or fly it around the state park, according to a Dan Keefe, a spokesman for the Office of State Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, but it has not stopped some pilots.
"Park police and staff frequently respond to unauthorized use of unmanned aircraft, and ask them to comply with the restrictions," he said.
Keefe said there are no physical signs in the park but there is a notice on the state parks website. Disobeying the regulation can result in a monetary fine, he said, but operators tend to comply when identified by law enforcement.
Jim Peters, a spokesman for the FAA, said the administration has conducted 85 enforcement investigations related to its drone regulations across the U.S. since 2014.
In the past four years, Peters said there have been 10 incidents that have resulted in legal enforcement action, four civil penalties and a suspension of the credentials that allow drone pilots to operate their crafts.
Officials at the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating a near-miss between a remote
In its first 10 seconds, the video depicts the upper Niagara River rapids, the precipice of the Falls and the sky above the local landscape. Then the drone - an unmanned aerial vehicle with four propellers and a camera - rotates left toward the Niagara Scenic Parkway and a local air tour helicopter flies in from the bottom of the frame.
Pat Proctor, vice president of marketing for the company, Rainbow Air Inc., said when he first saw the footage he was alarmed but, unfortunately, not shocked.
"I’m glad you and I are talking about this as an incident and not a disaster," Proctor said during an interview with a Niagara Gazette reporter.
Proctor noted that pilots with his company are highly-trained and familiar with scanning the skies in flight for any foreign objects. He said he became aware of the video, which appears to have been recorded last summer, after it was forwarded to him by other drone pilots he knows. The reaction from pilots from his company was harsh, he said.
"Their words probably can't be printed. They were super upset," Proctor said, adding the pilots likened the behavior to the non-permitted or irresponsible use of a firearm.
But Proctor was kinder in his evaluation of the pilot who captured the video – who remains unidentified – giving the individual credit for including an apology with the footage. In a description that accompanied the Youtube.com upload, the pilot said, in part: “I made a mistake. I thought I was safe to fly since I was not in a No Fly Zone ... I did not think of what was going on around the area. My drone was within eyesight, however it was quite far away.
"I was doing a Facebook Live (broadcast) at the time and I actually giggled, but that was my defense mechanism. I hope that anyone that saw that post understands that I do not take my mistake lightly.
"Once I landed the drone and processed what had happened, I was terrified. I couldn’t imagine crashing into a helicopter possibly causing it to crash and kill someone. I’ve learned my lesson. I hope others will learn from this as well," the pilot wrote.
Proctor said, if there is a positive aspect to the incident, it is that it provides an opportunity to educate the public, but it should not be the tour company's responsibility. Drone pilots are accountable for their own understanding of the rules of the skies.
"It's becoming more and more of a nuisance," he said of drone flights in the area. "We’ve seen these drones on more than one occasion."
The rules for flying are strict in the skies above Niagara Falls.
Only permitted aircraft, like the tour helicopters, are allowed in the airspace between the ground and about 3,500 feet, Proctor said. FAA regulations prohibit any drone flights in the area.
A permit is required to launch a drone or fly it around the state park, according to a Dan Keefe, a spokesman for the Office of State Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, but it has not stopped some pilots.
"Park police and staff frequently respond to unauthorized use of unmanned aircraft, and ask them to comply with the restrictions," he said.
Keefe said there are no physical signs in the park but there is a notice on the state parks website. Disobeying the regulation can result in a monetary fine, he said, but operators tend to comply when identified by law enforcement.
Jim Peters, a spokesman for the FAA, said the administration has conducted 85 enforcement investigations related to its drone regulations across the U.S. since 2014.
In the past four years, Peters said there have been 10 incidents that have resulted in legal enforcement action, four civil penalties and a suspension of the credentials that allow drone pilots to operate their crafts.
