Drones will crash. This article looks at the risk assessment and common hazards to be aware of for drone safety.
What is a hazard?
The definition of “hazard” is undergoing review. The currently accepted terminology refers to “an object or condition that has the potential to induce an accident or incident.”
The strategic risk assessment process, relevant to Remote Piloted Aircraft (RPA) operations, includes:
Hazard identification
Common hazards for RPAs
The most common hazard when operating an RPAs is the likelihood of your drone crashing into someone or something. Drones will crash. For this reason it is essential that your flight planning process includes an identification of objects and people you could potentially crash into.
These will vary according to the mission you are planning to fly, however, even flying in clear weather in accordance with the SoCs, as a minimum you need to identify:
- Buildings
- Trees and other plants
- Bodies of water
- Geographical attributes (cliffs, hills, embankments)
- Traffic that could move through your flight plan
- Animals
- People presently in or near your flight plan and people who could potentially enter into your flight space during the flight.
- Powerlines and power infrastructure
- Weather and wind
Of course, the existence of hazards does not automatically mean you should cancel your flight. It is extremely important however that you identify the hazards and have in place measures to detect and avoid the hazards.
Avoiding hazards
The first part of avoiding hazards is to make sure your drone is not itself a hazard. Your pre-flight checklist must include a thorough inspection of the drone to ensure it is functioning and airworthy. This includes checks on the airframe, batteries and drive train. You also need to check your controller is functioning correctly.
Once you have pre-flight checked your drone and the airspace requirements (NOTAM, weather, airspace class etc.), you should thoroughly observe the flight path to identify potential hazards and ways of mitigating them.
Your flight plan must then be updated to include the hazards and how you intend to avoid them. This may often be done implicitly through the flight path and navigation system, however, you need to continuously monitor the environment for changes that present new hazards during the mission.
Air traffic incidents
The Global Air Traffic Management Operational Concept (Doc 9854) identifies the need to limit the risk of collision to an acceptable level between an aircraft and the following hazards: “other aircraft, terrain, weather, wake turbulence, incompatible airspace activity and, when the aircraft is on the ground, surface vehicles and other obstructions on the apron and manoeuvring area”. Doc 9854 also notes “for any hazard (i.e. any condition, event or circ*mstance that could induce an accident), a risk can be identified as the combination of the overall probability or frequency of occurrence of a harmful effect induced by the hazard, and the severity of that effect.”
Most air traffic “incidents” featuring RPA occur when operating illegally outside standard operating areas, particularly at higher altitudes. Operating below 400ft is relatively free of air traffic, but will the traffic come to you?
Civil Aviation Regulation (CAR 157) states a manned aircraft must not fly at a height lower than 500ft above ground level (AGL). However, there are a number of occasions manned aircraft will be lower than this height. Situational awareness is key to avoiding conflict with manned aircraft.
FAQs
Avoiding hazards
What are the safety hazards of using a drone? ›
What are the hazards? | Who might be harmed and how? |
---|
Collision with external obstacles (e.g. overhead lines, birds, trees, other aircraft etc.) | All Drone crashing and inuring persons |
Operator being distracted | Spectators / members of the public Drone out of control / crashing / injuring persons |
15 more rows
What hazards should be included in a risk assessment? ›
You can find specific advice on the most common risks in the workplace and how to manage them using the links below.
- Confined spaces.
- Display screen equipment.
- Electrical safety.
- Equipment and machinery.
- Fire safety.
- Gas safety.
- Harmful substances.
- Manual handling.
What are 5 safety precautions you need to take when using drones? ›
Safety Guidelines
- Fly at or below 400 feet above the ground.
- Keep your drone within sight.
- Never fly near other aircraft, especially near military airfields and airports.
- Never fly over groups of people.
- Never fly over critical infrastructure.
- Never fly near emergency response efforts.
- Be aware of airspace requirements.
What tools are available to identify hazards and assess risk in UAS operations? ›
The SORA developed by JARUS provides a systematic methodology to identify in an holistic way risks associated to a UAS operation.
What are the top two safety concerns with drones? ›
The FAA has issued a list of safety precautions drone operators should consider. These include the following: Do not fly above 400 feet. Never allow your drone to fly outside visual sightlines.
How to do a drone risk assessment? ›
Once you have pre-flight checked your drone and the airspace requirements (NOTAM, weather, airspace class etc.), you should thoroughly observe the flight path to identify potential hazards and ways of mitigating them. Your flight plan must then be updated to include the hazards and how you intend to avoid them.
What are the four 4 main sections of a risk assessment? ›
While many individuals are involved in the process and many factors come into play, performing an effective risk assessment comes down to four core elements: risk identification, risk analysis, risk evaluation and risk communication.
What are the 5 main areas covered on risk assessment? ›
2. Steps needed to manage risk
- Identify hazards.
- Assess the risks.
- Control the risks.
- Record your findings.
- Review the controls.
What are the 3 points to consider during a risk assessment? ›
1. Overview
- identify what could cause injury or illness in your business (hazards)
- decide how likely it is that someone could be harmed and how seriously (the risk)
- take action to eliminate the hazard, or if this isn't possible, control the risk.
The 1:1 rule describes that the operation takes place at a flight altitude equal to or less than the lateral / horizontal distance between the UAS and uninvolved persons. The safety of bystanders has the highest priority. The 1:1 rule also plays a role in connection with the geo-zones according to §21h LuftV0.
What is the factor of safety for drones? ›
For larger drones, a safety factor of 1.3-1.6x is often sufficient, for smaller drones a factor of 2-3x is often chosen.
What PPE is needed for drone flying? ›
Drone operator specific safety equipment
Head protection in the form of a hard-hat to protect the operator from falling drones. Eye protection to protect the operator from shattered propellers. Propellers spin at thousands of RPM with high energy and can break at any time.
Which is most commonly used risk assessment tool? ›
Most Commonly Used Risk Assessment Tools
- Risk matrix.
- Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA)
- Decision Tree.
- Bowtie Model.
What are the hazard and risk assessment tools? ›
The four common risk assessment tools are: risk matrix, decision tree, failure modes and effects analysis (FMEA), and bowtie model. Other risk assessment techniques include the what-if analysis, failure tree analysis, and hazard operability analysis.
What is the all hazards risk assessment tool? ›
The purpose of the All-Hazards Mass Gatherings Risk Assessment tool is to identify hazards related to the event, assess and quantify the overall level of risk, identify and account for precautionary measures that may reduce the risk, making the event safer.
What is the safety factor of a drone? ›
The first step in propeller design requires the estimation of required thrust based on MTOW as well as adding to this a safety factor to determine peak thrust. For larger drones, a safety factor of 1.3-1.6x is often sufficient, for smaller drones a factor of 2-3x is often chosen.
Why is a drone a security risk? ›
Once the drone has been located, a hacker can potentially take control of the drone, or downlink video or other images which the drone is broadcasting to its base station. Hacking a drone isn't technically very difficult, and many drone operators leave their drones wide open to attack.
What is a risk of flying a drone too high? ›
Exceeding 400 feet enters airspace typically used by planes and helicopters, which cruise at 500+ feet. Flying here endangers aircraft and drones by increasing collision chances. And at higher altitudes, drones are harder to see and control.
What are the dangers of drone warfare? ›
- Con 1. Drone strikes create more terrorists while terrorizing civilians. ...
- Con 2. Drone strikes violate human rights and nations' sovereignty. ...
- Con 3. Drone strikes inflict psychological damage on drone pilots.