CAA Safety Advisory issued - SUA -

[Disc]

To anyone considering doing the BNUC-S, please note the following CAA safety advisory issued today. Also makes worthwhile reading for anyone with a GPS unit on their multi.



http://www.caa.co.uk/docs/33/SafetyNotice2013012.pdf

[Liam B.]

Re: CAA Safety Advisory issued - SUA -

At school in my phone atm. I have a quad with fpv and gps. What does it say?

[danch]

At school in my phone atm. I have a quad with fpv and gps. What does it say?

Small Unmanned Aircraft – Security of Antenna Mounts
This Safety Notice contains recommendations regarding operational safety.

Recipients must ensure that this Notice is copied to all members of their staff who need to take appropriate action or who may have an interest in the information (including any ‘in-house’ or contracted maintenance organisations and relevant outside contractors). Applicability:
Aerodromes:	Not primarily affected
Air Traffic:	Not primarily affected
Airspace:	Not primarily affected
Airworthiness:	Not primarily affected
Flight Operations:	All Small Unmanned Aircraft Operators
Licensed/Unlicensed Personnel:	Not primarily affected

1 Introduction

1.1 A recent incident involving a multi-rotor Small Unmanned Aircraft (SUA) occurred as a result of a combined GPS/compass antenna mount becoming dislodged. This resulted in erroneous readings and a loss of stabilised flight. The incident has highlighted the necessity of checking the secure attachment of all elements of an SUA during pre-flight checks.

1.2 The multi-rotor SUA was being used for an aerial work filming flight. During the flight the remote pilot noticed a decrease in stability and control. Coincident with this, he also noticed that the GPS/compass antenna had come loose and was wobbling on its mount. As part of the remedial actions/drills, the remote pilot switched control of the aircraft from GPS mode to ATTITUDE mode. However, it was clearly evident that stabilised flight could not be maintained and so the flight was terminated within a designated safe area.

1.3 The purpose of this Safety Notice is to highlight the requirement for the operator to be reasonably satisfied that the flight can be safely made (Air Navigation Order 2009 (ANO) Article 166(2)) and that all appropriate checks on the SUA are completed before take-off.

2 Causal Factors
2.1 The investigation concluded that the lack of security of the GPS/compass antenna mounting was the causal factor.

2.2 The remote pilot had completed his pre-flight checks including a visual inspection of the GPS/compass antenna, which was mounted on one of the rotor arms. The visual inspection Civil Aviation Authority Safety Notice Safety Notice SN–2013/012 Page 2 of 2
had confirmed the correct orientation; however, the physical security of the mount on the rotor arm was not tested. With hindsight, the remote pilot noted that such a check would have confirmed whether or not the antenna mounting had been properly secured.

2.3 Because of the vibration that the rotor arm was subject to whilst in flight, the antenna mount became dislodged and therefore severely affected the quality of the information it was providing to the SUA’s stabilisation system.

3 Compliance/Action to be Taken

3.1 This Safety Notice recommends the following actions:
a) That the pre-flight checks should include a more rigorous inspection of any GPS/compass antenna mountings, including a physical check that they are securely fitted to the airframe.

b) That remote pilots regularly practise reversionary flight modes (where possible). Remote pilots should be competent with all emergency procedures such as loss of GPS.

c) That any detachable items (payload etc.) must be physically checked for security during the pre-flight checks.

4 Queries

4.1 Any queries or requests for further guidance as a result of this communication should be addressed to the following e-mail address: GA@caa.co.uk, with subject line ‘Safety Notice – SUA Security of Antenna Mounts’, or by post to the following address:

Flight Operations Inspectorate (General Aviation)
Safety Regulation Group
Civil Aviation Authority
1W, Aviation House
Gatwick Airport (South)
West Sussex
RH6 0YR

5 Cancellation
5.1 This Safety Notice shall remain in force until 31 July 2014.

[PorscheBoy]

Wobbly aerial caused poor location control, caused need to land in a safe manner. Check ALL your gear before taking off.

Recommend you read it fully when you can, but no panic.

[Disc]

Exactly while you do a pre-flight add this to the list of stuff to check

it is a

safety advisory

it is aimed at operators of UAV / SUA that operate Comerically

[Liam B.]

Cheers for that, Good luck on getting my GPS lose. I'm going to rethread lock the screw and nut though. It does raise a point though I'm now making a checklist of stuff just incase something goes wrong like this.
So far i've got:
GPS Antenna comes lose: disconnect GPS, enable auto level. Fly back and land.
Motor comes lose: slowly descend without any fast moves slowly level off.
FPV system goes down: Flick into auto hover, get spotter to show me the quad. Then get spotter to see if any thing is wrong with ground station. Fly back. Land.
Battery dies: land FAST at low throttle.
Need more though

[BenjaminKenobi]

Cheers for that, Good luck on getting my GPS lose. I'm going to rethread lock the screw and nut though. It does raise a point though I'm now making a checklist of stuff just incase something goes wrong like this.
So far i've got:
GPS Antenna comes lose: disconnect GPS, enable auto level. Fly back and land.
Motor comes lose: slowly descend without any fast moves slowly level off.
FPV system goes down: Flick into auto hover, get spotter to show me the quad. Then get spotter to see if any thing is wrong with ground station. Fly back. Land.
Battery dies: land FAST at low throttle.
Need more though

In the incident the article refers to the GPS came off and auto stability didn't respond correctly either, so he dropped his craft in the Thames river (they were filming XFactor at the time). Pilot was commended by the CAA for his actions as dumping a £25,000 camera in the Thames took guts!

[Liam B.]

Sheesh I watched that video, did they recover any of it?
Liam

[Disc]

CAA Safety Advisory issued - SUA -

Yes airframe and camera

[jimmyhorns]

In the incident the article refers to the GPS came off and auto stability didn't respond correctly either, so he dropped his craft in the Thames river (they were filming XFactor at the time). Pilot was commended by the CAA for his actions as dumping a £25,000 camera in the Thames took guts!

Well I dont know how badly it was responding, but I would have tried to get it on shore before killing the throttle..... guess thats the difference with the pros

[BenjaminKenobi]

CAA Safety Advisory issued - SUA -

The agreed plan was to ditch in the Thames if anything went wrong. With 100's of young people nearby an accident could have been deadly. The heli floated to the surface but they needed a diver to retrieve the camera.

[jimmyhorns]

ah, it was a heli rather than a multirotor

[Disc]

CAA Safety Advisory issued - SUA -

ah, it was a heli rather than a multirotor

No it was a multi rotor that went in and the notice is for SUA/UAV operators.

[dani_r]

CAA Safety Advisory issued - SUA -

I saw that footage. Was the pilot the approved distance from the organised open air assembly of more than 1000 people? I doubt it.

Still, no harm, no foul (to people anyway).

Any idea what firm it was?

[BenjaminKenobi]

CAA Safety Advisory issued - SUA -

The pilot was approved for this shoot by the CAA after he submitted a safety case. The limits set out apply to normal operations. You can reduce those limits with a good safety case.