A2 CofC Incident Reporting & Safety

Question 1

To which organisation must a serious drone incident or accident in the UK be reported?

Accepted Answer

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and potentially the AAIB for serious accidents

Answer

Serious drone incidents must be reported to the CAA. The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) investigates serious accidents involving unmanned aircraft. Reporting helps improve safety across the industry and is legally required for certain categories of incident.

Question 2

What constitutes a 'reportable accident' involving a drone under UK regulations?

Accepted Answer

An event resulting in a fatality, serious injury to a person, or significant damage to property or another aircraft

Answer

The ANO and associated regulations define reportable accidents as events causing death, serious injury to any person, or significant damage to property or aircraft. Near misses with manned aircraft are also reportable as 'airprox' events through the CAA's Mandatory Occurrence Reporting (MOR) scheme.

Question 3

What is an 'airprox' report and when should a drone pilot file one?

Accepted Answer

A report filed when a drone comes close enough to a manned aircraft to create a collision risk

Answer

An airprox (aircraft proximity) report is submitted when a pilot believes their aircraft has come close enough to another aircraft that a collision risk existed. Drone pilots who experience a near-miss with a manned aircraft should file an airprox report with the UK Airprox Board, contributing to the safety data used to prevent future incidents.

Question 4

What should a drone pilot do immediately if they lose control of the aircraft?

Accepted Answer

Attempt to regain control, activate Return to Home if safe, alert any people in the flight path, and land as safely as possible

Answer

In a loss-of-control scenario, the priority is preventing harm. The pilot should attempt to regain control, use Return to Home if the home point is safe, warn any people nearby, and accept that the drone may be damaged to protect people on the ground. Switching off the controller may trigger a failsafe that is inappropriate for the situation.

Question 5

Why is it important to maintain a flight log for drone operations?

Accepted Answer

It provides evidence of compliance, supports incident investigation, and is required by some operators and insurers

Answer

While not always a strict legal requirement for open category flights, maintaining a flight log is strongly recommended and often required by commercial clients, insurers, and as part of any specific category authorisation. In the event of an incident, a log provides crucial evidence of pre-flight checks, flight duration, and operational parameters.

A2 CofC Drone Practice Test

A2 CofC Drone Practice Test

A2 CofC Incident Reporting & Safety