5.3 Emergency Procedures

5.3 Emergency Procedures

Emergency situations with drones can develop rapidly. Having pre-planned procedures and knowing how to respond calmly under pressure can prevent minor problems from becoming accidents. The Part 107 exam tests your knowledge of appropriate emergency responses.

Common Drone Emergencies

1. Loss of Control Link (Flyaway)

What happens: The drone loses communication with the control station.

Pre-planned mitigations:

• Set Return-to-Home (RTH) altitude above all obstacles in the area
• Verify RTH is set to the correct home point before each flight
• Know your drone's failsafe behavior (most drones automatically RTH or land)
• Maintain GPS lock before and during flight

If it occurs:

1. Do NOT panic — most drones will execute their failsafe procedure
2. Attempt to regain control by moving closer to the drone or restarting the controller
3. If the drone is executing RTH, monitor its path for obstacles
4. If the drone is flying away uncontrolled, contact ATC immediately if in or near controlled airspace
5. If the drone poses a risk to people or manned aircraft, coordinate with emergency services

2. Low Battery / Battery Failure

What happens: Battery voltage drops below safe levels or a cell fails.

Response:

1. Land immediately at the nearest safe location
2. Do NOT try to fly back to the launch point if it is far away — land closer
3. If the drone has a low-battery RTH function, let it execute if appropriate
4. A battery in "critical low" mode may have only 10-30 seconds of flight time remaining

3. Motor Failure

What happens: One or more motors stops producing thrust.

Response:

1. The drone will likely begin to descend and spin
2. Some drones can maintain controlled descent on 3 motors (the flight controller compensates)
3. Try to guide the descent away from people and property
4. If over people, any controlled movement away is better than none
5. Document the failure for maintenance records and potential accident reporting

4. GPS Failure

What happens: The drone loses GPS signal (common near tall buildings or under dense tree canopy).

Response:

1. The drone may switch to ATTI mode (attitude/altitude hold only — no position hold)
2. In ATTI mode, wind will drift the drone — you must actively correct
3. Gain altitude to potentially reacquire GPS signal
4. Fly manually to a safe landing area
5. Do NOT fly between tall buildings where GPS multipath errors are common

5. Incursion of Manned Aircraft

What happens: A manned aircraft enters your operating area.

Response:

1. Yield immediately — descend and move away from the aircraft's path
2. Do NOT try to outclimb or outrun the aircraft
3. If possible, land the drone
4. Wait until the manned aircraft has cleared the area before resuming
5. Report the incident if appropriate

Emergency Action Plan Template

Every commercial drone operation should have a written emergency action plan:

Post-Emergency Actions

After any emergency:

1. Secure the drone — power off, remove battery
2. Check for injuries — assess anyone in the area
3. Document everything — photos, notes, timestamps
4. Determine if reporting is required — check §107.9 criteria (injury, $500+ property damage)
5. Report within 10 days if required through FAA DroneZone
6. Investigate root cause — determine what caused the emergency and how to prevent recurrence
7. Inspect/repair the aircraft before the next flight