As a helicopter pilot, it’s only a matter of time before you will encounter a drone in the air. Spotting a drone while flying is highly unlikely. Watch this video for 12 tips on avoiding collisions with drones.
To these tips I would add: Equip with, and use, ADS-B Out. The vast majority of drones sold today (by unit sales) are equipped with ADS-B In, so this greatly increases the drone pilot's situational awareness, particularly in the "come from behind" scenario cited in the video.
I thought this was a good solution as well until you consider the sheer volume of consumer-level UAS on the market and in the airspace today. I read this somewhere... "In fact, the FAA has proposed prohibiting the use of ADS-B Out for most commercial drone operations (those under Part 107) unless the operator has separate permission, out of concern that the potential proliferation of ADS-B Out transmitters on drones may actually have a reverse affect on safety."
The use of flight radar websites can help the sUAS pilot to be aware of who's in the area so they can take necessary precautions and keep the drone far enough away from the manned aircraft. The responsibility should rest with the sUAS pilot to use these resources. Great video on this issue.
Good info. Some additional thoughts on the automated return to home. If a drone pilot activates the RTH feature, the first action the drone often takes is to climb to the RTH altitude. This can be set quite high relative to what they might be flying for the mission to ensure that they clear trees and other obstacles.
LifeFlight/Air Med helicopters approaching, and departing, a hospital helipad pose the greatest risk-of-life for helicopters pilots, and their crew/occupants. Most hospitals are surrounded by neighborhoods, and in those neighborhoods are novice drone "pilots" often times too young to understand the threat. AirSight Drone Detection offers live, advanced, actionable intelligence on drones in the airspace. Be proactive and seek out an advanced drone detection solution prior to a catastrophic event. The nominal cost associated with this airspace solution is nominal to the potential loss of life. Fly safe.
As both a fixed wing part 91 pilot and a part 107 drone operator, I find that drone and rotorcraft do not mix well. When operating my drone I set the altitude limit to 400'. However, the drone only "knows" the altitude from the take off point. However, even when operating from my in front of my home which is at 430' MSL, there are problems. I live on the side of a hill with the valley below being at 220' MSL and the top of the ridge above being at 510' MSL. More than once I have had close calls with medical evacuation rotorcraft cruising a low altitudes near my home. It is hard to judge the flying altitude of the rotorcraft but normally I can hear them. I just wish that I could rely on the rotorcraft maintaining a minimum of 500' AGL. The area is semi-rural and not far from KMQS.
Helicopters, powered parachutes, and weight-shift-control aircraft may fly lower than 500 feet if there is no hazard to persons or property on the surface. See 14 CFR section 91.119. Helicopters also have to comply with any routes or altitudes specifically prescribed for helicopters by the FAA, and those can often be lower than 500 feet. Also, agricultural aircraft will fly lower than 500 feet when spraying fields.
What Addressing ham radio operators launching rockets and balloons...these practices were well before drones were even invented.... Meteorologist do it as well!
As a fixed-wing and rotorcraft pilot of many years, I fail to see why this obvious threat to safety of flight is allowed. Apparently, the onus is on us pilots to see-and-avoid this new and invisible threat to human life. Given that an aircraft pilot's S&A of drones is demonstrably unlikely, what moron thought that allowing these flying anti-personnel mines into the NAS was a reasonable idea, much less when they are flying BLOS? Drones should not be allowed to mix with human-carrying flights until they possess at least the S&A capability of your average turkey buzzard.
The genie is out of the bottle. Like it or not, drones provide a valuable service at a significantly reduced cost and can operate in environments where fixed-wing and rotorcraft cannot. It's not all kids with toys. The most obvious solution is that fixed-wing and rotorcraft should stay above 500ft AGL when they are not near an airfield. Yes, there will be times when they need to be lower than that, but if we make that the exception that includes additional safety measures, such as filing a flight plan that is available to all and incorporated into the drone's automated alert systems, we can avoid 99% of the problems.
Argh! 12 tips??? Not Really. This bubbles down to 3 tips. (1) Fly Higher (2) Wear Hemet (3) Be aware that drone pilots will do whatever they want... (like a lot of Helicopter pilots). If you are flying the Utility space... we have to fly low, we probably have a Helmet. The best of this is a none-starter.
