Every once in a while we run across something in the summaries that is just plain interesting and worth more than a passing mention. One such was the April 2006 crash of a MQ-9 Predator B unmanned aerial drone near Nogales, Ariz.
Pilot Tricks by Remote Control
Every once in a while we run across something in the summaries that is just plain interesting and worth more than a passing mention. One such was the April 2006 crash of a MQ-9 Predator B unmanned aerial drone near Nogales, Ariz.
Key Takeaways:
- An MQ-9 Predator B drone operated by Customs and Border Protection crashed in April 2006 near Nogales, Arizona, due to a critical control function mix-up.
- The accident occurred after a technical configuration change (swapping processor cards) caused a control lever to inadvertently switch its function from commanding the camera iris to idle cut-off.
- The highly experienced pilot, unaware of this change and believing it was a communication problem, initiated "lost-link" procedures, leading to the drone's impact and highlighting the complexities of sophisticated UAV operations.
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