# Accident 20210506008809A: Young Harris, GA, May 6, 2021

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 6, 2021, 10:50 local time
- Place: Young Harris, GA
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Hover/Holding
- Location: 34.9346° N, 83.8477° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Young Harris, GA, within about 6 miles (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=34.9346&lon=-83.8477&mi=10
- Aircraft: NONE (not matched to a registry record)
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 1
- Pilot flight hours: 1,500 total, 90 in this make and model, 5 in the last 90 days
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20210506008809A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

A DA-JIANG INNOVATIONS (DJI) MATRICE 300 RTK SMALL UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEM (SUAS) WAS BEING DEMONSTRATED TO A POTENTIAL CUSTOMER (PUBLIC SAFETY) UNDER 14 CFR PART 107. DEMONSTRATION FLIGHT. THE PAYLOAD CONSISTED OF A ZENMUSE H20T CAMERA AND A WINGSLAND Z15 SPOT LIGHT. THE FLIGHT LOCATION WAS VERY CLOSE TO A DJI GEO ZONE DESIGNATED AS A "RESTRICTED ZONE". (COUNTY JAIL). THERE IS A BUFFER ZONE AROUND THE RESTRICTED ZONE. A BUFFER ZONE IS DEFINED AS AN AREA WITH APPROXIMATELY 20M WIDTH OUTSIDE OF A RESTRICTED ZONE (NFZ). THE PURPOSE OF A NFZ BUFFER ZONE IS TO ACCOUNT FOR ESTIMATION AND CONTROL ERRORS IN ORDER TO AVOID BREACHING THE NFZ WHEN THE AIRCRAFT HAS FORWARD SPEED. WHEN APPROACHING THE BUFFER ZONE, THE AIRCRAFT WILL REDUCE SPEED AND STOP AT THE BUFFER ZONE BORDER.

DURING DEMONSTRATION FLIGHT THE REMOTE PILOT IN COMMAND (RPIC) INITIATED THE RETURN TO HOME FEATURE AND THE SUAS STOPPED APPROXIMATE 53 FEET FROM THE AREA WHERE THE SUAS LAUNCHED FROM.  SUAS DESCENT TO 7 FEET OVER A VEHICLE IN THE PARKING LOT. RPIC HANDED THE CONTROLLER TO A DEMONSTRATION ATTENDEE AND GRABBED ONTO THE LANDING GEAR WITH BOTH HANDS AND ATTEMPTED TO GIVE COMMANDS TO THE ATTENDEE TO SHUT DOWN THE MOTORS WHILE THE RPIC HELD ONTO THE LANDING GEAR. WHEN THAT DID NOT WORK, THE RPIC ATTEMPTED TO REMOVE THE DRONE BATTERY AND THE PROPELLER BLADE STRUCK HIS RIGHT HAND.  HE WAS TRANSPORTED BY AMBULANCE FOR TREATMENT AND WAS RELEASED. HE UNDERWENT SURGERY TO REPAIR NERVE AND TENDON DAMAGE UPON ARRIVAL TO HIS HOME IN ARIZONA.

BLK 13- MANUFACTURER: DJI, MODEL: MATRICE 300 RTK. SERIAL NUMBER: 1ZNDH3L0010562 REGISTRATION NUMBER: ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. ISSUED: 07/13/2020 EXPIRES: 07/13/2023.

BLK-29-RPIC HAD RECURENCY TRAINING COMPLETED VIA THE FAA SAFETY TEAM AVIATION LEARNING CENTER ONLINE COURSE FOR PART 107 SMALL UAS RECURRENT TRAINING FOR PART 61 PILOTS ON APRIL 6, 2021. SALES DIRECTOR FOR COMPANY STATED THAT THEY ARE DEVELOPING POLICY FOR THE TRAINING AND USE OF SUAS AS A RESULT OF THE ACCIDENT. BEFORE THE ACCIDENT, ONLY REQUIRED A PRACTICAL TEST AND A REMOTE PILOT CERTIFICATE TO FLY FOR COMPANY.

BLK 31-PILOT INFORMATION HOURS REPORTED ARE UAS HOURS. TOTAL MANNED AIRCRAFT HOURS 1000. ZERO MANNED AIRCRAFT HOURS IN THE LAST YEAR AND 90 DAYS.

THIS REPORT MAY BE AMENDED AS NEW INFORMATION COMES IN.

## NTSB investigation

None matched to this report by aircraft and date. Search the NTSB's own records: https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-main-public/basic-search

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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