# Incident 20241230020469I: Pollock Pines, CA, December 30, 2024

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: December 30, 2024, 16:45 local time
- Place: Pollock Pines, CA
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Takeoff: Climb Out
- Location: 38.7576° N, 120.5910° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Pollock Pines, CA, within about 6 miles (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=38.7576&lon=-120.5910&mi=10
- Aircraft: NONE (not matched to a registry record)
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 1
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20241230020469I

## Narrative

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

PILOT  DID A VISUAL CHECK OF THE AREA AND SELECTED A LAUNCH/LANDING SITE  AWAY FROM PARKED VEHICLES AND ENTRANCE T0 BUILDING. THE AREA WAS NOT WELL LIT. PILOT WAS STANDING APPROXIMATELY TEN (10') FEET FROM THE LAUNCH SITE. THERE WAS NO VO PRESENT, AS ALL OTHER AVAILABLE DEPUTIES WERE ENGAGED IN THE SERVICE CALL. UPON LAUNCHING THE UAS, PILOT ATTEMPTED TO CLIMB THE UAS TO A HEIGHT OF APPROXIMATELY 20' AGL TO CONDUCT TEST OF THE FLIGHT CONTROLS.  WHILE DOING SO, THE PILOT HEARD THE SOUND OF THE UAS STRIKING AN UNKNOWN OBJECT.  THE UAS THEN DECENDED AND STRUCK THE PILOT. THE UAS WAS LATER DETERMINED TO HAVE STRUCK  BRANCH ENDS OF A BIRCH TREE, AND RESULTED IN DAMAGE TO ONE OR MORE OF THE PROPELLER BLADES OF THE UAS.

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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