This happened in Class A airspace and the FAA calls it an "incident"?
G550 hits unidentified object at FL270
G550 hits unidentified object at FL270
FAA Downplays Possible Drone Strike With G550
- Thread starter Retired W4
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27,000 feet seems a bit beyond hobby drone range.
It's not about the contact, but I'm going to buy this from the GlobalAir website with my SocSec raise - 2023 Cirrus SR22 G6 GTS for sale
Price: $1,050,000.
Price: $1,050,000.
Thanks to the whistleblower.
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I am not a pilot nor do I know very much about aircraft.
However i did Google what the FAA considers an "accident" vs "incident" and found the following:
The NTSB defines a reportable "accident" as "an occurrence associated with the operation of an aircraft that takes place between the time any person boards the aircraft with the intention of flight and all such persons have disembarked, and in which any person suffers death or serious injury, or in which the aircraft receives substantial damage."
A "serious incident" is one of a specific list of events such as a complete loss of information from more than 50 percent of an aircraft's cockpit displays, according to 49 CFR 830.5(a)(9). In contrast, a non-serious incident is "an occurrence other than an accident (or serious incident) that affects or could affect the safety of operations." The words and phrases used in these regulations are further defined.
While common sense might suggest that a gear-up landing results in "substantial damage" to the aircraft and is a reportable accident, the definition of "substantial damage" actually excludes typical gear-up landing damage. "Substantial damage" is defined as "damage or failure which adversely affects the structural strength, performance, or flight characteristics of the aircraft, and which would normally require major repair or replacement of the affected component. Engine failure or damage limited to an engine if only one engine fails or is damaged, bent fairings or cowling, dented skin, small punctured holes in the skin or fabric, ground damage to rotor or propeller blades, and damage to landing gear, wheels, tires, flaps, engine accessories, brakes, or wingtips are not considered "substantial damage." Consequently, there is no requirement to report a gear-up landing as long as no one is injured, the damage fits within the definition, and the specific incidents within 49 CFR 830.5 did not occur.
Sounds to me like they got it right based off their definition.
Couple that with the posting said they didn't know what it was that they hit, what else is there to call it?
However i did Google what the FAA considers an "accident" vs "incident" and found the following:
The NTSB defines a reportable "accident" as "an occurrence associated with the operation of an aircraft that takes place between the time any person boards the aircraft with the intention of flight and all such persons have disembarked, and in which any person suffers death or serious injury, or in which the aircraft receives substantial damage."
A "serious incident" is one of a specific list of events such as a complete loss of information from more than 50 percent of an aircraft's cockpit displays, according to 49 CFR 830.5(a)(9). In contrast, a non-serious incident is "an occurrence other than an accident (or serious incident) that affects or could affect the safety of operations." The words and phrases used in these regulations are further defined.
While common sense might suggest that a gear-up landing results in "substantial damage" to the aircraft and is a reportable accident, the definition of "substantial damage" actually excludes typical gear-up landing damage. "Substantial damage" is defined as "damage or failure which adversely affects the structural strength, performance, or flight characteristics of the aircraft, and which would normally require major repair or replacement of the affected component. Engine failure or damage limited to an engine if only one engine fails or is damaged, bent fairings or cowling, dented skin, small punctured holes in the skin or fabric, ground damage to rotor or propeller blades, and damage to landing gear, wheels, tires, flaps, engine accessories, brakes, or wingtips are not considered "substantial damage." Consequently, there is no requirement to report a gear-up landing as long as no one is injured, the damage fits within the definition, and the specific incidents within 49 CFR 830.5 did not occur.
Sounds to me like they got it right based off their definition.
Couple that with the posting said they didn't know what it was that they hit, what else is there to call it?
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Hobbyist flying drones are limited to 400 feet. That is what the law says and some drones, such as those made by DJI will not let you fly above that altitude unless you can provide a waiver from the FAA. Drones can be home built however and easily exceed the 400 foot limit, but not legally. One guy in England was cited for flying above 10,000 feet (IIRC) and fined along with losing his drone. The record for drone flights does exceed 33,000 feet, but that wasn't an average drone.
LVSteve
Member
Piece of satellite junk on the way down? Piece off another aircraft? It was a piece that fell off another airliner that killed the Concorde at Paris.
DWalt
Member
I was once involved in a similar "incident" when I was working for a former employer back in the late 1970s, I was a passenger in one of the company's aircraft, a King Air. One night we were flying at over 25K somewhere above West Virginia. And suddenly BANG. The plane hit something in mid-air. The pilot sat the plane down in Charleston WV. Turned out there was a large softball-sized dent in the leading edge of one wing, no other visible damage. No idea what hit the plane, but at least no serious damage. Far too high to have been a bird strike. Joke went around that we had hit the mysterious "Big Bird" reported to have been scaring people around Point Pleasant, if anyone remembers that.
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LVSteve
Member
You mean mothman?
Maybe the Tesla Roadster lost a hubcap? 
DWalt
Member
You are correct - Mothman. Big Bird was a similar crypto-creature inhabiting the lower Rio Grande Valley.
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There are varieties of geese that have been recorded flying at nearly 30k feet.
LoboGunLeather
US Veteran
Can we be sure that some agency other than FAA isn't playing games in the area? For some reason I don't think they all share everything with everyone else.
Four species of large birds can fly above 27,000 feet, with Rippell's vulture the king at 37,000 feet. One got hit at 37,000 feet in 1973. And Whooper Swans were spotted on radar at 27,000 feet over Northern Ireland.
In car wrecks, round metal damage on thin metal parts usually meant something alive and soft was hit rather than other metal or hard surfaces. Pedestrian fatality damage very often was a relatively smooth, shallow 'U' on the hood.
In car wrecks, round metal damage on thin metal parts usually meant something alive and soft was hit rather than other metal or hard surfaces. Pedestrian fatality damage very often was a relatively smooth, shallow 'U' on the hood.
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LVSteve
Member
Different parts of the government not sharing with other departments? Say it ain't so!
