In news that the drone industry can absolutely do without, a drone reportedly hit a police helicopter in Los Angeles, as fire crews battled a brush fire near the Encino Reservoir on Tuesday afternoon, prompting, forcing an emergency landing.
The news comes at a time when errant drone operators are really testing the patience of law enforcement authorities as well as counter drone infrastructure set up around the FIFA World Cup host cities in the USA, with the FBI confirming last Saturday that more than 600 drones flying over restricted World Cup airspace in the US have been seized since the tournament began in June.
So far 99 drones have been captured flying in Miami, 77 in Atlanta and 32 in Kansas City.
But we begin with the case of the drone idiot in Los Angeles, who disturbed the fighting efforts against the blazing brush fire that came dangerously close to homes near the reservoir and Sepulveda Basin.
LAFD Chief Jaime Moore said the cause of the fire is believed to be down power lines in the area.
"What they found was about a 50x50 spot fire that was believed to have been caused by some power line that came down,” he said.
“Our firefighters immediately did an aggressive attack. We have our crews, hand crews, here as well, and they were mopping up that fire when, just up the hillside, another spot fire broke out because of the energized power line that hit the ground there.
"They immediately left that 50x50 spot and went up to that other fire, which was associated with this fire only because it was the same power line."
Sadly, though the fire remained small and was knocked down fairly quickly by fire crews, their efforts were impacted by an incident involving a drone in the area.
As the water-dropping choppers brought in to help keep the fire from spreading worked from the sky, the Los Angeles Police Department said a drone smacked into one of its helicopters.
Police said the pilot was forced to make an emergency landing.
"The airship was hit by a drone and had to make an emergency landing over at Van Nuys Airport," said Capt. Brian Wendling with LAPD.
"I know people are curious, but curiosity can cause danger."
While Capt Wendling was more diplomatic, LA mayor Karen Bass’ message to the drone operator was more on point.
"I will say that it is completely unacceptable and illegal to fly drones like this, and we had that incident in previous fires as well,” the mayor said.
“If you remember, in the Palisades, it hit one of the helicopters, and so the message is -- this is unacceptable. If we find out who you are, you will be arrested, and you will be prosecuted. So any lookie-loos out there, this is very dangerous to everyone."
No injuries were reported in the fire. In total, 153 firefighters worked to extinguish the flames.
Los Angeles boasts of SoFi, one of the World Cup hosting stadiums from where the FBI said agents have seized 28 drones, as well as near the L.A. Memorial Coliseum since Friday.
The drones were not seized because of any threat or plot but because they were flying in the Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) zone that has been set up for the World Cup.
In a statement on Twitter, the law enforcement agency said that drones had been caught across all 11 US host cities by the FBI and the federal Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
According to news reports, the number of drones seized over no-drone zones include 48 in Los Angeles, 98 in Miami, 29 in Seattle, 63 in Dallas, 77 in Atlanta, 40 in New York and 33 in Houston. Newark, which is near where the World Cup final is due to be held on 19 July, trails the drone interception table with just nine.
In the run up to the world football tournament, the FBI had announced that it was going to enforce a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) drone flight restriction enforcement policy involving TFRs around stadiums and related game-watch sites.
It warned that violations of TFRs could result in civil fines up to $75,000, criminal fines up to $100,000, up to a year in prison, and seizure of any drones involved.
The agency said it was deploying “advanced, specialised drone mitigation teams and technology to monitor, track, and intercept unauthorised unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) near major restricted-airspace events”.
The number of drones seized since the games began on 10 June suggests drone operators may not have heeded FBI warnings. Drone restrictions apply to three hours before and after a scheduled game.
“Not only is flying drones in TFR zones illegal, it’s dangerous,” said Kansas City US attorney, R Matthew Price.
“My office is committed to keeping our community and visitors safe by keeping our skies drone-free.
“If you see a drone breaking the rules, report it. If you are flying an illegal drone, think twice because violators will be held accountable (by the US justice department)”.
Among those arrested was one man charged with operating without a pilot’s certificate after flying a drone over what tournament organisers are calling the Dallas stadium while a match was in progress.
A second man was charged with owning an unregistered aircraft that was operated by another person.
In a statement to the Dallas news outlet KDFW, Ryan Raybould, US attorney for the northern district of Texas said: “It is our duty to make sure that these fans as well as our great citizens … are protected from drone interference and potentially dangerous situations.
“If you operate a drone, you have a duty to know the law. And know that you cannot fly a drone over either Dallas Stadium or [an associated fan fest] during the World Cup. If you disregard this warning, you should expect to be prosecuted in federal court.”