Part 107 UAS pilot reported briefly flying in controlled airspace without LAANC authorization.

Date: 2024-09 · Aircraft: DJI Mavic 2 Pro · Phase: cruise

Anomalies: airspace-violation-all-types|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-published-material-policy|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-far|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-unauthorized-flight-operations-uas

Synopsis

Part 107 UAS pilot reported briefly flying in controlled airspace without LAANC authorization.

Narrative

I was tasked with flying an inspection of nacelle damage on a wind turbine that had recently caught on fire on a wind farm; about 10 days prior and was seriously damaged. 2 days prior to my flight; the wind turbine caught on fire again as a tech was trying to inspect the damage. They needed closeup imagery of the damage at the top of the turbine to determine if it was safe for techs to attempt to climb the tower again. The data was urgently needed to assure safety for employees and expedite the inspection. In my flight planning; I looked at the Air Control app at the farm's Operations and Maintenance building. We were well outside the Class D ring for ZZZ airport. I was given the approximate location of the turbine and believed it was still outside of the Class D ring and the UAS Facility grid ring; which had a 400 foot grid covering the airspace adjacent to the wind farm; extending an additional 4 miles until zero grid near the actual runway and tower facilities. Despite the LAANC grid being on the map; LAANC authorization is not available on apps. The area also has an MOA above 500 AGL; ZZZ MOA; but it is only hot on weekdays; not the day of our flight on Day 0. I went to the site; unfortunately without checking Air Control again; I flew my drone for the structure inspection in an approximately 30 minute flight. I never flew to 400 AGL; the bulk of the flight was between 250-350 AGL. I remained within 100 feet of the structure for the bulk of the flight; except on climb out and descent; when I was transiting to and from my LZ (Landing Zone); approximately 300 feet west of my structure. Those phases of flight were from 250 feet AGL; descending diagonally to the LZ on a mostly constant diagonal flight path in both directions. There were never any aircraft observed in the airspace for 10+ miles around throughout the inspection flight. Today; when I was processing my data; it looks like I clipped the UAS Facility Grid; a portion of the grid that extends to 400 feet AGL. At most; I believe I was .2 miles inside that grid; still many miles from 0' grid and the actual airport facilities. Unfortunately; I did not have a LAANC or DroneZone authorization. My flight was likely seen on AeroScope and/RemoteID equipment. In the event that anyone needs further information about my flight; I'd be happy to discuss it with the appropriate representatives as necessary. Please accept my apology for the errant flight; I sincerely hope I did not cause any safety or security concerns to anyone.

NASA callback

The reporter had no additional information to share.

Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.