Law enforcement UAS pilot reported losing control of the UAS shortly after takeoff which resulted in the UAS crashing into a residential building. Testing after the incident concluded that body camera magnets interfered with the controller.
Synopsis
Law enforcement UAS pilot reported losing control of the UAS shortly after takeoff which resulted in the UAS crashing into a residential building. Testing after the incident concluded that body camera magnets interfered with the controller.
Narrative
On Day 0 just prior to XA00hrs ; the RPIC powered on his s-UAS to search for a suspect that had fled from law enforcement on foot in a residential area of Location A.The s-UAS was launched by pressing the takeoff button and the engines powered on and it moved into a hover. Within a couple of seconds; the s-UAS began to fly away from the RPIC without any input from the RPIC on the controller. The s-UAS reached an altitude of 9' AGL. The RPIC put in stick inputs to stop or reverse the flight path of the s-UAS but the had no effect on the s-UAS. After approximately six seconds; the UAS collided with the side of a residential structure at 15mph approximately 70 feet from where it had taken off. There was no damage to the structure or persons. The damage to the s-UAS was disabling. The Autel EVO Pro II V II was being flown without a smart controller and via an iOS device. The s-UAS was operating in DroneSense as opposed to the Autel Software. The software was DroneSense version 2024.5.1b8409-iOS
NASA callback
Reporter stated the department ran tests after the incident which concluded the magnets from their body cameras interfered with the iOS device controllers that were being used which is what led to the loss of aircraft control.
Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.