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The Blue Angels apparently encountered an unwelcome guest during their #AmericaStrong flyover in Detroit this week: a high flying drone that came “within feet” of the demonstration team.
(No good deed goes unpunished, right, Blue Angels?)
The Aviationist notes the incident could’ve resulted “in a midair collision when … [the] camera drone flew dangerously close to the six F/A-18 Hornets as they flew over buildings in the city’s downtown area.”
“Basic drone operation rules also include not operating a drone near other aircraft,” writes The Aviationist’s Tom Demerly. “The video of the Blue Angels shot from the drone seems to be a clear violation of this specification.”
Sure does, Tom.
“The FAA and the Blues are aware of the video,” the Avionist says.
Yeah, I bet they are.
Check out the video sooner than later. I won’t be surprised if “Danger Zone” (which plays on the soundtrack) wasn’t licensed and a copyright infringement claim gets the video pulled.
You can see the Blue Angels racing toward the drone around the :48 mark in the below video (or click here to jump to that spot).
Who allegedly was behind the dangerous operation?
The drone video has been attributed to a social media account with the designation “@GIOLUCIA” that appears in the opening titles of the video. A Google search on this led to accounts on Instagram and Facebook owned by a person named Giovanni Lucia. While it has not been confirmed by the FAA or law enforcement that any person named Giovanni Lucia is connected with the video, all social media attributed to the credit shown in the beginning of the video link to this name. Other social media posts from a page attributed to the same person included aerial photos of downtown Detroit at night, when drone operation should be prohibited by the FAA. One Facebook post included aerial photos of downtown Detroit from February 18, 2017 with the caption, “Might of broke a couple FAA regulations today…”
Sigh.
Look, I love watching drone videos. And I will admit the clip is stunning. But the fact that a very, very serious incident might have occurred isn’t worth any drone footage.
— Chris
Featured image: ©iStock.com/MichaelHeimlich
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When I saw the Blue Angels fly over DC, I noticed one plane on its own. Does anyone know what this was? Was it one of the planes that had somehow got out of formation, or was it some sort of escort?
Probably a chase plane recording footage.
The drone owner needs to be charged. He put the lives of the pilots and people below in danger with reckless disregard of others.
is it part of the missing man formation?
I wasn’t aware of that formation until now. It probably was.
Even though this is about the Thunderbirds, it may answer the question.