ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 349886
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| Date: | Sunday 31 December 2023 |
| Time: | 23:59 LT |
| Type: | Uvify Ifo UAV Light Show Drones (x400) |
| Owner/operator: | Private |
| Registration: | unregistered |
| MSN: | 213682 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall, London SW1 -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Demo/Airshow/Display |
| Departure airport: | Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall, London SW1 |
| Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall, London SW1 |
Two Uvify Ifo UAS Light Show Drones (out of a formation of 400) were written off (damaged beyond repair) when they collided and fell to the ground in an incident, close to midnight on New Years Eve, at Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall, London SW1, as part of the New Years Eve celebrations. The two UAVs that were written off were:
UVify IFO 1 (Serial no: 213682ifod0106000497)
UVify IFO 2 (Serial no: 213682ifod0106000370)
Four hundred UAVs were launched as part of a synchronised swarm to carry out a public New Year’s Eve display. About 30 seconds into the display, several UAVs briefly failed to maintain their pre-programmed position. This slight deviation lasted for approximately 2 seconds.
About 5 seconds afterwards two of the UAVs were seen in an uncontrolled descent eventually hitting the ground. They landed in the safety zone, Horse Guards Parade in the centre of London, beneath the display area. Both UAVs were damaged beyond repair.
The remainder of the swarm completed the display sequence and landed without incident.
=AAIB Investigation=
The operator conducted a detailed investigation to establish the cause. A download and analysis of the on-board data logs found no technical reason for the UA deviation. An assessment of the weather conditions at the time suggested that a localised gust of wind may have affected some of the UAVs. It is possible that the two UAVs that fell to the ground sustained damage by colliding with each other.
This compromised their flightworthiness and caused them to descend out of control. To mitigate the possibility of this happening again, the operator is researching a way by which to measure wind speed within the display envelope to supplement the preparatory wind speed measurements taken at ground level.
=AAIB Observation=
The use of multiple UAVs, in this case 400, for public display and entertainment will, by their nature, attract large numbers of people on the ground. Displays such as these are generally carried out in a large three dimensional area of the sky and the UA at the top of the swarm, in some cases, may reach heights of several hundred feet agl. In this case the operator and organisers of this display had taken this into account and a large safety zone had been established on the ground. This greatly reduced any risk to the public and meant a safe outcome in this accident.
Sources:
1. AAIB Final Report: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6409cfbad3bf7f02ff3f570d/UVify_IFO_1_and_UVify_IFO_2_UAS_reg_n-a_04-23.pdf
2. https://www.uvify.com/ifo/
3. https://celestial.show/shows/city-celebrations/london-nye-2023/
4. https://www.inavateonthenet.net/news/article/record-breaking-drone-shows-ring-in-new-year-2023
5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horse_Guards_Parade
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 14-Jan-2024 14:19 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
| 15-Jan-2024 08:27 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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