Drone Manufacturer: DJI
Drone Model: Matrice 210
Country: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Type: Accident
Date: 2019-04-20
Applies: Daytime
Pilot Qualifications: Approved by Public Safety Agency or Company
Pilot Flight Experience: 7 Hours
Link to External Information About This submission: https://www.gov.uk/aaib-reports/aaib-investigation-to-dji-matrice-210-uas-registration-n-a-20-april-2019
File Uploaded: dji_matrice_210_uas_registration_na_200419_0120
Description
The DJI Matrice 210 small unmanned aircraft (SUA)1 was performing a daylight survey exercise in light winds. After the pre-flight checks were completed, the aircraft was ascended to a height of around 5 m (~15 ft) to perform further checks. The pilot commanded small control inputs after which the aircraft became unstable and one of the motor arms broke where it attached to the aircraft. The pilot lost control and the aircraft crashed into the ground. No person was injured.
Refer to report on DJI Matrice 210 – EW/C2019/03/02 in this AAIB Bulletin 1/2020 for information on other accidents involving the DJI Matrice 210 and Safety Recommendations concerning the safe operation of a UAS near to people and congested areas.
Reported Cause
Subsequent analysis of recorded data from the aircraft identified that the No 2 (front left) and No 3 (rear left) motors had stalled, leading to a loss of lift on the left side of the aircraft. It could not be established whether the motors stalled prior to or after the failure of the motor arm.