A drone almost collided with an American Airlines Group Inc. aircraft earlier this year, a near-accident that highlights the growing risk from rising use of unmanned aircraft, the U.S. air safety regulator said.
According to Reuters, while preparing to land at Tallahassee Regional Airport, a pilot reported seeing a small, remote-control aircraft very close to his plane, said Jim Williams, manager of the Federal Aviation Administration's Unmanned Aircraft System Integration Office.
"The airplane pilot said that the UAS was so close to his jet that he was sure he had collided with it," Williams said at an industry conference on Thursday, referring to an unmanned aircraft system.
Upon inspection on March 22, the aircraft, operated by an American subsidiary, did not appear to be damaged, Williams said.
However, the incident stressed the risk involved in using remote-control aircraft, he said.
"The risk for a small UAS to be ingested into a passenger airline engine is very real," Williams said. "The results could be catastrophic."
Although commercial use of drones in the U.S. is currently banned by the FAA, hobby and many law-enforcement uses are permitted. The FAA is also under growing pressure to set rules that would permit their broader use.
Last year, the agency began establishing test sites where businesses can try out commercial uses, according to Reuters.
"The FAA is working aggressively to ensure the safe integration of unmanned aircraft systems into the national airspace," the agency said in a statement.
The March incident was reported to the Tallahassee control tower by the pilot for Bluestreak Airlines, a U.S. Airways commuter carrier. U.S. Airways is part of American Airlines.
"The plane, a Bombardier CRJ-200, was a traveling from Charlotte, North Carolina, to Tallahassee," Reuters reported. "It was at 2,300 feet and about five miles from the airport when it encountered the remote controlled jet. The FAA investigated but could not identify the pilot of the drone."
American said it is "aware of the published report alleging an incident with one of our express flights and we are investigating."
The incident was first reported by The Wall Street Journal, according to Reuters.
