Commercial Drone Crashes into One-North Residences, H3 Dynamics Fined S$18,000

By
Siti Hajar
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A commercial drone operated by H3 Dynamics crashed into One-North Residences in Buona Vista on 19 Jul 2024, narrowly missing two residents before catching fire on impact.

The company was fined S$18,000 after pleading guilty on 1 Apr to operating the drone in a manner that could endanger lives or property.

Unlicensed Operator and Loss of Drone Control

The incident occurred at approximately 6pm when employees of H3 Dynamics were testing a modified Hexadrone Tundra 2 drone weighing about 10kg at the Pixel Building at 10 Central Exchange Green.

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Two employees were involved in the operation: a software engineer who was stationed on the rooftop of the Pixel Building serving as the on-site pilot, and the company’s vice-president of robotics who was operating the command centre remotely from another location.

The vice-president, who did not possess an unmanned aircraft pilot licence from the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS), launched the drone.

When the aircraft failed to move toward its programmed destination, the vice-president instructed the software engineer to take manual control.

The engineer was unable to control the drone using his remote control and subsequently lost sight of it when it became blocked by a taller section of the Pixel Building.

The drone then flew approximately 200m toward One-North Residences where it crashed into one of the buildings.

After impact, the drone fell to the ground just one metre away from two residents and caught fire. The crash damaged granite tiles which cost S$700 to replace, an amount H3 Dynamics has paid to One-North Residences.

Regulatory Actions and Penalties Following the Incident

District Judge Wong Li Tein, who sentenced the company, noted it was “entirely fortuitous” that no one was injured and no further damage occurred. Under the law, H3 Dynamics could have faced a fine of up to S$100,000 for the offence.

CAAS issued 12-month conditional warnings to both pilots involved in the incident.

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The authority conducted two on-site audits of H3 Dynamics in August and September 2024 and issued four corrective orders, which the company complied with.

Following the investigation, CAAS expressed satisfaction with H3 Dynamics’ corrective actions.

From 25 Oct 2024, the company was permitted to resume aerial photography and videography operations, which had been suspended during the investigation period.

However, H3 Dynamics is no longer allowed to conduct drone operations for flight tests and demonstrations. The company will also face increased frequency of safety audits after resuming its drone operations.

CAAS also lifted a suspension on the Hexadrone Tundra 2 base model on 25 Oct 2024, having found no safety issues with the aircraft itself.

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Siti Hajar