A remote pilot is operating a drone commercially over a crowd at a permitted outdoor festival. The operation requires a waiver under § 107.39. While flying, the remote pilot observes the aircraft entering an unanticipated flight mode. What is the highest-priority immediate action?
Why →Under § 107.19, the remote PIC is responsible for aircraft safety at all times. When an anomaly threatens life safety, immediate action to remove the aircraft from over people is the highest-priority response, ahead of diagnosing the cause, completing the mission, or activating automated procedures whose route may cross the crowd. The DECIDE model: Detect (anomaly), Estimate (risk to crowd), Choose (immediate divergence), Do (execute), Evaluate.
The trap →Diagnosing the issue while maintaining altitude continues to expose the crowd to risk. RTH may be inappropriate if the home point is within or near the crowd area. RTH brings the aircraft toward home, not necessarily away from the crowd. The immediate priority is removing the hazard from the crowd.
Field note →The over-people waiver under § 107.39 imposes additional obligations. Operators must prove the operation is safe. Any in-flight anomaly during a permitted crowd overflight should be treated as a waiver-invalidating event. Land away from the crowd, report the anomaly, and do not resume until the aircraft is verified safe.