Man admits to flying drone that landed on Sengkang LRT train tracks
SINGAPORE — A man pleaded guilty in the State Courts on Wednesday (18 December) to operating a drone that landed on the tracks at Sengkang LRT and was struck by a train.
Homen Wong, 21, was flying the drone from an open field next to Sengkang LRT to take aerial videos and photographs of the trains. However, the device ended up landing on the train tracks after it ran out of battery power.
While the incident caused no delay and no damage to the train, Wong later uploaded a video detailing the incident, spurring SBS Transit to file a report with the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS).
Wong, who was a full-time national serviceman at the time of the offence, pleaded guilty to one count of operating an unmanned aircraft outdoors in a manner which endangered the safety of persons and property. Another charge of operating without a valid Class 2 activity permit will be taken into consideration for his sentencing, which has been adjourned to 9 January.
The permit specifies conditions under which drones can be flown and helps to ensure that users operate their devices safely as well as within the law. These conditions include not using drones beyond 85 per cent of their maximum battery endurance and not having them interfere with public transport or emergency service providers.
Damaged drone returned to Wong by station staff
The court heard that on 8 February last year, Wong flew a DJI Mavic Pro drone that weighed 0.743kg for about 40 minutes at the open field beside Sengkang LRT station.
Wong flew his drone over pedestrian walkways with moderate human traffic. He also flew the drone over the train tracks of Sengkang LRT station to take videos and photographs of trains entering and leaving the station.
While his drone was above the train tracks, it ran out of battery power and landed on the tracks. It was later struck by an LRT train.
Later that evening, Wong sought assistance from the station staff to retrieve his drone.
A week later, the damaged drone was returned to Wong. No damage was caused to the trains, and there were no delayed services as a result of the drone’s landing.
Wong later posted a video of the incident on YouTube entitled “DJI Mavic Pro survived a train crash”. After the video made its rounds online, SBS Transit reported the incident to the CAAS on 9 April.
Under the Air Navigation Order, Wong faces a maximum fine of $20,000 for operating the drone in a dangerous manner.
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