AAIB investigation to Tekever AR5 Evolution MK 2.3, G-TEKG
Loss of ground control station power, Lydd (London Ashford) Airport, 14 February 2025
During a UAS operation, power was lost to the Command Unit (CU) used to control the flight. The aircraft was reported to have had an active transponder and so was visible to ATC throughout. It flew in a holding pattern until emergency flight communications were established and was then flown back to the base of operation.
The power loss was attributed to isolation of the Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) when a laptop was disconnected from the power network in the CU. The combination of limited UPS endurance and sub-optimal cable labelling and schematics led to the loss of link to the aircraft for a period before sufficient control was restored to return the aircraft back to base.
Following an internal investigation, the operator has made improvements to internal procedures, wiring schematics and labelling, and has upgraded the UPS endurance.
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