Drone pilot who crashed into Canadian firefighting plane in LA gets jail time
"Lack of common sense and ignorance of your duty as a drone pilot will not shield you from criminal charges.”
On the morning of January 9, 2025, a Canadian “Super Scooper” airplane, the Quebec 1, combatting the devastating Palisades fire in Los Angeles, had to be grounded after it collided with a civilian drone flying in a restricted area.
"[On] January 9, 2025, at approximately 1:00 p.m., while flying in the Palisades fire area, Super Scooper Quebec 1 was struck by a civilian drone that was not assigned to the Palisades fire," LA Fire Department Captain Erik Scott posted on X at the time.
"Quebec 1 sustained wing damage and remains grounded and out of service. There were no reported injuries. The incident is under investigation by the FAA. We would like to remind everyone that flying a drone in the midst of firefighting efforts is a federal crime and punishable by up to 12 months in prison or a fine of up to $75,000."
The airplane - a CL-415 - can hold 7,000 litres of water to dump on wildfires and has a reload time of 14 seconds. The incident happened at a critical time during the fire, taking a powerful resource out of commission when it was most needed.
Photo released by LA County Fire Department depicting damage to Canadian Super Scooper.
Drone operator sentenced to jail time
Peter Tripp Akemann, 57, a wealthy tech executive credied for co-founding the popular vide game series Call of Duty was identified as the owner of the drone and sentenced to serve 14 days in federal prison, followed by 30 days of home detention, and fined approximately $156,000 in restitution.
Akemann, who is now chief technologist at Skydance Interactive, must also complete 150 hours of community service in support of Southern California wildfire relief.
Akemann agreed to plead guilty back in late January, with official sentencing carried out last month.
Canada 1979 Postage Stamp depicting a Canadair CL-215 firefighting plane (Hayden Soloviev/Wikipedia) CC BY 4.0. Note: A cutout of this plane is also depicted in the header photo.
Prosecutors have harsh words for drone operator
“This defendant recklessly flew an aircraft into airspace where first responders were risking their lives in an attempt to protect lives and property,” Acting United States Attorney Joseph T. McNally said in January.
“Lack of common sense and ignorance of your duty as a drone pilot will not shield you from criminal charges,” added Akil Davis, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office.
“Please respect the law, respect the FAA’s rules and respect our firefighters and the residents they are protecting by keeping your drone at home during wildfires.”
Another image of the damage the drone collision caused (U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation) Note: Part of this image is also used in the header photo.
Drone was flown out of 'curiosity'
In a three-page apology letter to the court reviewed by ABC 7, Akemann expressed his "sincerest remorse and deepest aoplogies" to the Super Scooper crew and the LA citizens, acknowleding his behaviour was "stupid and reckless."
Akemann says he flew the drone over the fire zone partially out of "curiosity" and to check on the residence of a friend located in the area. He says his signal waivered and he lost contact with the drone.
"It was not until I heard on the news that a drone had collided with a firefighting aircraft that I became concerned that it was possibly my drone that had been involved," Akemann wrote, ABC 7 reports.
Unprecedented fires
The January fires in LA engulfing the LA area have killed at least 30 people and destroyed thousands of homes. More than 100,000 people were forced to evacuate.
The fires spread fast, fueled by a combination of unusually low rainfall and hurricane-force winds.