FAA says drone collided with firefighting aircraft flying over Palisades Fire

A firefighting aircraft was grounded on Thursday after it was struck by a drone while flying over the Palisades Fire near the Pacific Coast, the Federal Aviation Administration said.

The incident occurred on the third day of the wildfire, one of five active wildfires across Los Angeles County. The aircraft landed safely and the incident is being investigated by the FAA, the agency said in a statement.

"It’s a federal crime, punishable by up to 12 months in prison, to interfere with firefighting efforts on public lands," according to the agency. "The FAA has not authorized anyone unaffiliated with the Los Angeles firefighting operations to fly drones in the (temporary flight restrictions)."

The FAA said it could impose a civil penalty of up to $75,000 against any drone pilot who interferes with operations involving wildfire suppression, law enforcement, or emergency response while temporary flight restrictions are in place. The agency has implemented several temporary flight restrictions in the Los Angeles region to protect firefighting aircraft.

"The FAA treats these violations seriously and immediately considers swift enforcement action for these offenses," the agency added. "All other aircraft, including drones, are prohibited from flying in (temporary flight restrictions) unless they receive authorization."

Satellite and aerial images of LA fires: Before and after images reveal destruction of the Los Angeles fires

'Dangerous and can cost lives'

Los Angeles Fire Department spokesperson Erik Scott said the incident occurred Thursday afternoon when a Super Scooper plane, Quebec 1, was hit by a civilian drone not assigned to fire operations.

"Quebec 1 sustained wing damage and remains grounded and out of service," Scott said in a statement on X. "There were no reported injuries."

Firefighting "Super Scooper" planes refill by descending to the placid waters of bays and lakes and skimming the water’s surface to load their tanks, according to Reuters. They then release the water to douse a blaze and repeat the process until they refuel.

The FAA noted that flying drones near a wildfire is "dangerous and can cost lives." Fire response agencies often ground their aircraft when civilian drones are flown near wildfires to avoid potential midair collisions.

The delay in airborne responses can threaten firefighters on the ground, residents, and property in nearby communities, and can cause wildfires to grow larger, the FAA added.

The Palisades Fire started burning Tuesday and scorched thousands of acres around the California beach towns of Santa Monica and Malibu. Hours later, the Eaton Fire broke out in Altadena, California, followed by the Hurst Fire in Sylmar, California, located in the San Fernando Valley northwest of downtown Los Angeles.

As of Thursday night, the Palisades Fire has burned nearly 20,000 acres and was 6% contained, according to Cal Fire.

Center of controversy after recent sightings

Drones have recently caused headaches and controversy after mysterious sightings last year raised concerns among residents across the eastern U.S.

USA TODAY reported last month that the FBI received tips involving over 5,000 reported drone sightings, which were first spotted in New Jersey before spreading to other northeast states. Federal authorities sent advanced detection technology and trained visual observers into the region to investigate the tips.

"The sightings to date include a combination of lawful commercial drones, hobbyist drones and law enforcement drones, as well as manned fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters and stars mistakenly reported as drones," the Department of Homeland Security, FBI, FAA, and the Pentagon said in a joint statement in December. "We have not identified anything anomalous and do not assess the activity to date to present a national security or public safety risk over the civilian airspace in New Jersey or other states in the northeast."

There are more than 1 million drones lawfully registered with the FAA as well as thousands of commercial, hobbyist, and law enforcement drones that lawfully fly every day, according to the joint statement.

Get weather and fire alerts via text: Sign up to get current wildfire updates by location

Contributing: Charles Ventura, John Bacon, N'dea Yancey-Bragg, and Kristen Apolline Castillo, USA TODAY; Reuters

(This story was updated to add new information.)

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Drone collided with firefighting aircraft flying over Palisades Fire