Facebook drone Aquila had a good start to its test run over the Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona. However, the drone eventually crash-landed as it was not able to handle an unexpected gust of wind. The drone's software reportedly also faltered.
According to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the drone was operating at very fast speed as it came towards the ground. The board concluded that the drone's design was not able to generate enough drag to slow it down. The drone was eventually pushed off course by a strong wind, which hit the aircraft five seconds before its landing.
The test flight was carried out on June 28. After a successful takeoff, the company engineers decided to keep the drone flying beyond its scheduled 30-minutes plan. Although the drone is equipped to withstand gust of up to seven knots, it was not able to defend itself against high powered winds.
Aquila was able to steer itself back to the scheduled route, after being knocked off course. The high speed reportedly caused the drone's right wing to deform. The wing eventually snapped off due to the intensity.
Facebook had published its findings of the failure, though the details were sparse. The company defended itself by stating that it was not allowed to disclose all the details while the investigation was on.
Yael Maguire, who manages software development for Aquila, said, "From our perspective, this was actually fantastic because we uncovered a bug pretty early on in our program."
The findings of the NTSB report and the conclusions drawn by Facebook suggest that the company will be required to make some structural and engineering changes to make its drones viable. Drones form the backbone of Facebook's internet.org initiative through which it plans to bring the Internet to far-flung places.