Drone Crashes Pile Up In and Near Florida

July 2013: Heavy smoke is visible near Mexico Beach, Florida after a
drone crashed on takeoff from Tyndall Air Force Base.
(From CapitalBay.com)

The very first post on the No Drones Florida website was about the way in which Florida is bristling with drones bases. At the time, we could only guess at what some of the consequences of this would be.

On June 22, 2014, the Washington Post published the results of a far-reaching investigation into crashes that have occurred in the U.S. drone program.

Shockingly, of the 194 major ("Class A") crashes that the Washington Post was able to document, 47  occurred within the United States.

Below is information on five (5) drone crashes that occurred in the state of Florida alone between the years 2001 and 2013. (The listed incidents are Air Force-related, unless otherwise indicated.)

(See the full online database of crashes on the Washington Post website for full details of these and other drone crashes.)

Tyndall crash: October 25, 2001

Date: October 25, 2001
Location: Tyndall Air Force Base
Estimated damage: $1,523,469
Details: An aerial target drone [Phantom (QF-4E)] crashed . . . .

Date: May 10, 2004
Location: undisclosed FL location
Estimated damage: N/A
Details:   An Army Hunter (RQ-5A) drone crashed  . . . .

Date: April 25, 2006
Location: Gulf of Mexico, 88 miles south of Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla., United States
Estimated damage:  $2,450,000
Details:  A Phantom (QF-4E) had to be blown up when it went out of control . . . .

Remains of crashed drone in the Gulf of Mexico: May 13, 2011

Date: May 13, 2011
Location: Gulf of Mexico, 16 nautical miles south of Tyndall Air Force Base,
Estimated damage: $2,801,574
Details:   An aerial target drone [Phantom (QF-4E)] crashed in the Gulf of Mexico.

Date: July 17, 2013
Location: Tyndall Air Force Base
Estimated damage: $4,564,536
Details:  An aerial target drone [Phantom (QF-4E)]crashed about eight seconds after takeoff . . . .

Tyndall crash: July 17, 2013

Related posts


A drone crash in Maryland near the Chesapeake Bay was one of the first incidents to bring crashes by military drones to the attention of the American public.


(See Maryland Drone Crashes: The Other Shoe Drops )

There have been several crashes of Hunter drones in connection with Army programs in Georgia.

(See Military Drone Programs in Georgia Lead to Crashes)







Ten (10) drone crashes occurred in the state of California alone between the years 2004 and 2011.

(See California: Is the Sky Falling? )