Drone emergency procedures: lost link, fly-aways and incidents
What Transport Canada expects you to plan for: control station failures, lost C2 link, fly-aways, flight termination, incident reporting and inspections.
Checked against the rules in force on 2026-10-01Part IX requires every pilot to have emergency procedures ready before flight. The exams test whether you know what those procedures should cover and what to do afterwards.
What your procedures must cover
CAR 901.23 lists the situations: control station failure, equipment failure, RPA failure, loss of the C2 link, fly-away, flight termination, and detecting and avoiding other aircraft. Keep the procedures available at the control station, on paper or a device, ideally not on the same tablet you use to fly.
Lost link
When the control link drops, Transport Canada suggests adjusting the antennas, checking cables and, if needed, using the flight termination system. Watch the aircraft until the link returns or it lands. Know in advance what your drone does when the link is lost, such as hovering or returning home, and set a return altitude that clears every obstacle.
If you launch from a moving boat, return-to-home may fly back to the original takeoff point, now open water. Plan to land manually.
Fly-away
A fly-away is when the link is lost and the aircraft no longer responds or behaves predictably. If it may leave your area, notify air traffic services (NAV CANADA) right away, as CAR 901.15 and 900.07 require when the aircraft could enter controlled or restricted airspace.
After an incident
CAR 901.49 says to stop operations after incidents such as an injury needing medical care, an unintended collision with a person, damage affecting flight, a fly-away or a near collision with an aircraft. Do not fly again until the cause is analysed and fixed. Keep those records for 12 months.
The Transportation Safety Board must be told about aviation occurrences involving RPAs, and it investigates serious ones, such as a collision between a drone and a manned aircraft.
Inspections and maintenance
Give the RPAS its most thorough inspection before your first flight, do a quick check after each landing (for example when changing batteries), and a full inspection after any crash or when you move to a new site. Replace chipped or cracked propellers and swollen batteries. Owners keep flight records for 12 months and maintenance records for 24 months.
Sources: CARs 901.23 · CARs 901.49 · TC AIM RPA 3.2.11–3.2.17
Try 5 questions on this topic
Free sample questions with a debrief for each answer.
Which of these can cause a lithium battery fire?
During your preflight inspection you find a cracked propeller. What should you do?
At night you see an aircraft's red and white lights. Which way is it going?
A low-flying aircraft is heading toward your drone. What is usually the fastest way to avoid a collision?
Which item belongs in a pre-flight crew briefing?
Practice the whole topic in the app
Every question on this topic, mock exams in the real format and a readiness score that updates as you study.