The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating Aquila, Facebook's high-altitude drone that is supposed to fulfill its plan of bringing internet to remote areas in the world. According to the investigation, the aircraft had a structural malfunction.
The unmanned aircraft had a malfunction as it attempted to land during its first test flight last June 28, Bloomberg reported. The incident destroyed one of the company's satellites but nobody was hurt. The drone has a wingspan that spreads wider than that of a Boeing Co. 737 and it has four electric engines where it draws its power from.
There were no exact details reported from Facebook and NTSB's end during the date of the incident, and it is just now that investigation facts are being revealed. A "structural failure" was the only detail shared by NTSB last July 21.
Facebook recently issued a statement saying they were happy with the success of the first test flight and that they were able to verify components and performances, Tech Crunch reported. They were able to evaluate aerodynamics, control system, and batteries, but there were no major results yet.
According to reports, Facebook can't truly expect that the first test flight would go smoothly. Damage can really be expected from a very big experimental aircraft. Also, the drone wasn't design for repeat takeoffs, as well as landings since it had no landing gear.
NTSB spokesman Peter Knudson reported that the accident happened near Yuma County, Arizona. He said there were no damages on the ground.
Besides the Aquila accident, Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg was also very disappointed with the explosion that happened with SpaceX rocket back in September 1, which destroyed one of the company's satellite. That was supposed to help bring internet all over Africa. Facebook also has political problems with the Indian government, who believes that the company's offer of free internet is a subtle land grab of the country's market.
