Drone Incident Reporting in the UK: Mandatory Occurrence Reports and CAA Notification

Why Drone Incident Reporting Matters

Every drone operator in the UK has a legal duty to report certain types of incidents. The reporting framework exists not to punish operators, but to improve aviation safety across the entire unmanned aircraft sector. The CAA uses aggregated data from occurrence reports to identify systemic risks, issue safety directives and update guidance in CAP 722.

Whether you fly a sub-250g camera drone or operate a large commercial fleet, understanding your reporting obligations is essential. The consequences of failing to report range from formal warnings to suspension of your Operational Authorisation.

The Mandatory Occurrence Reporting (MOR) System

The MOR system originates from retained EU Regulation 376/2014, which was brought into UK law following Brexit. Under this regulation, any occurrence that significantly affects or could affect aviation safety must be reported to the CAA.

For drone operators, reportable occurrences include:

• Loss of control — any uncommanded flight behaviour, flyaway events or failure of the return-to-home function
• Airspace infringements — entering controlled airspace, an aerodrome traffic zone (ATZ) or a flight restriction zone (FRZ) without authorisation
• Near misses — proximity events with manned aircraft, other drones or people on the ground
• Technical failures — battery fires, motor failures, GPS signal loss leading to hazardous situations or structural damage in flight
• Injuries or property damage — any incident causing injury to a person or significant damage to third-party property

How to Submit a Report

Reports are submitted through the CAA ECCAIRS 2 portal, the UK national occurrence reporting system. You will need to provide your operator ID, the date and time of the occurrence, location details (including coordinates where possible), a description of the event and any contributing factors.

The deadline for submission is 72 hours from the time you become aware of the occurrence. For serious incidents involving injury or significant damage, you should notify the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) as soon as practicable, typically by telephone within hours of the event.

Airprox Reporting

An Airprox is defined as a situation in which, in the opinion of a pilot or a controller, the distance between aircraft and the disposition and relative speed of the aircraft were such that the safety of the aircraft involved was or may have been compromised.

If your drone comes close to a manned aircraft, you should file an Airprox report with the UK Airprox Board (UKAB). This is separate from the MOR system and focuses specifically on air proximity events. Reports can be submitted online via the UKAB website or by contacting them directly.

The UKAB categorises events from A (risk of collision) to E (insufficient information). Drone-related Airprox incidents have risen significantly in recent years, and the data collected directly informs CAA enforcement priorities and airspace policy decisions.

What Happens After You Report

Once submitted, your report enters a structured review process:

1. Initial assessment — the CAA classifies the severity and determines whether immediate action is needed
2. Investigation — for serious occurrences, a formal investigation may be opened, potentially involving the AAIB for accidents
3. Analysis — the CAA aggregates occurrence data to identify trends and systemic risks across the UAS sector
4. Outcome — depending on findings, the CAA may issue safety directives, update CAP 722 guidance, or take enforcement action against the operator

Under the just culture principles embedded in the reporting regulation, reports made in good faith generally do not lead to punitive action against the reporter. The system is designed to encourage open reporting rather than penalise honest disclosures.

Record-Keeping Requirements

Beyond formal reporting, commercial drone operators should maintain comprehensive flight logs that include pre-flight check results, flight parameters, any anomalies observed and post-flight condition notes. These records serve as evidence of due diligence and can be critical if an incident investigation is opened later.

Under CAP 722 guidance, operators holding an Operational Authorisation are expected to retain flight records for a minimum of two years. Your operations manual should include a clear procedure for incident documentation and escalation.

Penalties for Non-Reporting

Failing to report a mandatory occurrence is an offence under the ANO 2016. The CAA can pursue enforcement through formal cautions, conditions on your Operational Authorisation, suspension of flying permissions, or in serious cases, referral to the Crown Prosecution Service.

The CAA has publicly stated that non-reporting is treated as a serious matter. Even if an incident itself is minor, deliberate failure to report undermines the safety reporting culture that the entire UK aviation system depends upon.

Best Practices for Operators

• Include incident reporting procedures in your operations manual and brief all remote pilots
• Keep the CAA ECCAIRS 2 portal bookmarked and test your login credentials regularly
• Document every flight with sufficient detail to reconstruct events if needed
• Report promptly — even if you are unsure whether an event is reportable, err on the side of reporting
• Review UKAB and AAIB published reports to learn from other operators and their experiences