CE510 captain experiences a near midair collision with a quad rotor drone at 1;000 ft AGL during app...

Narrative:

While turning base to final for runway 21 at scottsdale; az; (sdl) I passed within approximately 100-200 ft horizontally; and no more than 50 ft vertically of a dji phantom drone (I own one; hence the familiarity with it). The horizontal distance may have been closer as it was difficult to completely ascertain. I was moving at approximately 120-130 KTS IAS; the airport elevation is 1;510 ft MSL; but the approach is over gradually rising terrain; and over what appears to be a residential golf course development. I took immediate evasive action; and reported the incident to the tower. The tower controller asked if it was a 'little radio controlled plane' to which I responded that it was a drone; and could have just been in a high orbit above the final approach flight path. While I cannot recall exactly; the controller indicated he was a hobbyist and flew rc models. I spotted the object approximately 5 seconds before passing it and initially thought it was a bird. However; as it appeared closer; I could definitely see the distinct 4 quadcopter pillars and pick out the red tape on top of the unit. Keep in mind this unit has a cross section of about 12 inches; so I may have been much closer than I realize.these drones contain a 5200mAh; 11v; lithium polymer battery. While my engines have had to withstand bird ingestion testing; I seriously doubt they were tested ingesting such potentially explosive materials. This could have caused an explosion or other potentially fatal situation; (imagine it igniting a fuel tank if it struck the wing and caused a spark). I personally enjoy using my phantom drone; and it provides unique perspectives that I enjoy; especially with my pilot background. I hate to take any action which could potentially result in the limitation of my ability to use it. However; as a pilot; and when carrying passengers; the assumption of the responsibility to safely start; continue; and end a flight requires that something be done. These units can be purchased for under $1;000; launched from a balcony directly in busy airspace (or non-busy airspace; until it is); and have the potential to completely cripple a small jet; or other aircraft.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: CE510 Captain experiences a NMAC with a quad rotor drone at 1;000 FT AGL during approach to Runway 21 at SDL. Evasive action is taken and the event reported to the Tower.

Narrative: While turning base to final for Runway 21 at Scottsdale; AZ; (SDL) I passed within approximately 100-200 FT horizontally; and no more than 50 FT vertically of a DJI Phantom Drone (I own one; hence the familiarity with it). The horizontal distance may have been closer as it was difficult to completely ascertain. I was moving at approximately 120-130 KTS IAS; the airport elevation is 1;510 FT MSL; but the approach is over gradually rising terrain; and over what appears to be a residential golf course development. I took immediate evasive action; and reported the incident to the Tower. The Tower Controller asked if it was a 'little radio controlled plane' to which I responded that it was a drone; and could have just been in a high orbit above the final approach flight path. While I cannot recall exactly; the Controller indicated he was a hobbyist and flew RC models. I spotted the object approximately 5 seconds before passing it and initially thought it was a bird. However; as it appeared closer; I could definitely see the distinct 4 quadcopter pillars and pick out the red tape on top of the unit. Keep in mind this unit has a cross section of about 12 inches; so I may have been much closer than I realize.These drones contain a 5200mAh; 11v; lithium polymer battery. While my engines have had to withstand bird ingestion testing; I seriously doubt they were tested ingesting such potentially explosive materials. This could have caused an explosion or other potentially fatal situation; (imagine it igniting a fuel tank if it struck the wing and caused a spark). I personally enjoy using my Phantom drone; and it provides unique perspectives that I enjoy; especially with my pilot background. I hate to take any action which could potentially result in the limitation of my ability to use it. However; as a pilot; and when carrying passengers; the assumption of the responsibility to safely start; continue; and end a flight requires that something be done. These units can be purchased for under $1;000; launched from a balcony directly in busy airspace (or non-busy airspace; until it is); and have the potential to completely cripple a small jet; or other aircraft.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.

Attributes
ACN	1186633
Time
Date	201406
Local Time Of Day	1801-2400
Place
Locale Reference	SDL.Airport
State Reference	AZ
Environment
Flight Conditions	VMC
Light	Dusk
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	Cessna Citation Mustang (C510)
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 91
Flight Phase	Final Approach
Route In Use	Visual Approach
Flight Plan	IFR
Aircraft 2
Make Model Name	UAV - Unpiloted Aerial Vehicle
Person 1
Function	Pilot Flying Single Pilot
Qualification	Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Experience	Flight Crew Last 90 Days 50 Flight Crew Total 1900 Flight Crew Type 150
Events
Anomaly	Conflict NMAC
Miss Distance	Horizontal 150 Vertical 50

CE510 captain experiences a near midair collision with a quad rotor drone at 1;000 ft AGL during approach to runway 21 at sdl. Evasive action is taken and the event reported to the tower.