Narrative:

While on vectors for arrival at ewr; we were at 5;000 feet. I was functioning as pilot flying (PF) at the time. I was dividing my attention between the instruments and outside and something caught my eye ahead; above and to the right of our course. Initially what I was seeing was confusing; but I put my hands on the control wheel and the autopilot disconnect. As we got closer; I realized I was seeing a dgi-style drone. It was charcoal; a quad-copter with the standard green and red lights. It was 100 to 200 feet above us; hovering; apparently stationary. That would have put it at an altitude of 5;100-5;200 feet. Immediately after passing the drone; I made a radio transmission asking new york approach to mark our location; [and] that we had passed close to a drone approximately a mile behind us.I could not find any documentation on what actions a crew should take after a drone sighting like this one. We should have some guidance in our documentation for crews who encounter a drone. I suggest that we have a way to report these to help the FAA collect data on these sightings. A recurring sighting in a location like this one; approaching ewr; might help prevent a disaster. In this event; a drone was only a couple hundred feet from a transport aircraft. It seems that it is only a matter of time before an impact with a windshield or engine inlet. Crews need to be prepared to take evasive action if the drone is on a collision path with the aircraft. This demonstrates the need for vigilance in visual scan when possible; and highlights the need to avoid being complacent and relying on TCAS.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: CRJ-900 First Officer reported a NMAC with a drone about 200 feet while on approach to EWR airport.

Narrative: While on vectors for arrival at EWR; we were at 5;000 feet. I was functioning as Pilot Flying (PF) at the time. I was dividing my attention between the instruments and outside and something caught my eye ahead; above and to the right of our course. Initially what I was seeing was confusing; but I put my hands on the control wheel and the autopilot disconnect. As we got closer; I realized I was seeing a DGI-style drone. It was charcoal; a quad-copter with the standard green and red lights. It was 100 to 200 feet above us; hovering; apparently stationary. That would have put it at an altitude of 5;100-5;200 feet. Immediately after passing the drone; I made a radio transmission asking New York Approach to mark our location; [and] that we had passed close to a drone approximately a mile behind us.I could not find any documentation on what actions a crew should take after a drone sighting like this one. We should have some guidance in our documentation for crews who encounter a drone. I suggest that we have a way to report these to help the FAA collect data on these sightings. A recurring sighting in a location like this one; approaching EWR; might help prevent a disaster. In this event; a drone was only a couple hundred feet from a transport aircraft. It seems that it is only a matter of time before an impact with a windshield or engine inlet. Crews need to be prepared to take evasive action if the drone is on a collision path with the aircraft. This demonstrates the need for vigilance in visual scan when possible; and highlights the need to avoid being complacent and relying on TCAS.

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.