Federal authorities and California police are investigating after someone flew a drone into the wing of a firefighting aircraft as it carried water to battle the raging wildfires across Los Angeles – causing a “fist-sized hole” and knocking it out of service for days at a crucial time.
It happened as the plane, the Quebec 1 Super Scooper that flew down from Canada to help, was working to contain the Palisades Fire, a Federal Aviation Administration spokesperson told Fox News Digital.
It was one of only two Super Scooper aircraft in use in Southern California at the time.
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Around 1 p.m. Thursday, a civilian drone flew into its wing, according to Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Erik Scott.
“The pilots were unaware that they hit the drone,” Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone said in a press conference on Friday. “It wasn’t until they landed …