Peter Tripp Akemann

Peter Tripp Akemann is a 56-year-old man from Culver City, California, who made headlines for recklessly operating a drone that crashed into a Super Scooper firefighting aircraft during the Palisades Fire.

On January 9, 2025, Akemann launched his drone from the top floor of a parking structure in Santa Monica to observe the fire damage. He flew the drone over 1.5 miles towards the fire and lost sight of it. The drone then collided with the Super Scooper, creating a 3-inch-by-6-inch hole in the aircraft’s left wing. This incident grounded the aircraft for several days, hindering firefighting efforts.

Akemann has agreed to plead guilty to one count of unsafe operation of an unmanned aircraft, a misdemeanor offense that carries a prison sentence of up to one year in federal prison. As part of his plea agreement, he will pay full restitution for the repairs and complete 150 hours of community service supporting wildfire relief efforts.