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- Vivid Sydney’s Monday night Star-Bound drone show was cancelled after 89 drones fell into the harbour around Cockle Bay
- Operator SkyMagic said an “unforeseen change in the radio frequency” affected drone positioning
- Tuesday and Wednesday night’s drone shows have been cancelled while organisers assess the issue
- No injuries have been reported
Vivid Sydney’s drone show has hit a very expensive snag, with 89 drones falling into the harbour during Monday night’s Star-Bound performance at Cockle Bay.
The issue occurred shortly after the 7:30pm show began on Monday, 25 May, with drones dropping out of formation and into the water around Darling Harbour as thousands of people watched on. The later 9:30pm show was cancelled, and Vivid Sydney has since pulled Tuesday and Wednesday night’s drone shows while a full assessment is carried out. A decision on Sunday’s show has not yet been made.
For many people not at Vivid Sydney, the first clue came through Reddit, where a video appeared under the fairly understated title: “An expensive night.”
An expensive night
by u/chingy1788 in sydney
Figuring Out What Went Wrong
At first, users couldn’t quite tell what they were looking at. A few blinking lights over Darling Harbour could be art, error or both at Vivid. Then the realisation hit.
“Surprised that the comments so far haven’t realised that there are hundreds of drones dropping into the water,” they said.
One person who said they were there gave the clearest account, describing the drones flashing green, blue, red and white in what they called “emergency loop mode”, before freezing for several minutes and eventually attempting to return to base.
The internet, naturally, found another explanation: “Someone took down the mothership drone.” The reply was even better: “Quick, someone check Jeff Goldblum’s laptop.”
What Caused the Vivid Sydney Drones to Fall?
According to operator SkyMagic, the malfunction was caused by an “unforeseen change in the radio frequency”, which affected the drones’ ability to track their position properly. Once that happened, part of the fleet triggered its safety response. And for those 89 brave drones, that meant landing in the harbour.
SkyMagic said no drone escaped the safety boundary of the show area, and Vivid Sydney said the show was stopped in line with standard safety protocols. Destination NSW chief Karen Jones told ABC Sydney there was no deliberate interference and no injuries had been reported.
Are the Vivid Sydney Drone Shows Cancelled?
A Darling Harbour worker told the ABC he saw drones crashing into the marina wharf and falling within metres of nearby workers, saying it was “remarkable no one was hurt”. Vivid Sydney said, to its knowledge, no drones landed outside the designated exclusion zone.
Vivid Sydney continues until 13 June, but the drones are grounded for now. And considering 89 of them ended the night in the drink, that feels like the sensible call. Fireworks, anyone?
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