Disk drive and method for minimizing shock-induced damage

A disk drive comprising:

• a housing;
• at least one storage disk rotatably connected to the housing to spin about an axis of rotation and having an inner and outer circumference defining a zone for recording data;
• at least one actuator arm operably connected to the housing to move relative to the storage disk and radially position a read/write head across the storage disk;
• fall detection means mounted within the housing for sensing when the disk drive is falling from a first elevation to a second elevation by monitoring acceleration of the disk drive, the fall detection means outputting a warning signal when the acceleration of the disk drive exceeds a selected acceleration threshold level indicative of a falling disk drive for a selected reference time period of at least 90 msec;
• and
• control means for preparing, in response to the warning signal output by the fall detection means, at least one of the storage disk and the actuator arm for a shock induced when the disk drive impacts a surface at the second elevation, and wherein for preparing the actuator arm, the control means is configured to instruct the actuator arm to move toward the inner circumference of the disk in preparation for impact with the surface.