A 28-year-old man maneuvering a remote-controlled drone above the streets of Midtown Thursday evening crashed it onto a ledge at the Empire State Building — and was arrested when he went inside to ask for it back, police said.

The flying machine hit the 40th floor at about 7:50 p.m. and fell to an overhang on the 35th floor, cops said. No one was hurt.

The drone’s operator, Sean Riddle of Jersey City, then entered the lobby and spoke with security, ­casually asking to retrieve the hobby craft, sources said.

Security guards summoned cops, who busted Riddle on charges of reckless endangerment and criminal mischief.