You sharing your Pilot error will save many new owners a lot of grief. We all learn from our mistakes as well as others. Glad you got your quad back in more or less one piece. Thank you for sharing this information-especially the errors you made and what you did to correct them.
These videos offer great lessons for new owners, like myself. Having flown many of the fully manual ones, I recently purchased a Phantom 3 Standard. Now, I find myself learning all sorts of new lessons from good folks like yourself. Thanks kindly for sharing your experience with us.
Fantastic instructional video. Thank you for taking the time and for having the humility to share it. Yesterday was my second day flying. Day One was in very adverse wind conditions (25 mph winds with 30 mph gusts!) but thankfully I didn't dare try to take it up over 20 feet, and kept the flight very short. I knew better than to fly it, but after three days of strong winds, I finally succumbed to the temptation to fly my new P3P. If I'd watched your video, I likely wouldn't have chanced it and would have waited another day... but fortunately my flight was successful. Still a very good bunch of lessons (the narrative was extremely helpful) which I'll remember on future flights!
Those propellor Guards act like sails... They are large and add a significant amount of weight. If you use those in windy conditions you are asking for trouble. Also, RTH does not use the Drones full power, therefore manual control would have been needed to fight the wind, and bring it safely back home.
+Lachlan Peknice Exactly. I don't find prop guards useful or necessary at all, unless you want something like this to happen. They are nothing more than added drag.
I really feel for you here. It's obvious that you learned a lot from the experience, and that's what counts. You set off flying in the middle of a large field, but got caught out by the strong wind. There was nothing wrong with your calibration, as some people are suggesting. The machine was trying to get "home" which was demonstrated by the orientation of the boom arms. The prop guards are a great idea, but like a few people have mentioned, they probably contributed to your accident by acting like a sail. If this ever happens to anyone, the best advice I could give is to drop your altitude to a few feet above the houses where the wind would be less strong. And fly it home manually. Don't be too eager to jump into RTH. The phantom does not fly on full power in RTH mode, and full power was needed to fight this wind. You got it home, and no one got hurt. Well done, and happy flying.
Very brave of you to post this video online for others to learn, I wouldn't be waiting for all the comments from the guys who all just know it better... Descending is also what I would do to make sure that the wind levels decrease. But also I can understand very well that you would panic a bit and not be able to think clearly. Thanks for posting this!
Lucky man! Well Done too, for not panicking! You are very good to share and I hope many others will watch and learn from your experience. At my groundschool it was recommended to use a wind-meter on arrival to site and not to fly over 12 /15mph winds unless it was absolutely necessary! Its good advice! Thanks again!
Having flown lots of different quads i can safely say that the prop protectors were what caused the quad not to have enough power to fight the wind. Also on things like a Hubsan x4 take the quad out of beginner mode and put it that case "expert" mode, it isnt a expert mode its still not capable of turning its self over, however it has increased the max angle the quad will tilt to. You can see the trees in the housing estate moving, but werent going wild, you shoukd have been able to fly in that no problem. I have flown my phantom 3 at 120m in wind speeds far higher than that, quiet easily and i imagine now you've had a bit of practice you could to. So safe flying and why not remove your 120m restriction and in a safe place fly higher.
I am also glad that your drone was relatively unscathed. I had a similar situation where I had the drone up at 200 feet and was fighting the wind. I dropped it down to 50 feet and worked it back to me through the trees nearby. Scary, but usually the winds below the tree line are much more forgiving. Thanks for your instructive video.
Great video. Very instructional for new Pilots. While the P3 CAN fly in high winds, it's better to keep things close to home, upwind and maybe wait for better flying conditions. Also, becoming familiar with ALL flight modes will help u in times of trouble. Great job on the video!
Thx man, just got my phantom 3 and I'm glad that I can take advantage of your experiances so that I'm not going to fly that high at windy days. I think I would have tried to get on a lower altitude so that the wind wouldn't have been that strong. So ty for uploading this and prevent hundreds of other djis from crashing :)
This was like one of those horror flicks. Felt like I was right there next to you....stressing big time! Glad you got it back. I have a real short leash with my copter until I learn more of the other features. Thanks for sharing. Great info with the group about the prop guards.
You are perfectly right. I read your 8 points with interest. I'm just a beginner. I bought a used Phantom 3 SE second-hand because I didn't have the money for a new one. Have nice, windless and safe flights. All the best!👍👍👍
From my experience in high winds here in Alaska, you should drop to an altitude with lower wind speeds to regain speed/control, that is just above the treetops or in this case the rooftops. Also using RTH combined with prop-guards was definitely not appropriate here. After seeing this, I will never fly with prop-guards outside.
This is what I was going to post. Drop it immediately to the lowest safe altitude when you realize the wind is fast. Wind is typically lower at lower altitudes as trees, hills, buildings etc act as wind breaks. 120m is way too high for safety on a windy day, in fact it is illegal anytime where I live. Dropping altitude and switching to attitude mode would have brought it home easily.
On a side note: The prop guards tend to get into the frame, and also add weight. It's best to just leave them off, and have a spare set of rotors with you.
Best not to use RTH in this situation either as it won't use full power. I bet he could have flew it back to him in the field if he would on just descended and buried the right stick forwards
Holy cow, what a drama!!! I felt like I was right there with you! So happy this has a great ending! Thanks so much for showing us your experience! You know what they say...bad choices make the best stories!
Thanks for sharing your video. Personally, I fly the Mavic 2 Pro. But before I even purchased a drone, I looked at different videos online of some of the experiences of other drone users. This is a perfect for both new and experienced flyers. Stay safe and happy 2019.
Great video, and I am glad you got her back relatively unscathed, I am a new flyer and the temptation is there to "Go higher" but your encounter has made me realise that you have a lot of money up in the air the safety factor or those below to consider. so this video has made me wait a little longer before disabling that "Beginner" mode
It took a lot of guts to post this video and I am happy you did.Disregard all those mean comments with nothing to add but insults. This video will most likely help hundreds, if not thousands of Quad flyers with over 39, 800 views as of this date.You did start in a nice open field in a very safe area. The wind is very unpredictable at altitude and the lesson was learned.Thank You again for posting....Very informative....
Glad you kept your cool. Also good that you learned lessons from it. I really respect the wind conditions now and try to fly as far away from people as possible. Really enjoyed the video.
That is the most exciting phantom video I have ever seen. Your heart must have been racing.I have an rc single rotor and fly kites. Some big ones. The kite flying has taught me plenty about wind. You would likely have found less wind if you got a bit lower. At least as low as you could go safely. The main thing is you got your baby back. Good for you. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for sharing this. I've messed around with the RTH feature, but don't really understand it deeply, as evidenced by occasionally resetting it. I will go take the next session to get it down. This was much more informative than most of the "teaching" videos.
Heart in mouth flight. I bought a Phantom 3 Pro second hand last year, had a few sketchy moments whilst getting used to it. I finally got the hang of it and took some decent footage. Eventually sold it on and got my money back for it but now I'm hankering after another.
I just bought my Phantom 3 4K over the past weekend. I have done 3 test flights. My night flight was a little windy, but nothing like yours. Good input on your flight. It will help me on my next flight.
Glad to see you didn't lost the drone at all Anyway, I can say it was bit terrifying condition of fighting to get the drone under control, however the scenery of video taken by the drone was really awesome After 1 year, I believe you are the best drone pilot
Firstly launching your phantom 3 at 50% battery is a no no, secondly, if you take it up to 120 metres and notice it flying away, the first thing you do is bring it down immediately, phantoms don't like heavy winds, I choose always to fly with no wind at all.
This video had me on the edge of my seat...literally. I have had a similar experience with my Phantom 2 but not so much from wind but flying into the sun and depending too much on FPV. Did not crash or lose it though, just a little nervous. Your video really is beautiful and the storyline is great.
The best thing to have done would be drop height. The wind gradient is less there. Then manual mode - not sports mode would have given you much more power. The technique is gain a little height - then hard bank to fly back and you lose height. Then level off a bit and gain height again and then repeat. You can fight the wind like this. Clearly this chap didnt have the skills at this point.
I had very similar experiences, my drone was smarter then me, after loost connection, it jus landed safely on a parking lot, just lucky, thank you for video
Wow what a video, watched the whole thing. Seriously lucky there towards the end apart from it still wanting to RTH. I got bit scared with my Standard yesterday when I did a height test and at over 1000feet I did loose it a bit, I got so scared and thought why have I done this, I just held down the left trigger and signal kicked in
Glad you got it back safe! This may sound crazy but you are better off without the prop guards in the wind. Truly they act like a sail. This is a very powerful quad and can fight all but the strongest gusts of wind. I have never seen my P3 standard drift like that in GPS mode either. Great video, I have lost a few quads, & crashed a few more. Best of luck and keep on flying!
Great Vid and really pleased it worked out for you..phew! I made a mistake on my first day of flying..2 trips up with no problem despite the many trees near my house (not advised..I was impatient due to having the drone for 4 days but being unable to fly it.) On the 3rd flight of the day (dusk) I went up to film the Xmas decorations and made my mistake...started to look at the fpv on my phone (Note4) to improve the film and stopped looking at the drone!! The next minute she had hit a tree and was hanging by the landing gear. Despite a lengthy rescue plan involving an elaborate safety net, when I finally buzzed her out of the tree she missed the net and landed on the tarmac from about 10 metres...gimbal one way drone the other. 😣 After 2 long days repairing her she's flying again..lesson learned...NEVER take your eyes off the drone for more than a second or 2! Fly safe everyone and have a great Christmas. 👍
I flew my Phantom 3 Advanced in GPS mode in about 25-27 MPH winds at the Park and it was solid as a rock. It didnt drift and if it did it came right back to where it was but was never more than a few feet from where i took off. I did this just to see what would happen and kept it fairly low to the ground no higher than about 30-40 ft. I wonder if there was something wrong in the settings, tilt, or something. I have seen videos of these in 30+ mph winds and they didnt move at all. Either way I am glad you got it back!!
Hey mate, yes i feel your pain after watching this video, unfortunate circumstances >.< I recently put my P1 and hero 3 into the ocean after a similar incident, now I've got a new P3 and Hero 4 black so hope no more incidents, Happy filming mate, keep up the great work! Excellent footage too !
I've been flying twice already I soooooooooooo want to go at 120m but I've watched too many videos like this one... thk god you found your drone man I was on the edge the whole time lolll it's easy to judge other people's mistake but the truth is once you have this drone in your hand you just want to go crazy with it .... I gotta learn to be patient and master the control first while in beginner mode.
Dis happened to mine aswell the wind was too much for it and it flew half a mile off course on me. I just dropped it as low as possible an was able to get it back after 20 minutes. Happy future flying. :)
I almost fly my P3s in almost any wind condition, I also flew it on a 50kph wind and take it up high, that 120meters is not even far enough to get the Phantom knock out by the wind.. From what I think, you have a bad GPS connection that is why it is drifting or Poor Compass calibration because you flew on a wall of houses around you.. You can share dji app with the flight record and see how many satellite is locked plus if you have your drone in atti mode,, because from what I've seen so far in my P3s it can never be knock off by the strong wind when it is hovering, except it is a storm surge that has 80 to 100kph wind. You should also learn how to pilot your drone in manual bringing it home and or the last thing, Do Not Fly your drone up high in the wind with its Prop guard.. It also making the prop turbulence more unstable to keep up a fight in strong winds and one last thing.. DO NOT PANIC!
Man that's what I'm thinking...me also flying my p3pro in beach sides and heavy wind and this thing never happened to me...I'm pretty sure he's on atti mode or it has an IMU issue....or something
Thanks For Sharing ! Almost exactly the same thing happened to me on a first flight, and i lost sight of it in cloud, because i was trying to get what i thought would have been a stunning view of the coast under what i knew was a thin layer of cloud. (another "What NOT to do tip !) I got into my car and chased it, as it was 2 KM away when it connected to the controller again, (could see by MAP) as i chased it i kept resetting the home point to the controller location and pressing RTH and accounting for wind shear i got it back to within 800m from original home point. downwind and down hill from there was a forest while on the left and right were two wide open golf courses (how could i go wrong RIGHT!???) it came gently to land right beside me but on 4% battery ! I thanked my lucky stars that I took it to the mountain and not the beach that day, as the wind would have blown it out to sea, (although the wind was definitely much higher up the mountain, as when the actual altitude of the P3 reduced it recovered it flight capabilities considerably) For the record the max wind speed stated in the manual is 10m/s (36 Km/h or about 22 mph), at the take off point the wind was only gusting at most 5-7 mph, the altitude was way more sever when it cleared the cover of the mountain! replaying the flight log MAP i realised how fast it moved away ! and if it didn't temporarily connect to the controller from 2 km away , it still would have been in the sea or auto landed in a forest or god knows where ! I got just one picture from inside a cloud !
I am soaking up as much trial and error stories as possible. My maiden voyage will have to be when mother nature is on her best behavior! Thanks for sharing your advice and experience, helpful..
I went out flying in wind the other day, but my worst enemy was interference (I have a P3 Standard) and lost FPV connection at only 1000ft over a marina. Thankfully my RTH height was high enough and I had enough juice to beat the windy day. I'm glad you learned from your mistakes!
I just got the phantom 3. This video had me lol ! Glad you got it back safe. Also i saw one person write his name and phone number with a reward under his drone. if some one finds it , it's a 50/50 shot on getting it back.
+Iossif Gressis Thats not a bad idea, although there might be times you don't want the finder to know it was you that was flying. If one is flying unsafe then it can come back to bite you I guess.
+Dennis R I have flown mine in some MAJOR winds at the beach and never had any drifting at all. are you sure u were in gps mode (p on controller)in this video? also, I have a whistle pet tracker zip tied to the leg of my p3. costs 10 bucks a month and is through the Verizon network, but it's real time tracking in case she ever goes down
+Dennis R sorry. my bad lol. I just filmed our flooding river here where I live and it made it to the local news! lol. I was pumped. making the ol phantom famous haha
glad you got it back, but Dont say the copter its not powerfull enough to fight wind, you used RTH wich has speed limit and high limit, if you changed to atti mode and full throttle up and foward it would been with you in a sec , check how little titled the copter was in RTH :D if its tilts more it gets stronger ! :) something to have in mind in the future
+Edmundo Andres This is good advice from Edmundo, the P3 has many in built facilities to assist you in flying...as does a Boeing 747, can auto take-off, Auto-land and fly full auto-pilot, but their is still a fully/highly qualified aircrew on board...to all DJI (and other make pilots) Fully READ and UNDERSTAND the manual. Using Atti mode without many of the auto assistance does give many more power options and can save you/ your craft in similar situations. The more knowledge you gain regarding our hobby the more enjoyable and ultimately safer it will become for all :) Happy flying
+Edmundo Andres This was my second flight and the reason I didn't pilot it was becasue I wasn't confident enough to 'take control'. I had practised with RTH the day before and understood how this worked. I reacted the way I did because that is all I understood at the time. Having tried atti mode since, I quite agree I could have piloted it home but at the time, I didn't even know what atti was.
+VideoHistoryToday The prop guards introduce a a HUGE amount of drag. I personally don't use or like them unless you're flying low altitude with a risk of hitting something. I am quite sure these were a big, if not the main reason you had a problem. It's like having sails on your quad. Ditch those things when flying at higher altitudes. What are you going to hit?
+Edmundo Andres I'm getting my P3 on monday and I've being watching this kind of videos to learn from mistakes of other people and I come to your comment Edmundo and my thought is: atti mode is like a manual mode where the pilot can have full power and control of the P3?
Well done for having the courage to put this up. - You (inadvertently) broke a bunch of UK regulations on this flight; (e.g. not allowed to fly over buildings or even within 50 metres horizontally of any structure). - Remember wind speed increases rapidly with altitude. When the wind is faster than your drone, lose altitude asap to see if you can recover. - Take small steps when learning and practise, practise, practise. - Be aware of your situation. Not only did you have a high wind, it was also blowing towards the houses. Good luck! BTW, my view FWIW is that those prop guards should stay on your drone until you're a better pilot. They've saved your drone once and can substantially reduce the chance of serious injury if you fly into someone.
Wish I watched this earlier to save me from hitting a tree earlier! Good to know about the problem with RTH and P mode and the solution with A mode, I have learned something!
Glad you got it back. In hind sight you should have descended to just above the houses and flown it back! Also you can criss cross back towards you in a head wind. We learn from our mistakes though ;o)
1. Switch to sport mode. 2. if there is no sport mode, then fly manually at a lower altitude. The higher the altitude the stronger the wind. 3. Don't use RTH if the wind is too strong, because the RTH speed is limited. Anyway, thanks for sharing your experience!
A great share and commentary glad you ended up with a good result and I can imagine the stress you were feeling ha ha its all a learning curve, would you not have been better to drop off elevation and come across the field at a low level... I mean hindsight yeah yeah but a cool video anyway. I am sure now things are different with experience and flight time... enjoy
Flying your new Phantom so close to the M25 (a huge, six to eight lane highway which circles London) when you clearly have barely an idea how to use it it is not only stupid, but unbelievably dangerous. You seem very happy to have your copter back (of course) but have you considered what might have happened if the wind had decided to carry your uncontrolled machine another couple of hundred metres away from you, while running on 10% battery? I suggest you reflect for a moment on what could easily have resulted in catastrophic loss of life if your Phantom had come down on the M25. This kind of behaviour, flying newly purchased UAVs at that altitude a few hundred metres away from massive roads when you don't even understand the basics of how to control your machine or override RTH is what is going to get them banned for the rest of us who do know what we're doing, and who do take proper precautions, not to mention the massive risk you pose to innocent people just in their cars or in the street where you crash landed. It's this kind of video which make me start to believe that UAV use should be licensed after all.
+Phil Pines Hi Phil, everyone makes mistakes. This guy knows he made a mistake. Nothing bad happened, he didn't land on a power station (or the M25) or anything. And what I like is he hasn't tried to blame anyone or anything but himself. I once went too fast round a corner with a mate in the car straight through a hedge and luckily no one was hurt. I could blame the wet road but it was my fault and I took it on board and from then drove within the conditions of the road (touch wood) hasn't happened in the following 30 years of motoring. I think the lesson has been learned and perhaps it is too late, after someone has burnt themselves to tell them "it's hot" trust me they have worked it out for themselves.
+freddio Whistles Indeed, you're right, but I guess my main reason for writing was to try to get anyone else finding this video to have a think about what they're doing, especially in those first very excited few days after buying a Phantom. Let's face it, we've all crashed them. I doubt a single Phantom owner can say they've never crash landed. I certainly have, but I made sure I wasn't anywhere near big roads or residential streets when I did it. The main thing for me is that one accident, and the whole lot will be banned, which would be a real shame, so it's up to us to be really careful, especially when still learning. I think the best thing anyone can do is buy a 20 quid mini-quadcopter (which have the same stick controls as a Phantom), and fly that around your front room until you're so good you can do it with your eyes closed. And then start getting your Phantom up to 50m+ altitudes. Oh, and probably best not to fly with your eyes closed.
+Phil Pines read my post above it mirrors your i have been flying drone for over 2 years and i have just got phantom i will keep it low until i have really mastered what it can do in different weather conditions. I think in the UK they should bring in a registered licence for drone. Each drone is registered at purchase and if you cause damage you are fined. This will push people to be a bit more serious about their hobby.
+Phil Pines read my post above it mirrors your i have been flying drone for over 2 years and i have just got phantom i will keep it low until i have really mastered what it can do in different weather conditions. I think in the UK they should bring in a registered licence for drone. Each drone is registered at purchase and if you cause damage you are fined. This will push people to be a bit more serious about their hobby.
+tattoodrdoke Define a 'drone'. How do you register ones built by their pilots as the few who fly them at my club do? So-called drones are also called remotely piloted aircraft under various acronyms. That would cover the 20 or 30 radio controlled aeroplanes I own? How about the ones I scratch build? What you are suggesting is a legal mine field and impossible to police let alone the huge cost. Certainly, the guy who posted the video did a very silly thing ( We all do. I crashed a plane I'd flown literally 100s of times this week because I failed to check aileron sense). He is to be commended for holding up his hand and admitting it and, hopefully, providing a lesson to every new quad pilot.
*yeah, always always always refrain from flying on days that there is even a slight wind to avoid this. I've got the gen1 FC40 and that was like day 3's lesson for me got way too high and almost didn't recover it. neither RTH. or the battery almost dying would bring it down put it this way it shut off about 2 1/2 feet above the ground*
ohh no!!! maddening! (point to inspire) I have flown with really strong winds and the inspire behaved very well, almost as if it were bolted to the sky, although the power difference can not be compared between one and the other, I do not know if in some videos of people flying in the wind with the phantom, or the mavic, passed to the sport mode, when something happened to them, since in the rth, the power is smaller, perhaps another option is to make it go up or down while you try to attract it, maybe changing the vector may improve the how faces the wind, that going direct is more difficult.
i got a Phantom 3 Standard from my wife for Christmas. I haven't flown it yet. I am still reading and watching videos, including some scarry ones like yours. My stomach was churning for you as I watched. I better study this thing even more as one mistake is one too many.
I agree with that person if you was flying without the prop guards I don't think this would have happen also I just put carbon fiber blades on mine for more stability and speed and it works great. Anyway thanks for sharing definitely a learning experience. So thank you
Wow, that must of been nerve racking! I love watching these videos so when I eventually buy one, I will limit my mistakes: I am sure I will still have a lot of "new" mistakes though
I really want to get out with my Phantom 3 today but it is a bit windy. I have, like you, learned the hard way, not flying in wind but location choice. I think adding your conclusions to the flight was good, I've added them to my little list. I crashed breaking a propeller and buckling the body along a seam, its nothing much and doesn't seem to have affected its flight. The crash was caused by landing too close to trees! So, my addition to your list is just 2. 1. Use open space for take off and landing - keep immovable objects at a distance. (Think airfields, how many trees and immovable objects do you see...think Helipads as well) 2. Create a flight plan on arriving at your location. Look at where you want to fly to. This may include the points to turn and altitude changes.
There's a lot of comments here so I'm not sure if anyone else posted this, but did you try putting it into atti mode? You can travel faster in atti mode than GPS, and its usually just enough to save you when there's a strong wind.
Hi m8! You are quite brave to put this, with all of your faults, in YT, my respect! :) It will provide others to do the same. Reading your subtitles, there is no doubt that you have learned your lesson! Don´t listen to these teachers that know everything better and what you could have done with this flight... I am not young and I did a lot of mistakes in my life, but there is no better way than to learn from your own mistakes. Of course not everybody will learn this lesson ... u will! Guys, what is a 1kg quadcopter landing on some highway ..... a lot of pieces. What is a 30 Tonn Truck with a sleeping driver???? Life is not predictable and everyone with a driving license has power about a deadly weapon .... my best regards :) And enjoy flying :)
i'm sure you know this by now but you have to know the direction your facing to control joystick to have it move where you wish. if camera was facing your direction all you need to do was push up with right stick if you're using Config 2 and it would have raced back to you. these are very powerful copters. unless the winds are wicked strong like 50/70 it shouldn't be a problem. glad you got it back with minimal damage.
Oh my, a lot of experts here offering advice. I've flown the P3 in strong winds with prop guards on and the P3 didn't act any different wind or no wind. Yes, you could see it moving against the gusts but not violently. I've also had no problem fighting the wind to get it back to the home point. Obviously I noticed the slower return speed but the P3 has enough power to fight against strong winds of say 25MPH. It just takes a lot longer to get back. I never used RTH in those cases though as I never paid attention to the max speed it will travel in RTH. I do know it's less that the max speed in GPS. Dropping down lower does mean less wind but updrafts may be stronger down low. The Phantoms can handle them though in GPS mode.
Geez I've been in so many drone panic situations but if I was in this one I would freak out. I'd never fly my drone in that wind. So glad it's ok. I had a SYMA x8w, a fully manual quadcopter. I flew it too high and the breeze took it. It ended up landed upright about 600meters from me completely in tact
Thank's for sharing! I like "lesson learned" videos better than the flashy "Look what I can do" clips. After all we learn a lot more from our mistakes than we do from our victories.
I just fund this Video before i bought a Quadcopter. I am willing to get a Mavic though. So it will be a little of investment :-) after some tutorialvideos and a smal quad to training, this video here opens the eyes for the unexpected and i think I'll be more caucious on my first flights. Thanks to share this with us!!
Good video man and thanks for sharing it with us. Glad you got it back. Do you know the wind speed at that day? I used mine at 20-25 mph and it handled pretty well in 200m altitude. The only difference is that i dont use guards cause they get in the way all the time.
You sharing your Pilot error will save many new owners a lot of grief. We all learn from our mistakes as well as others. Glad you got your quad back in more or less one piece. Thank you for sharing this information-especially the errors you made and what you did to correct them.
These videos offer great lessons for new owners, like myself.
Having flown many of the fully manual ones, I recently purchased a Phantom 3 Standard.
Now, I find myself learning all sorts of new lessons from good folks like yourself.
Thanks kindly for sharing your experience with us.
Fantastic instructional video. Thank you for taking the time and for having the humility to share it.
Yesterday was my second day flying. Day One was in very adverse wind conditions (25 mph winds with 30 mph gusts!) but thankfully I didn't dare try to take it up over 20 feet, and kept the flight very short. I knew better than to fly it, but after three days of strong winds, I finally succumbed to the temptation to fly my new P3P. If I'd watched your video, I likely wouldn't have chanced it and would have waited another day... but fortunately my flight was successful.
Still a very good bunch of lessons (the narrative was extremely helpful) which I'll remember on future flights!
Those propellor Guards act like sails... They are large and add a significant amount of weight. If you use those in windy conditions you are asking for trouble. Also, RTH does not use the Drones full power, therefore manual control would have been needed to fight the wind, and bring it safely back home.
+Lachlan Peknice Exactly. I don't find prop guards useful or necessary at all, unless you want something like this to happen. They are nothing more than added drag.
+tcphll the only time I would think about using them is when flying indoors. But I never really have, so they are not worth the money
I agree. Get rid of them. Propellers are cheap. Your entire drone because your prop guards caused the crash isn't.
I agree. Get rid of them. Propellers are cheap. Your entire drone because your prop guards caused the crash isn't.
+Lachlan Peknice i agree....
I really feel for you here. It's obvious that you learned a lot from the experience, and that's what counts. You set off flying in the middle of a large field, but got caught out by the strong wind. There was nothing wrong with your calibration, as some people are suggesting. The machine was trying to get "home" which was demonstrated by the orientation of the boom arms. The prop guards are a great idea, but like a few people have mentioned, they probably contributed to your accident by acting like a sail. If this ever happens to anyone, the best advice I could give is to drop your altitude to a few feet above the houses where the wind would be less strong. And fly it home manually. Don't be too eager to jump into RTH. The phantom does not fly on full power in RTH mode, and full power was needed to fight this wind. You got it home, and no one got hurt. Well done, and happy flying.
Very brave of you to post this video online for others to learn, I wouldn't be waiting for all the comments from the guys who all just know it better... Descending is also what I would do to make sure that the wind levels decrease. But also I can understand very well that you would panic a bit and not be able to think clearly. Thanks for posting this!
Lucky man! Well Done too, for not panicking! You are very good to share and I hope many others will watch and learn from your experience. At my groundschool it was recommended to use a wind-meter on arrival to site and not to fly over 12 /15mph winds unless it was absolutely necessary! Its good advice! Thanks again!
Having flown lots of different quads i can safely say that the prop protectors were what caused the quad not to have enough power to fight the wind. Also on things like a Hubsan x4 take the quad out of beginner mode and put it that case "expert" mode, it isnt a expert mode its still not capable of turning its self over, however it has increased the max angle the quad will tilt to. You can see the trees in the housing estate moving, but werent going wild, you shoukd have been able to fly in that no problem. I have flown my phantom 3 at 120m in wind speeds far higher than that, quiet easily and i imagine now you've had a bit of practice you could to. So safe flying and why not remove your 120m restriction and in a safe place fly higher.
I am also glad that your drone was relatively unscathed. I had a similar situation where I had the drone up at 200 feet and was fighting the wind. I dropped it down to 50 feet and worked it back to me through the trees nearby. Scary, but usually the winds below the tree line are much more forgiving.
Thanks for your instructive video.
Great video. Very instructional for new Pilots. While the P3 CAN fly in high winds, it's better to keep things close to home, upwind and maybe wait for better flying conditions. Also, becoming familiar with ALL flight modes will help u in times of trouble. Great job on the video!
What is the name of the track playing in this video?
I just got my Phantom 3, and it is awesome! I am glad you got yours back. The Phantoms are not cheap. Great video by the way!
I will be buying one dji phantom 3 pro tomorrow, glad you showed this, now ill try to avoid winds and breezes! glad you got it back :)
Thx man, just got my phantom 3 and I'm glad that I can take advantage of your experiances so that I'm not going to fly that high at windy days. I think I would have tried to get on a lower altitude so that the wind wouldn't have been that strong.
So ty for uploading this and prevent hundreds of other djis from crashing :)
Thus, Part 107 was enacted in the US.
Glad you got your drone back.
wind is like the most important factor when flying a drone, I just got a drone and I am trying to learn from everyone's mistakes! thank you
This was like one of those horror flicks. Felt like I was right there next to you....stressing big time! Glad you got it back. I have a real short leash with my copter until I learn more of the other features. Thanks for sharing. Great info with the group about the prop guards.
You are perfectly right. I read your 8 points with interest. I'm just a beginner. I bought a used Phantom 3 SE second-hand because I didn't have the money for a new one. Have nice, windless and safe flights. All the best!👍👍👍
From my experience in high winds here in Alaska, you should drop to an altitude with lower wind speeds to regain speed/control, that is just above the treetops or in this case the rooftops. Also using RTH combined with prop-guards was definitely not appropriate here. After seeing this, I will never fly with prop-guards outside.
+Jesse Schexnayder I'm thinking in remove my prop guards too when I will fly in exterior.
This is what I was going to post. Drop it immediately to the lowest safe altitude when you realize the wind is fast. Wind is typically lower at lower altitudes as trees, hills, buildings etc act as wind breaks. 120m is way too high for safety on a windy day, in fact it is illegal anytime where I live. Dropping altitude and switching to attitude mode would have brought it home easily.
+Ruidoso New Mexico True..
On a side note: The prop guards tend to get into the frame, and also add weight.
It's best to just leave them off, and have a spare set of rotors with you.
Best not to use RTH in this situation either as it won't use full power. I bet he could have flew it back to him in the field if he would on just descended and buried the right stick forwards
Holy cow, what a drama!!! I felt like I was right there with you! So happy this has a great ending! Thanks so much for showing us your experience! You know what they say...bad choices make the best stories!
Thanks for sharing your video. Personally, I fly the Mavic 2 Pro. But before I even purchased a drone, I looked at different videos online of some of the experiences of other drone users. This is a perfect for both new and experienced flyers. Stay safe and happy 2019.
Great work catching up to the wayward P3! You gained valuable experience, captured some awesome footage, and saved the drone too!
Thanks for sharing.... Your video will help nubies to have safer flights. Glad you got your copter back
Great video, and I am glad you got her back relatively unscathed, I am a new flyer and the temptation is there to "Go higher"
but your encounter has made me realise that you have a lot of money up in the air the safety factor or those below to consider. so this video has made me wait a little longer before disabling that "Beginner" mode
It took a lot of guts to post this video and I am happy you did.Disregard all those mean comments with nothing to add but insults. This video will most likely help hundreds, if not thousands of Quad flyers with over 39, 800 views as of this date.You did start in a nice open field in a very safe area. The wind is very unpredictable at altitude and the lesson was learned.Thank You again for posting....Very informative....
Glad you kept your cool. Also good that you learned lessons from it. I really respect the wind conditions now and try to fly as far away from people as possible. Really enjoyed the video.
That is the most exciting phantom video I have ever seen. Your heart must have been racing.I have an rc single rotor and fly kites. Some big ones. The kite flying has taught me plenty about wind. You would likely have found less wind if you got a bit lower. At least as low as you could go safely. The main thing is you got your baby back. Good for you. Thanks for sharing.
frightening and erratic drones can make a grown man cry. glad everything worked out in the end.
Thanks for sharing. As someone who is thinking bout of getting a Phantom 4, I found this very interesting.
Thanks for sharing this. I've messed around with the RTH feature, but don't really understand it deeply, as evidenced by occasionally resetting it. I will go take the next session to get it down. This was much more informative than most of the "teaching" videos.
Heart in mouth flight. I bought a Phantom 3 Pro second hand last year, had a few sketchy moments whilst getting used to it. I finally got the hang of it and took some decent footage. Eventually sold it on and got my money back for it but now I'm hankering after another.
Thank you!!!! This video was so professional and well thought out. Editing was great! Good Job!!
i felt how scared and nervous you are as the owner of the quadcopter...thank you for sharing with us and will learn from this video!
I just bought my Phantom 3 4K over the past weekend. I have done 3 test flights. My night flight was a little windy, but nothing like yours. Good input on your flight. It will help me on my next flight.
Glad to see you didn't lost the drone at all
Anyway, I can say it was bit terrifying condition of fighting to get the drone under control, however the scenery of video taken by the drone was really awesome
After 1 year, I believe you are the best drone pilot
Firstly launching your phantom 3 at 50% battery is a no no, secondly, if you take it up to 120 metres and notice it flying away, the first thing you do is bring it down immediately, phantoms don't like heavy winds, I choose always to fly with no wind at all.
Good idea stay safe bro
i was thinking the same thing. once he noticed it was blowing away why didn't he lower altitude and take control?
A lesson for all drone pilots. I lost a drone in a panicked situation myself from inexperience. Thanks for sharing.
This video had me on the edge of my seat...literally. I have had a similar experience with my Phantom 2 but not so much from wind but flying into the sun and depending too much on FPV. Did not crash or lose it though, just a little nervous. Your video really is beautiful and the storyline is great.
Thank you for this! Just got one and have really toned down my excitement, will be careful!
WoW, that was tough ... Glad you got it back... :)
I saw myself earlier this year... lost mine once, crashed twice... but still works... :)
wow, I was hoping for the best possible outcome, great video!!
The best thing to have done would be drop height. The wind gradient is less there. Then manual mode - not sports mode would have given you much more power. The technique is gain a little height - then hard bank to fly back and you lose height. Then level off a bit and gain height again and then repeat. You can fight the wind like this. Clearly this chap didnt have the skills at this point.
exactly what I was thinking. crank forward to increase ground speed and decrease height he would've been out of the mess before leaving the field.
Nice video mate, thumbs up. Cheers from the IGY Simpson Bay Marina, Sint Maarten in the Caribbean.
Thanks for the info and help, you have definitely taught me something about flying in windy environments! nice video too.
I had very similar experiences, my drone was smarter then me, after loost connection, it jus landed safely on a parking lot, just lucky, thank you for video
Wow what a video, watched the whole thing. Seriously lucky there towards the end apart from it still wanting to RTH. I got bit scared with my Standard yesterday when I did a height test and at over 1000feet I did loose it a bit, I got so scared and thought why have I done this, I just held down the left trigger and signal kicked in
Great video, very helpful. Will highlight some of the pitfalls that beginners should watch out for. Thanks for sharing.....! Tom - Ireland
wow thanks for sharing... feels like a horror movie
hope the copter is ready for your next adventure..
thumbs up and greetings from germany
Glad you got it back safe! This may sound crazy but you are better off without the prop guards in the wind. Truly they act like a sail. This is a very powerful quad and can fight all but the strongest gusts of wind. I have never seen my P3 standard drift like that in GPS mode either. Great video, I have lost a few quads, & crashed a few more. Best of luck and keep on flying!
Great Vid and really pleased it worked out for you..phew!
I made a mistake on my first day of flying..2 trips up with no problem despite the many trees near my house (not advised..I was impatient due to having the drone for 4 days but being unable to fly it.)
On the 3rd flight of the day (dusk) I went up to film the Xmas decorations and made my mistake...started to look at the fpv on my phone (Note4) to improve the film and stopped looking at the drone!! The next minute she had hit a tree and was hanging by the landing gear. Despite a lengthy rescue plan involving an elaborate safety net, when I finally buzzed her out of the tree she missed the net and landed on the tarmac from about 10 metres...gimbal one way drone the other. 😣
After 2 long days repairing her she's flying again..lesson learned...NEVER take your eyes off the drone for more than a second or 2!
Fly safe everyone and have a great Christmas. 👍
I flew my Phantom 3 Advanced in GPS mode in about 25-27 MPH winds at the Park and it was solid as a rock. It didnt drift and if it did it came right back to where it was but was never more than a few feet from where i took off. I did this just to see what would happen and kept it fairly low to the ground no higher than about 30-40 ft. I wonder if there was something wrong in the settings, tilt, or something. I have seen videos of these in 30+ mph winds and they didnt move at all. Either way I am glad you got it back!!
Hey mate, yes i feel your pain after watching this video, unfortunate circumstances >.<
I recently put my P1 and hero 3 into the ocean after a similar incident, now I've got a new P3 and Hero 4 black so hope no more incidents, Happy filming mate, keep up the great work! Excellent footage too !
I've been flying twice already I soooooooooooo want to go at 120m but I've watched too many videos like this one... thk god you found your drone man I was on the edge the whole time lolll it's easy to judge other people's mistake but the truth is once you have this drone in your hand you just want to go crazy with it .... I gotta learn to be patient and master the control first while in beginner mode.
Dis happened to mine aswell the wind was too much for it and it flew half a mile off course on me. I just dropped it as low as possible an was able to get it back after 20 minutes. Happy future flying. :)
Very exciting to watch. I love your narrative.... I was wondering how the ending will be as I watched.
I almost fly my P3s in almost any wind condition, I also flew it on a 50kph wind and take it up high, that 120meters is not even far enough to get the Phantom knock out by the wind.. From what I think, you have a bad GPS connection that is why it is drifting or Poor Compass calibration because you flew on a wall of houses around you.. You can share dji app with the flight record and see how many satellite is locked plus if you have your drone in atti mode,, because from what I've seen so far in my P3s it can never be knock off by the strong wind when it is hovering, except it is a storm surge that has 80 to 100kph wind. You should also learn how to pilot your drone in manual bringing it home and or the last thing, Do Not Fly your drone up high in the wind with its Prop guard.. It also making the prop turbulence more unstable to keep up a fight in strong winds and one last thing.. DO NOT PANIC!
Man that's what I'm thinking...me also flying my p3pro in beach sides and heavy wind and this thing never happened to me...I'm pretty sure he's on atti mode or it has an IMU issue....or something
Thanks For Sharing !
Almost exactly the same thing happened to me on a first flight, and i lost sight of it in cloud, because i was trying to get what i thought would have been a stunning view of the coast under what i knew was a thin layer of cloud. (another "What NOT to do tip !)
I got into my car and chased it, as it was 2 KM away when it connected to the controller again, (could see by MAP)
as i chased it i kept resetting the home point to the controller location and pressing RTH and accounting for wind shear i got it back to within 800m from original home point.
downwind and down hill from there was a forest while on the left and right were two wide open golf courses (how could i go wrong RIGHT!???)
it came gently to land right beside me but on 4% battery !
I thanked my lucky stars that I took it to the mountain and not the beach that day, as the wind would have blown it out to sea, (although the wind was definitely much higher up the mountain, as when the actual altitude of the P3 reduced it recovered it flight capabilities considerably)
For the record the max wind speed stated in the manual is 10m/s (36 Km/h or about 22 mph), at the take off point the wind was only gusting at most 5-7 mph, the altitude was way more sever when it cleared the cover of the mountain!
replaying the flight log MAP i realised how fast it moved away ! and if it didn't temporarily connect to the controller from 2 km away , it still would have been in the sea or auto landed in a forest or god knows where !
I got just one picture from inside a cloud !
WoW .. I know exactly how you feel ..The panic, the sickness in your stomach, been there done that........... thumbs up
This video was so tense, I loved it. Great views too. Lovely stuff.
Thanks for Sharing . A steep learning Curve. Well done to get it back
you did a great job how you rescued the drone. not perfect but for the second day to solve such a big problem is really good.
I am soaking up as much trial and error stories as possible. My maiden voyage will have to be when mother nature is on her best behavior! Thanks for sharing your advice and experience, helpful..
I went out flying in wind the other day, but my worst enemy was interference (I have a P3 Standard) and lost FPV connection at only 1000ft over a marina. Thankfully my RTH height was high enough and I had enough juice to beat the windy day. I'm glad you learned from your mistakes!
+Rolando Gonzalez It is illegal to fly over 400 feet.
+Dennis R I believe it is at least a strong suggestion.
+Rolando Gonzalez Im in Australia and its not a suggestion. Our rules here are very strict. I guess yours will follow soon.
I just got the phantom 3. This video had me lol ! Glad you got it back safe. Also i saw one person write his name and phone number with a reward under his drone. if some one finds it , it's a 50/50 shot on getting it back.
+Iossif Gressis Thats not a bad idea, although there might be times you don't want the finder to know it was you that was flying. If one is flying unsafe then it can come back to bite you I guess.
+Dennis R I have flown mine in some MAJOR winds at the beach and never had any drifting at all. are you sure u were in gps mode (p on controller)in this video? also, I have a whistle pet tracker zip tied to the leg of my p3. costs 10 bucks a month and is through the Verizon network, but it's real time tracking in case she ever goes down
+Jeremy Miller Hi Jeremy,
Im not the one with the video. I just commented like you.
+Jeremy Miller okay..just finished your video. looks like u were in gps mode, however, it seems you had a bad compass calibration?
+Dennis R sorry. my bad lol. I just filmed our flooding river here where I live and it made it to the local news! lol. I was pumped. making the ol phantom famous haha
these r some good tunes you have here. very chill
glad you got it back, but Dont say the copter its not powerfull enough to fight wind, you used RTH wich has speed limit and high limit, if you changed to atti mode and full throttle up and foward it would been with you in a sec , check how little titled the copter was in RTH :D if its tilts more it gets stronger ! :) something to have in mind in the future
+Edmundo Andres This is good advice from Edmundo, the P3 has many in built facilities to assist you in flying...as does a Boeing 747, can auto take-off, Auto-land and fly full auto-pilot, but their is still a fully/highly qualified aircrew on board...to all DJI (and other make pilots) Fully READ and UNDERSTAND the manual. Using Atti mode without many of the auto assistance does give many more power options and can save you/ your craft in similar situations. The more knowledge you gain regarding our hobby the more enjoyable and ultimately safer it will become for all :) Happy flying
+Edmundo Andres This was my second flight and the reason I didn't pilot it was becasue I wasn't confident enough to 'take control'. I had practised with RTH the day before and understood how this worked. I reacted the way I did because that is all I understood at the time. Having tried atti mode since, I quite agree I could have piloted it home but at the time, I didn't even know what atti was.
+VideoHistoryToday The prop guards introduce a a HUGE amount of drag. I personally don't use or like them unless you're flying low altitude with a risk of hitting something. I am quite sure these were a big, if not the main reason you had a problem. It's like having sails on your quad. Ditch those things when flying at higher altitudes. What are you going to hit?
what I want to know is how the fuck can you lose a robotic flying thing like this? It is the easiest thing to fly ffs...
+Edmundo Andres I'm getting my P3 on monday and I've being watching this kind of videos to learn from mistakes of other people and I come to your comment Edmundo and my thought is: atti mode is like a manual mode where the pilot can have full power and control of the P3?
Well done for having the courage to put this up.
- You (inadvertently) broke a bunch of UK regulations on this flight; (e.g. not allowed to fly over buildings or even within 50 metres horizontally of any structure).
- Remember wind speed increases rapidly with altitude. When the wind is faster than your drone, lose altitude asap to see if you can recover.
- Take small steps when learning and practise, practise, practise.
- Be aware of your situation. Not only did you have a high wind, it was also blowing towards the houses.
Good luck!
BTW, my view FWIW is that those prop guards should stay on your drone until you're a better pilot. They've saved your drone once and can substantially reduce the chance of serious injury if you fly into someone.
Thanks for this it’s important to show the mistakes as well I’ve learned much !!!!!
That scared me. I'm glad I saw that video. Good job to get it back....
Very interesting video. It's so easy for things like this to happen
A salutary lesson to us all, thank's for sharing.
wow lucky recovery,but I'm impressed by the clear camera footage in strong winds. 👌
Hahaha I was swearing and cursing for you while watching. Glad u got it back
This video gave me SEVERE anxiety...
121mojoe yup
Wish I watched this earlier to save me from hitting a tree earlier! Good to know about the problem with RTH and P mode and the solution with A mode, I have learned something!
Glad you got it back. In hind sight you should have descended to just above the houses and flown it back! Also you can criss cross back towards you in a head wind. We learn from our mistakes though ;o)
1. Switch to sport mode. 2. if there is no sport mode, then fly manually at a lower altitude. The higher the altitude the stronger the wind. 3. Don't use RTH if the wind is too strong, because the RTH speed is limited. Anyway, thanks for sharing your experience!
Wow , you are very lucky, thank you for sharing this.
A great share and commentary glad you ended up with a good result and I can imagine the stress you were feeling ha ha its all a learning curve, would you not have been better to drop off elevation and come across the field at a low level... I mean hindsight yeah yeah but a cool video anyway.
I am sure now things are different with experience and flight time... enjoy
I am still in the process of looking at one to buy, cheers for the video.
That was an excellent analysis of what happened. It was very helpful although too late for my lost drone, a cheap one though.
Flying your new Phantom so close to the M25 (a huge, six to eight lane highway which circles London) when you clearly have barely an idea how to use it it is not only stupid, but unbelievably dangerous. You seem very happy to have your copter back (of course) but have you considered what might have happened if the wind had decided to carry your uncontrolled machine another couple of hundred metres away from you, while running on 10% battery? I suggest you reflect for a moment on what could easily have resulted in catastrophic loss of life if your Phantom had come down on the M25. This kind of behaviour, flying newly purchased UAVs at that altitude a few hundred metres away from massive roads when you don't even understand the basics of how to control your machine or override RTH is what is going to get them banned for the rest of us who do know what we're doing, and who do take proper precautions, not to mention the massive risk you pose to innocent people just in their cars or in the street where you crash landed. It's this kind of video which make me start to believe that UAV use should be licensed after all.
+Phil Pines
Hi Phil, everyone makes mistakes. This guy knows he made a mistake. Nothing bad happened, he didn't land on a power station (or the M25) or anything. And what I like is he hasn't tried to blame anyone or anything but himself. I once went too fast round a corner with a mate in the car straight through a hedge and luckily no one was hurt. I could blame the wet road but it was my fault and I took it on board and from then drove within the conditions of the road (touch wood) hasn't happened in the following 30 years of motoring. I think the lesson has been learned and perhaps it is too late, after someone has burnt themselves to tell them "it's hot" trust me they have worked it out for themselves.
+freddio Whistles Indeed, you're right, but I guess my main reason for writing was to try to get anyone else finding this video to have a think about what they're doing, especially in those first very excited few days after buying a Phantom. Let's face it, we've all crashed them. I doubt a single Phantom owner can say they've never crash landed. I certainly have, but I made sure I wasn't anywhere near big roads or residential streets when I did it. The main thing for me is that one accident, and the whole lot will be banned, which would be a real shame, so it's up to us to be really careful, especially when still learning. I think the best thing anyone can do is buy a 20 quid mini-quadcopter (which have the same stick controls as a Phantom), and fly that around your front room until you're so good you can do it with your eyes closed. And then start getting your Phantom up to 50m+ altitudes.
Oh, and probably best not to fly with your eyes closed.
+Phil Pines read my post above it mirrors your i have been flying drone for over 2 years and i have just got phantom i will keep it low until i have really mastered what it can do in different weather conditions. I think in the UK they should bring in a registered licence for drone. Each drone is registered at purchase and if you cause damage you are fined. This will push people to be a bit more serious about their hobby.
+Phil Pines read my post above it mirrors your i have been flying drone for over 2 years and i have just got phantom i will keep it low until i have really mastered what it can do in different weather conditions. I think in the UK they should bring in a registered licence for drone. Each drone is registered at purchase and if you cause damage you are fined. This will push people to be a bit more serious about their hobby.
+tattoodrdoke Define a 'drone'. How do you register ones built by their pilots as the few who fly them at my club do? So-called drones are also called remotely piloted aircraft under various acronyms. That would cover the 20 or 30 radio controlled aeroplanes I own? How about the ones I scratch build? What you are suggesting is a legal mine field and impossible to police let alone the huge cost.
Certainly, the guy who posted the video did a very silly thing ( We all do. I crashed a plane I'd flown literally 100s of times this week because I failed to check aileron sense). He is to be commended for holding up his hand and admitting it and, hopefully, providing a lesson to every new quad pilot.
*yeah, always always always refrain from flying on days that there is even a slight wind to avoid this. I've got the gen1 FC40 and that was like day 3's lesson for me got way too high and almost didn't recover it. neither RTH. or the battery almost dying would bring it down put it this way it shut off about 2 1/2 feet above the ground*
ohh no!!! maddening! (point to inspire) I have flown with really strong winds and the inspire behaved very well, almost as if it were bolted to the sky, although the power difference can not be compared between one and the other, I do not know if in some videos of people flying in the wind with the phantom, or the mavic, passed to the sport mode, when something happened to them, since in the rth, the power is smaller, perhaps another option is to make it go up or down while you try to attract it, maybe changing the vector may improve the how faces the wind, that going direct is more difficult.
Nicolas Rodriguez Spring Air comment that you subbed one one of my vids and I will sub back with 5 accounts
same exact thing happened to me my second time out. once the wind takes it, all you can do is pray it lands safely
i got a Phantom 3 Standard from my wife for Christmas. I haven't flown it yet. I am still reading and watching videos, including some scarry ones like yours. My stomach was churning for you as I watched. I better study this thing even more as one mistake is one too many.
sgf13 just remember 3 things;
Keep in line of sight
Don't fly in wind
Fly in open space
(And beginner mode helps too)
I agree with that person if you was flying without the prop guards I don't think this would have happen also I just put carbon fiber blades on mine for more stability and speed and it works great. Anyway thanks for sharing definitely a learning experience. So thank you
Awesome video :) good to see a happy ending
Glad you got it back and she still works. Do you know what the winds where? Had to be like 40mph cuz she couldn't fight it.
Wow, that must of been nerve racking! I love watching these videos so when I eventually buy one, I will limit my mistakes: I am sure I will still have a lot of "new" mistakes though
I really want to get out with my Phantom 3 today but it is a bit windy. I have, like you, learned the hard way, not flying in wind but location choice. I think adding your conclusions to the flight was good, I've added them to my little list. I crashed breaking a propeller and buckling the body along a seam, its nothing much and doesn't seem to have affected its flight. The crash was caused by landing too close to trees! So, my addition to your list is just 2. 1. Use open space for take off and landing - keep immovable objects at a distance. (Think airfields, how many trees and immovable objects do you see...think Helipads as well) 2. Create a flight plan on arriving at your location. Look at where you want to fly to. This may include the points to turn and altitude changes.
There's a lot of comments here so I'm not sure if anyone else posted this, but did you try putting it into atti mode? You can travel faster in atti mode than GPS, and its usually just enough to save you when there's a strong wind.
Hi m8! You are quite brave to put this, with all of your faults, in YT, my respect! :) It will provide others to do the same. Reading your subtitles, there is no doubt that you have learned your lesson! Don´t listen to these teachers that know everything better and what you could have done with this flight... I am not young and I did a lot of mistakes in my life, but there is no better way than to learn from your own mistakes. Of course not everybody will learn this lesson ... u will! Guys, what is a 1kg quadcopter landing on some highway ..... a lot of pieces. What is a 30 Tonn Truck with a sleeping driver???? Life is not predictable and everyone with a driving license has power about a deadly weapon .... my best regards :) And enjoy flying :)
+Hans S. www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-hereford-worcester-34936739 is what I say to that.
How strong was the wind! jez, @ 1:53 I swear that tree lower center is going to leaving the ground! that is way way to strong!
i'm sure you know this by now but you have to know the direction your facing to control joystick to have it move where you wish.
if camera was facing your direction all you need to do was push up with right stick if you're using Config 2 and it would have raced back to you.
these are very powerful copters.
unless the winds are wicked strong like 50/70 it shouldn't be a problem.
glad you got it back with minimal damage.
I felt for you watching that video. Thanks for sharing.
Oh my, a lot of experts here offering advice. I've flown the P3 in strong winds with prop guards on and the P3 didn't act any different wind or no wind. Yes, you could see it moving against the gusts but not violently. I've also had no problem fighting the wind to get it back to the home point. Obviously I noticed the slower return speed but the P3 has enough power to fight against strong winds of say 25MPH. It just takes a lot longer to get back. I never used RTH in those cases though as I never paid attention to the max speed it will travel in RTH. I do know it's less that the max speed in GPS. Dropping down lower does mean less wind but updrafts may be stronger down low. The Phantoms can handle them though in GPS mode.
Geez I've been in so many drone panic situations but if I was in this one I would freak out. I'd never fly my drone in that wind. So glad it's ok. I had a SYMA x8w, a fully manual quadcopter. I flew it too high and the breeze took it. It ended up landed upright about 600meters from me completely in tact
Thank's for sharing! I like "lesson learned" videos better than the flashy "Look what I can do" clips. After all we learn a lot more from our mistakes than we do from our victories.
I just fund this Video before i bought a Quadcopter. I am willing to get a Mavic though. So it will be a little of investment :-)
after some tutorialvideos and a smal quad to training, this video here opens the eyes for the unexpected and i think I'll be more caucious on my first flights.
Thanks to share this with us!!
... hihi little quadcopter thriller - great music for this :-)
Good video man and thanks for sharing it with us. Glad you got it back. Do you know the wind speed at that day? I used mine at 20-25 mph and it handled pretty well in 200m altitude. The only difference is that i dont use guards cause they get in the way all the time.