Got up at 4:15 this morning as it was beautiful looking out bedroom window, quick cup of tea and in car by 5. However, things went pear shaped from there, got up the hill and immediately drove in to fog which was everywhere except my side of the island so couldn't get any footage that I had planned. On the way home, thought I'd use up last battery and was flying around when all of a sudden three birds appeared from the heather below and started swooping my drone, I tried to get it back asap climbing and diving which didn't work. It was just about beside me when one of the birds made contact with it about 40 feet up and it spun slightly, however it stayed up and I manged to get it down before the bird came in again for another go. Put it up to check all was ok and all is good, on getting home I checked it over thoroughly and I could feel a very slight imperfection on one of the props and evidence of a bit of orange on front leg same side so not sure if somehow the prop had contacted the leg. I changed both props on the motor and all perfect again. Lesson learned I suppose.
Bird Strike Survived
- Thread starter eckydrone200
- Start date
DJayI
Well-Known Member
Maybe time for some nose art...
I kid of course. Glad you got the drone back relatively undamaged.
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DJayI
Well-Known Member
Well, even though the bird started it, I hope it is OK. Seems we are all a little territorial at times.?
Yeah, the bird flew away ok and was in fact coming in for another go just as I got the drone down. It continued to fly around for a while after. Guess I was the imposter so don't blame the bird.
DJayI
Well-Known Member
No, I don't blame the bird, the bird is simply following it's programming. ??
But the sky is not the bird's exclusively, it is for use by all of Earth's creatures that are lucky enough to have the ability to experience it.
IMO Neither is to blame. But as someone once said, "don't start nothin' and there won't be nothin' ".?
In the interest of full disclosure, bird lover here.?.... Because they taught us how to fly and they are amazing at it.
But the sky is not the bird's exclusively, it is for use by all of Earth's creatures that are lucky enough to have the ability to experience it.
IMO Neither is to blame. But as someone once said, "don't start nothin' and there won't be nothin' ".?
In the interest of full disclosure, bird lover here.?.... Because they taught us how to fly and they are amazing at it.
sarimento1
Well-Known Member
Thanks, I was posting to show the Mini 2 is quite a resilient drone considering it's size. I was expecting it to fall to the ground when hit but it just spun a bit and corrected itself.
cgmaxed
Well-Known Member
Birds attacking a drone. Not a good Idea for the bird. One good hit by a prop on one of their legs and crack, broken leg. Maybe even a cracked beak. Of course, it depends on how big a drone your flying.
Ralph thompson
Well-Known Member
I expect you flow near its nesting area. You said heather so are you in Yorkshire or Scotland? North of Montreal we get raptors, they appear from nowhere and survey the drone from above, I’ve always made a haste retreat & landed. They disappear as fast as they appeared. I’ve heard it said that the best défense when you see impending attack is to climb, birds rarely attack from below.
Yeah, you're spot on with both assumptions Ralph. As soon as I seen them rising I knew they were nesting in the heather, I was probably lower than usual and I wondered at the time if the change in the pitch of the sound due to me being in sport mode had something to do with it as I have flown there many times and never been aware of birds in the area. Next time I will definitely try the climb out of trouble tactic, though it never worked this time but that is probably due to me not climbing for long enough. I don't mind watching dogfights in Top Gun but I don't want to be a part of it with the birds as I suspect they have slightly more knowledge of flight than me. ?
Climb indeed! Birds can't really fly straight up, so you can ascend straight up faster than they can catch up, and at higher altitudes, you are farther from the nest they are defending, so they eventually give up, giving you time to make a retreat and return to home from a different angle, away from them, and their nest.
Hi
I'm glad that both the bird and your drone survived the encounter. I once flew in a park, too close to some trees, during nesting season. Several birds came up to harass me. I avoided them, mainly by climbing, but also by jerky movements, up and down. I was trying to make my drone's path unpredictible, as I climbed. As I was doing that, I headed back home, and landed safely. Afterwards, I got a bright orange skin for it. I haven't had any more such problems, but I never returned to that park, either.
I'm glad that both the bird and your drone survived the encounter. I once flew in a park, too close to some trees, during nesting season. Several birds came up to harass me. I avoided them, mainly by climbing, but also by jerky movements, up and down. I was trying to make my drone's path unpredictible, as I climbed. As I was doing that, I headed back home, and landed safely. Afterwards, I got a bright orange skin for it. I haven't had any more such problems, but I never returned to that park, either.
Glad to hear you also got away with the interest shown by the bird fraternity. I have thought about a bright coloured skin thinking it may deter them but not sure. You may have the right idea with the orange colour. I need to put a bit of thought in to it as I fly quite a bit over the sea and there are always birds on the cliffs.
I have this decal from DecalGirl. Looks sharp. Took about 2.5 hours to put on my Air 2s. The birds do seem to give me a bit more space now.
Checkout DecalGirl’s website. They have tons, laser measured and cut for your specific model of drone. It was tough to choose the one I wanted honestly. Went on perfectly, but dedicate 2-3 hours to get it on and take your time. Set it up with a little heat from a blow dryer when it’s finished. I’ve noticed birds might fly to it, but quickly back away.
(I’m not affiliated with that website in any way.)
Thanks for that info Mike, I'll definitely have a look. Apologies for not seeing your post earlier but things are hectic just now.
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