Distance

fairwaychris510 · Nov 14, 2017

I'm a new Mavic Pro owner, and I was just wondering why my drone will only fly 2200 feet away before I lose connection. I thought these things can go 4 miles or something.

Top Hat · Nov 14, 2017

What type of area/surroundings are you flying in?
What device/s are you using?

Bunny Too · Nov 14, 2017

fairwaychris510 said:
I'm a new Mavic Pro owner, and I was just wondering why my drone will only fly 2200 feet away before I lose connection. I thought these things can go 4 miles or something.

Howdy from Wyoming fairwaychris, welcome to the community, plenty of fine folk and excellent information here.

Mossiback · Nov 14, 2017

fairwaychris510 said:
I'm a new Mavic Pro owner, and I was just wondering why my drone will only fly 2200 feet away before I lose connection. I thought these things can go 4 miles or something.

The 4 miles are "under ideal circumstances" and your results will vary. Trees, buildings, power lines, and terrain can drastically affect your connection. From my house I can fly further to the South than to the West because there are some high-voltage transmission lines to the West.

I personally do not fly out farther than I can see it (its a comfort thing for me).

Scobo · Nov 14, 2017

Here in the UK, the drone code is 500m max (1640 feet).
I've pushed mine to 2000' in a remote, uninhabited area but any further and I struggle to see it.

f3honda4me · Nov 14, 2017

fairwaychris510 said:
I'm a new Mavic Pro owner, and I was just wondering why my drone will only fly 2200 feet away before I lose connection. I thought these things can go 4 miles or something.

As others have stated, this is completely dependent upon a large number of factors. I have personally flown a P4P and I2 to 20,000 feet away from home point, but that required a very open area, proper antenna orientation, etc.

DannyPer · Nov 14, 2017

Correct, it depends on how agressive you fly your drone too. I use to fly no longer than 11000feet so it can return easily

dsd317 · Nov 14, 2017

fairwaychris510 said:
I'm a new Mavic Pro owner, and I was just wondering why my drone will only fly 2200 feet away before I lose connection. I thought these things can go 4 miles or something.

Distance varies based on surrounding environment. Rural vs Urban; Large obstacles/structures (buildings, trees, houses, etc.) vs wide open flat land or water (lake/ocean). Power lines, cell phone towers, and wi-fi congested areas also affect distance/signal performance.

msinger · Nov 14, 2017

@fairwaychris510, here are some troubleshooting steps to try to figure out what is reducing your range:

Enable airplane mode on your mobile device
Make sure you don't have any other Wi-Fi/cellular devices near the remote controller
Make sure the remote controller antennas are positioned like this
Make sure there are no obstacles between the Mavic and remote controller
Try flying in a location where you know there are no other nearby Wi-Fi signals (e.g. don't fly in a house neighborhood)

SNP · Nov 14, 2017

This is dependant on line of sight with no obstructions....

Anthony · Nov 14, 2017

I find getting out into open space increases your range significantly.

I often jump in the car for a 15 minute drive into the country side and get some hight and you have all the range you could possibly want.

MdMavicMan · Mar 19, 2018

I'm new also, and very much appreciate the ton of knowledge that others have posted. I've learned a ton. I'm having a similar issue in my area with short range. I can get out to just over 3,000 ft with an altitude of 400 ft, but then I pretty much lose controller signal and video feed. So I started reading up on amps, extenders, and antennas. Someone pointed me to Titan. Wondering if anyone has experience with the Cyclone or Switch systems they offer. Cyclone (Titan Drones, Inc.) or the Switch (Titan Drones, Inc.). Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

droneuser · Mar 20, 2018

to get 4.3 miles which is 22704 Feet! that rating is in a perfect conditions which unless you live by a desert or by open water you will most likely never get that! I live in the county and its looking like 3,000 feet is the most for me!

I don't even get one mile which is 5,280 feet! but that's going to change for me soon

I don't really want it for distance I want it for a stronger signal

BUT keep in mind going to far could be costly due to battery may not have enough power to get back!

@MdMavicMan if you are handy check out the mod section you can build your own and save some money

Grizzo · Mar 20, 2018

I've found the more houses and built up the area, the less range you can get. Probably from all the extra Wi-Fi.

droneuser · Mar 20, 2018

Grizzo said:
I've found the more houses and built up the area, the less range you can get. Probably from all the extra Wi-Fi.

yes but I don't have to many house where I live but I don't think it takes to much wifi to cut the distance down

Mad Mavic · Mar 20, 2018

Anthony said:
I find getting out into open space increases your range significantly.

I often jump in the car for a 15 minute drive into the country side and get some hight and you have all the range you could possibly want.

This is my practice as well. Driving to a higher elevation allows for a much greater line of sight while staying within AGL limits. In other words, you're looking down on your drone as opposed to up. LOS is never an easy rule to follow when wearing DJI goggles, its just too darn adventurous to fly to the outer boundaries.

I've experienced several instances where my drone initiated a return home when my power consumption was still adequate to get back, and signal was still strong, but I always err on the safe side and let it do its thing.

I've landed with anywhere from 10% to 25% power remaining, so still trying to understand the system.

A couple things I've discovered in if returning home in a tail wind is that it requires power to reduce ground speed. The same goes for descending. Therefore, due to the complexity of the system and the constant stream of variables. I let the system tell me when its time to head for home.

Having said that, I feel its good practice to practice emergency landings as far away as possible. It just good practice should you get out toward the boundary and the wind shift making a RTH impossible. Landing in a remote field near a road is a easily done with a little practice.

droneuser · Mar 20, 2018

Mad Mavic said:
This is my practice as well. Driving to a higher elevation allows for a much greater line of sight while staying within AGL limits. In other words, you're looking down on your drone as opposed to up. LOS is never an easy rule to follow when wearing DJI goggles, its just too darn adventurous to fly to the outer boundaries.

I've experienced several instances where my drone initiated a return home when my power consumption was still adequate to get back, and signal was still strong, but I always err on the safe side and let it do its thing.

I've landed with anywhere from 10% to 25% power remaining, so still trying to understand the system.

A couple things I've discovered in if returning home in a tail wind is that it requires power to reduce ground speed. The same goes for descending. Therefore, due to the complexity of the system and the constant stream of variables. I let the system tell me when its time to head for home.

Having said that, I feel its good practice to practice emergency landings as far away as possible. It just good practice should you get out toward the boundary and the wind shift making a RTH impossible. Landing in a remote field near a road is a easily done with a little practice.