Can I fly?

[Lil' DronePilot]

I’m currently in a Jamaica with my MP....oh yeah and my family I’ve flown 4 days without any issue in current firmware and GO App. All of the sudden today, I get the forward sensor calibration error message. I looked it up and I’m capable of doing everything required. Problem is while in a Jamaica, I have no access to computer and my usb wire 5to be able to perform calibration. I haVE 2 days left before returning home. CAN I STILL FLY without having any issues? I am not using any smart flight functions. Just need to have it fly for a minimum of 30 minutes no farther than a 500’ distance and 300’ in altitude. Prefer advise as opposed to just jumping the gun and flying with risk. I’ll calibrate my MP at home.

 

[Mossiback]

The sudden error message would concern me also if there were no other changes like a hard landing (crash) or software/firmware updates. Perhaps your sensors got dirty?

If it was me, I would turn off the forward sensors. I turned mine off long ago. It gets me better speed without the jerkiness of sport mode. The only risk this presents is flying into something that the sensors should detect and prevent. If you keep it in VLOS and have the RTH height setting so it will clear any obstacle you should be OK.

OK, there may be another risk. The sudden message is indicative of other problems with your craft, perhaps heat induced, and is just the first message. This may be over-paranoid but I guess is a possibility.

 

[borislip]

First thing I'd try is making sure the forward sensor 'eyes' are clean, hoping this may resolve the issue. I'd likely still fly without the forward sensor, explicitly disabling obstacle avoidance, and being more careful.

 

[Lil' DronePilot]

Ok fingers crossed. Sensors cleaned and turned off. A risk I would never take and would never ever think of. All I need it is for the MP to fly for 2 minutes to get 60 to 90 seconds of footage Rom our last day of our family vacation. Once that is done, forward sensor calibration can be done from the comfort of my home and accessibility of my own computer. I will not be around other people, property and will only risk my MP. My disclosure as I wouldn’t want to be perceived as being reckless. Worse that could happen, my MP will fly to open sea and flop to its destruction. For this shot, I’m willing to sacrifice the odds. Thanks again for the suggestions.

 

[Mossiback]

Ok, good luck! I really would not sweat turning off the forward sensors. Those will not prevent your worse case of flying out to sea anyway. If anything, it will prevent it from falsely detecting a low sun as an obstacle which may keep it from returning.

Having said all that, since you have cleaned your forward sensors you could try flying again with them activated to see if the error repeats itself.

 

[Lil' DronePilot]

Update: drone flew perfectly. It recorded home point as usual, and flew normally. I was able to record the seconds of footage I needed. No fly away, no erratic responses from the MP and best of all my Mavic did not fall into the sea. I wouldn’t recommend take my the risk to anyone else. Again, all I had to loose by taking the risk was my Mavic at sea. Any other place, there wouldn’t of been a chance in **** I would of taken the risk. Unedited shot of sunset in Trelawny, Jamaica. (Not the footage I had to have, that was just extra)

 

[macoman]

Glad that end up the way you want it... Excellent picture and happy flying!

 

[borislip]

Flyaways? Erratic responses? Your worst case scenario is refusing to go forward with the uncalibrated sensor tripping obstacle avoidance. Or hitting something if you rely on it and stupidly send the drone forward, thinking it will stop (or during RTH if its not high enough). Thats it. There are no other risks.

 

[Lil' DronePilot]

Yep you are right. But as I stated before, I was nowhere near land, around people, near any airports and nothing but salt water. RTH regardless of height wouldn’t of matter if I would sent the drone forward thinking it would stop as it would of plumeth into the ocean once the battery ran out. When I said it recorded home point as usual was when I tested it on land. Hp wouldn’t of mattered where I was. That my friend was a risk I was willing to take as the only thing lost would of been my MP. (Perhaps the assurance that I had another one at home help me with my decision)Yeah the drone could of darted towards me and hit an artery and I bled to death while in the ocean with no rescue...there is always something else. As I also said, I would of NEVER taken any risk if it were under different circumstances....they weren’t. I am one that is always conscious of safety, hazards and surroundings. I will fly home soon and will calibrate my forward sensors and if that fails, there is always Thunderdrones to the rescue. But one thing I know for sure, this situation will probably
never present itself ever again. That is why I sought out advise from perhaps someone who had possibly flown the MP with the error message as I had no access to a computer and correct the calibration issue.