Can waypoint missions be created without being connected?

[Droning on and on...]

In DJI Fly, on a smartphone, can I create and manage waypoint missions without the drone powered up and connected?

Second question, can I do this on Fly if I don't have an Air 3 and have never paired with one?

I want to play with the feature as I await the release of my A2S sale funds on eBay and purchase an Air 3. I tried hitting Connection Guide, selecting Air 3, then Camera View, but nothing was there in terms of waypoint planning.

I'm thinking I need to actually pair and connect with one first.

 

[mobilehomer]

In DJI Fly, on a smartphone, can I create and manage waypoint missions without the drone powered up and connected?

Second question, can I do this on Fly if I don't have an Air 3 and have never paired with one?

I want to play with the feature as I await the release of my A2S sale funds on eBay and purchase an Air 3. I tried hitting Connection Guide, selecting Air 3, then Camera View, but nothing was there in terms of waypoint planning.

I'm thinking I need to actually pair and connect with one first.

Not until you pair with an Air 3 or Mavic 3. Then you can, I do it quite often.

 

[Thmoore]

Doesn't the drone need to be powered on and connected? You can't get to the map otherwise...

 

[GadgetGuy]

In DJI Fly, on a smartphone, can I create and manage waypoint missions without the drone powered up and connected?

Second question, can I do this on Fly if I don't have an Air 3 and have never paired with one?

I want to play with the feature as I await the release of my A2S sale funds on eBay and purchase an Air 3. I tried hitting Connection Guide, selecting Air 3, then Camera View, but nothing was there in terms of waypoint planning.

I'm thinking I need to actually pair and connect with one first.

Yes to your first question.
No to your second question.
Yes to your implied third question.
You'll need to physically connect your RC-N2 controller to your tablet device, or use the DJI RC2 to create offline waypoint missions.
No need to power up the drone itself, after pairing it with the RC.

 

[GadgetGuy]

Doesn't the drone need to be powered on and connected? You can't get to the map otherwise...

No. Both your tablet and the DJI RC2 have GPS in them for RID, and can pull up maps independently of the drone.

 

[Thmoore]

No. Both your tablet and the DJI RC2 have GPS in them for RID, and can pull up maps independently of the drone.

Interesting! I perhaps have only tried this inside the house, where there is no GPS signal. I will try it again!

 

[GadgetGuy]

Interesting! I perhaps have only tried this inside the house, where there is no GPS signal. I will try it again!

Maps of a proposed flying location can also be preloaded at home, independently of the drone, which is especially useful if you won't have wifi onsite.

 

[Thmoore]

Maps of a proposed flying location can also be preloaded at home, independently of the drone, which is especially useful if you won't have wifi onsite.

They can be preloaded, but only in shockingly small segments. I don’t see why you can’t select a whole area and download it. Instead, you have to download it one postage stamp-sized patch of map at a time.

 

[GadgetGuy]

They can be preloaded, but only in shockingly small segments. I don’t see why you can’t select a whole area and download it. Instead, you have to download it one postage stamp-sized patch of map at a time.

Agreed. I was very disappointed in the very small area they allow you to download for offline storage. However, even scrolling around in the area you wish to fly will cache the maps, but not permanently. I only pointed it out to prove that the drone is not necessary for downloading maps, as you had initially thought.