Well, it happened though I was extremely careful. Had 13 satellites and full batteries. Four minutes into the flight I got a weak signal warning. The drone was about 400 feet in the air and there were no obstructions to interfere with the signal. Next the GoApp immediately reported disconnected. Apparently I had the presence of mind to center the sticks. When I looked at the RC, it too said disconnected. So I wasn't worried and just waited for automatic return to home on signal loss. But it never came back.
I posted a thread seeking assistance and gave a link to my flight log. Meta4 and SAR104 were very helpful. They both said that the abrupt power loss in all likelihood meant that the battery had come loose and the drone lost all power. SAR104 used an engineering program to calculate the trajectory of the drone from the point of power loss to impact using drone velocity before power loss, height and wind speed and direction. His calculations placed it in a heavily wooded area. I have been searching for 3 days but haven't been able to find the drone. The ground under the thick tree canopy has very little undergrowth and gives a clear view of the ground. I did a thorough search pattern and could not locate it. Consulting again with SAR104, he is certain that it went into the trees and suggested that it is very likely stuck in a tree,
The trees are old oaks and 80-100 high with very dense foliage. These oaks don't lose their leaves in the fall and so I do not see any chance of finding the drone and even if I did would have no way to recover it. It might as well be on the moon.
I want to make a refresh claim. I am aware that they will not honor the claims generally unless you can return the old drone. I can't do that. I have heard of a few cases where they did replace the drone without the old one and so I am soliciting responses from those people who made a successful claim with sending in the old one. That way, when DJI says that they won't replace it without the old one, I can respond with, "well you did in this case, and in this case, and in this case." in order to try to persuade them to honor the claim. So, if you were able to make a successful claim without the old drone, please let me know.
I would ask that you PM me with the details rather than post them just to ensure your privacy. Please let me know: your name, location, the date of the loss, the circumstances, the type of DJI drone and any information about how you persuaded them to send you a new one.
Thanks a bunch for the help,
Distraught DJI Mavic Pro owner, Jack
I posted a thread seeking assistance and gave a link to my flight log. Meta4 and SAR104 were very helpful. They both said that the abrupt power loss in all likelihood meant that the battery had come loose and the drone lost all power. SAR104 used an engineering program to calculate the trajectory of the drone from the point of power loss to impact using drone velocity before power loss, height and wind speed and direction. His calculations placed it in a heavily wooded area. I have been searching for 3 days but haven't been able to find the drone. The ground under the thick tree canopy has very little undergrowth and gives a clear view of the ground. I did a thorough search pattern and could not locate it. Consulting again with SAR104, he is certain that it went into the trees and suggested that it is very likely stuck in a tree,
The trees are old oaks and 80-100 high with very dense foliage. These oaks don't lose their leaves in the fall and so I do not see any chance of finding the drone and even if I did would have no way to recover it. It might as well be on the moon.
I want to make a refresh claim. I am aware that they will not honor the claims generally unless you can return the old drone. I can't do that. I have heard of a few cases where they did replace the drone without the old one and so I am soliciting responses from those people who made a successful claim with sending in the old one. That way, when DJI says that they won't replace it without the old one, I can respond with, "well you did in this case, and in this case, and in this case." in order to try to persuade them to honor the claim. So, if you were able to make a successful claim without the old drone, please let me know.
I would ask that you PM me with the details rather than post them just to ensure your privacy. Please let me know: your name, location, the date of the loss, the circumstances, the type of DJI drone and any information about how you persuaded them to send you a new one.
Thanks a bunch for the help,
Distraught DJI Mavic Pro owner, Jack
