DJI Matrice 210 lost at sea. It even happens to the big boys.

[B52-D]

Drone Lost During Training Exercise Over The Atlantic Ocean

Pender EMS And Fire Matrice 210 Ran Out Of Battery

A DJI Matrice 210 valued at $26,000 was lost in the Atlantic ocean during a training exercise last month. The aircraft, which belonged to Pender EMS and Fire, ran out of battery while fighting high winds over the ocean off Wrightsville Beach, NC.

The Port City Daily newspaper reports that the aircraft was providing aerial surveillance during an exercise for first responders, including the U.S. Coast Guard, the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office, Pender County Sheriff’s Office, Wilmington Police Department, and Wrightsville Beach Fire and Police, who were practicing rescues of stranded swimmers on February 27.

Pender EMS and Fire Chief Woody Sullivan said that the drone has an estimated flight time of 24 minutes. However, winds in the area where the exercise was being conducted were around 15 miles per hour, and there was not enough power left in the battery to return the drone to shore. "The bird went down in 14 minutes," Sullivan said.

Sullivan said it was safer to ditch the drone in the water than to try to land it on one of the boats. He said that the company will be reviewing its protocols as part of an internal investigation. "The return home will have to be much sooner, we will have less flight time over the water," he said.

Pender EMS and Fire Deputy Chief Scott Sills said that there is an inherent risk involved when operating such expensive, high-tech equipment while learning to use them for potentially life-saving missions.

 

[old man mavic]

losing such a valuable asset, and a costly one at that,puts the loss of a hobby drone into perspective ,it goes with the territory, and shows no one is immune

 

[JAW]

No flotation gear on a maritime SAR drone worth $26k ?

 

[RCdancer]

Ouch!

 

[Meta4]

No flotation gear on a maritime SAR drone worth $26k ?

Flotation gear isn't the answer.
It would be very bulky for such a large drone, adding even more wind resistance and weight penalty.
And wouldn't keep the drone upright and clear of the water anyway.
Saltwater being instant death to electronics, a wet M210 is about as valuable as no M210.

Experienced pilots would be a lot more effective.
They need to make sure they are only launching with fully charged batteries.
Flying in a significant wind, the pilot must be extra conscious of wind direction and how that affects the flight path.
They need to assess how the wind will affect return speed and adjust flight time/distance to allow for return against the wind if necessary.
And over water, factor in a comfortable safety margin.

It would be interesting to see the flight data to see what it shows.

 

[bobec231]

Hey there is a lifepreserver for drones... check out drone-retriever.com

 

[Meta4]

Hey there is a lifepreserver for drones... check out drone-retriever.com

An M210 that's fallen in saltwater is worth as much as a Mini that's been in saltwater.
It's not worth the effort to retrieve it.

 

[Made2Phly]

Drone Lost During Training Exercise Over The Atlantic Ocean

Pender EMS And Fire Matrice 210 Ran Out Of Battery

A DJI Matrice 210 valued at $26,000 was lost in the Atlantic ocean during a training exercise last month. The aircraft, which belonged to Pender EMS and Fire, ran out of battery while fighting high winds over the ocean off Wrightsville Beach, NC.

The Port City Daily newspaper reports that the aircraft was providing aerial surveillance during an exercise for first responders, including the U.S. Coast Guard, the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office, Pender County Sheriff’s Office, Wilmington Police Department, and Wrightsville Beach Fire and Police, who were practicing rescues of stranded swimmers on February 27.

Pender EMS and Fire Chief Woody Sullivan said that the drone has an estimated flight time of 24 minutes. However, winds in the area where the exercise was being conducted were around 15 miles per hour, and there was not enough power left in the battery to return the drone to shore. "The bird went down in 14 minutes," Sullivan said.

Sullivan said it was safer to ditch the drone in the water than to try to land it on one of the boats. He said that the company will be reviewing its protocols as part of an internal investigation. "The return home will have to be much sooner, we will have less flight time over the water," he said.

Pender EMS and Fire Deputy Chief Scott Sills said that there is an inherent risk involved when operating such expensive, high-tech equipment while learning to use them for potentially life-saving missions.

I've got to think they had insurance on that bad boy.

 

[sar104]

Where was their sense of adventure? Surely they had practiced hand-catching the 210 on a moving platform in high winds. Easy¡

 

[The RAPier]

Can’t they provide aerial surveillance with a phantom 4. They are labeled big boys because they are spending taxpayer moneys. Yes I’m sure it was insured but obviously I’ll trained operators.

 

[sar104]

Can’t they provide aerial surveillance with a phantom 4. They are labeled big boys because they are spending taxpayer moneys. Yes I’m sure it was insured but obviously I’ll trained operators.

Not if they want high-resolution infrared, real optical zoom capabilities, useful payload and the ability to hold station in high winds.

 

[iglou7]

Taxpayer money thrown away, who cares?

 

[hactick]

Does a 26k$ drone not have smart return to home features? My zoom goes bonkers when it has a low battery

 

[Unknown Pilot]

I've got to think they had insurance on that bad boy.

Kind of stupid if they didn't.

 

[xspwhite]

Taxpayer money thrown away, who cares?

And the tax payers will be forced to buy them a bigger and better one as they shrug off the loss as "oopsi daisy."

 

[Jetnet]

Old pilot saying: The three most useless things in aviation are:

• Airspace above you
• Runway behind you
• Fuel in the bowser

 

[BigAl07]

Can’t they provide aerial surveillance with a phantom 4. They are labeled big boys because they are spending taxpayer moneys. Yes I’m sure it was insured but obviously I’ll trained operators.

Taxpayer $$? Most of the Emergency Services that we train (all over the SouthEast USA) are working off of a shoe string budget to begin with and a UAS doesn't fall into many of them, at least not yet. Most are purchased through donations and GRANTS! Many departments aren't even ALLOWED to purchase UAS with any Govt funds.

I think there's more to the story.... 14min is VERY short unless the winds were brutal. I highly suspect Operator Error (on many levels) is at fault and advanced training needed.

Also it's important to know that the M200 series can be Hand Caught fairly safely IF YOU PRACTICE it. Fixed landing gear are easy to grab on to.

 

[iglou7]

Old pilot saying: The three most useless things in aviation are:

• Airspace above you
• Runway behind you
• Fuel in the bowser

An old man once said; Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and i'm not sure about the universe!

ps: what is the bowser?

 

[iglou7]

Taxpayer $$? Most of the Emergency Services that we train (all over the SouthEast USA) are working off of a shoe string budget to begin with and a UAS doesn't fall into many of them, at least not yet. Most are purchased through donations and GRANTS! Many departments aren't even ALLOWED to purchase UAS with any Govt funds.

I think there's more to the story.... 14min is VERY short unless the winds were brutal. I highly suspect Operator Error (on many levels) is at fault and advanced training needed.

Also it's important to know that the M200 series can be Hand Caught fairly safely IF YOU PRACTICE it. Fixed landing gear are easy to grab on to.

sry, didn't know that. In Belgium it's the taxpayer who pays.

 

[sar104]

Does a 26k$ drone not have smart return to home features? My zoom goes bonkers when it has a low battery

Yes - but it doesn't factor in wind speed, which is something that probably should be addressed in the future.