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DJI Mavic Spiraled out of Control , crashed and destroyed

Bravo79

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Beautiful day in the PNW . Decided to take out out my Mavic.

Charged my Batteries and controller100%.

Went to an open field .

Connected the controller to the DJI go app on my Samsung S8.

The app did warn me that a firmware update was required but allowed me to fly anyway.
I took off and selected the precision return to home option.. Took it straight up to around 250-300 feet in about 20-25 secs and before I realized what was going on the thing came spiraling down in 5 seconds and was completely destroyed.

As far as I can recall, when the drone connected to the app, the app reported everything as normal.
It did show a "firmware upgrade required" and " high wind warning". The wind was very light and in previous flights, I was able to fly even though there were warnings.

The video was corrupted, but was able to repair it using some mp4 software I found on the internet.

DJI Mavic pro spiral out of control, crash and destroyed - Streamable

How do I find out what happened and what are my options? I purchased this at Costco , less than an year ago.
 

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Where were all of the props when you found your Mavic?
 
Beautiful day in the PNW . Decided to take out out my Mavic.

Charged my Batteries and controller100%.

Went to an open field .

Connected the controller to the DJI go app on my Samsung S8.

The app did warn me that a firmware update was required but allowed me to fly anyway.
I took off and selected the precision return to home option.. Took it straight up to around 250-300 feet in about 20-25 secs and before I realized what was going on the thing came spiraling down in 5 seconds and was completely destroyed.

As far as I can recall, when the drone connected to the app, the app reported everything as normal.
It did show a "firmware upgrade required" and " high wind warning". The wind was very light and in previous flights, I was able to fly even though there were warnings.

The video was corrupted, but was able to repair it using some mp4 software I found on the internet.

DJI Mavic pro spiral out of control, crash and destroyed - Streamable

How do I find out what happened and what are my options? I purchased this at Costco , less than an year ago.

The video shows all the signs of it having lost the front left prop, causing it to pitch down, roll left and yaw right. The .txt log would confirm the attitude data, and the DAT file from either the mobile device or the aircraft will show the motor response to confirm the event mechanism.
 
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It sounds like you definitely lost a prop mid-flight then. You can confirm that by doing what @sar104 suggested above.
 
The video shows all the signs of it having lost the front left prop, causing it to pitch down, roll left and yaw right. The .txt log would confirm the attitude data, and the DAT file from either the mobile device or the aircraft will show the motor response to confirm the event mechanism.

Thanks. How do I check the .txt log and where can I find the .DAT file on the device?
 
Thanks. How do I check the .txt log and where can I find the .DAT file on the device?

Follow the instructions here: DJI Flight Log Viewer

It would also help if you posted that txt file directly here. The mobile device DAT file is in another directory on the mobile device - it's easy to find but I think the name varies depending on platform and version.

The aircraft DAT file, that you may or may not be able to retrieve, depending on FW version, is found as described here: How to retrieve a V3 .DAT File from the AC
 
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If the DAT file is too large to post here, you can upload it to a file sharing site like Dropbox.com and post the download link back here.
 
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Follow the instructions here: DJI Flight Log Viewer

It would also help if you posted that txt file directly here. The mobile device DAT file is in another directory on the mobile device - it's easy to find but I think the name varies depending on platform and version.



Attaching the log file . How do I upload the .DAT file here. When I upload, it says incompatible format. I uploaded it by adding .TXT extension.
 

Attachments

  • DJIFlightRecord_2018-03-03_[17-14-49].txt
    74.5 KB · Views: 87
  • 18-03-03-05-14-02_FLY007.DAT.TXT
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  • 18-03-03-05-14-02_FLY007.zip
    413 KB · Views: 27
You can zip the DAT and attach it here.
 
OK - those files confirm the event. It lost the left rear prop at 36 seconds. In the attitude data the resulting pitch up, roll left and CCW spin are apparent. In the motor data the loss of the prop causes an immediate increase in the left rear motor speed as the load disappears and the FC attempts to increase lift.

DJIFlightRecord_2018-03-03_[17-14-49]_conv_01.png

FLY007_01.png
 
OK - those files confirm the event. It lost the left rear prop at 36 seconds. In the attitude data the resulting pitch up, roll left and CCW spin are apparent. In the motor data the loss of the prop causes an immediate increase in the left rear motor speed as the load disappears and the FC attempts to increase lift.

View attachment 32740

View attachment 32741

Thanks for the Analysis.

Do you know how would the prop just fall out?. I had double checked all four before flying and it did not give me a warning either.

Do you know if this sort of stuff gets covered under warranty?
 
Thanks for the Analysis.

Do you know how would the prop just fall out?. I had double checked all four before flying and it did not give me a warning either.

Do you know if this sort of stuff gets covered under warranty?

With the bayonet-style props on the Mavic it's possible not to fully engage the twist and lock. Alternatively it could have been mechanical failure of the hub. However, from your photograph showing that motor, it appears to me that it was probably not locked, because the hub is completely missing and there is no evidence of damage or ground impact to explain the missing prop - c.f. front right:

screenshot112.jpg
Rear left motor

screenshot113.jpg
Front right motor
 
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so basically, I am screwed?
:(

It certainly looks like pilot error (not securing the props) but DJI have been quite generous in some cases of this kind, so it is definitely worth asking. I would not volunteer any information from this discussion - just describe what happened. They will ask for the log.
 
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