Fear of flying in wind

[retiredNH]

Here in hilly SW NH, we've been having a great fall, with the best colors in years, in spite of the warnings of the pundits about drought affecting the colors. But, we're also in a windy area where calm days are rare. So my desire to get good photos during the fleeting fall color season got the best of me - I started ignoring the wind.

To my surprise and relief, I still have my drone. It didn't get blown away. I still got good video and stills. That gimbal works magic - I could see the drone itself being tossed about (VLOS, remember ) yet the video is rock steady. I could certainly notice how winds were greater the higher I went, though, just listening to the drone, and battery life is certainly reduced in wind.

My only suggestion to others with the same fear is to just try it in a safe place. You may be surprised. I certainly am.

 

[Lister]

If you hand catch and launch, windy conditions can be more hazardous than normal.

 

[akdrone]

I regularly fly with high wind warnings. Today in fact when my Mav 3 was 50 feet above me I was warned the wind was too high for the drone to be able to return . The FPV can handle crazy high winds. This is an early video I did with the FPV. The winds were 25mph and it was some nonsense below 0F. Maybe -20F ? Frozen forest. I think my buddy was flying a 2s that day but he may have been on his FPV too. I do take care to try to not fly downwind too far in high wind. Humorously a few days ago I flew out in some good winds and waited quite a while before returning…the time aloft indicator dipped precipitously and my watch notified me that my heart rate went above 100 while I was stationary.

 

[frcaloy]

Here in hilly SW NH, we've been having a great fall, with the best colors in years, in spite of the warnings of the pundits about drought affecting the colors. But, we're also in a windy area where calm days are rare. So my desire to get good photos during the fleeting fall color season got the best of me - I started ignoring the wind.

To my surprise and relief, I still have my drone. It didn't get blown away. I still got good video and stills. That gimbal works magic - I could see the drone itself being tossed about (VLOS, remember ) yet the video is rock steady. I could certainly notice how winds were greater the higher I went, though, just listening to the drone, and battery life is certainly reduced in wind.

My only suggestion to others with the same fear is to just try it in a safe place. You may be surprised. I certainly am.

What is your drone?

 

[akdrone]

What is your drone?

Posted in the Mavic Air 2s discussion group so….?

 

[retiredNH]

Yes, Air 2S

 

[Dbez1]

Hey retired, some of those snow covered trees resemble animals. I enjoyed your video and assume you were flying from your car.

 

[twickers14]

Here in hilly SW NH, we've been having a great fall, with the best colors in years, in spite of the warnings of the pundits about drought affecting the colors. But, we're also in a windy area where calm days are rare. So my desire to get good photos during the fleeting fall color season got the best of me - I started ignoring the wind.

To my surprise and relief, I still have my drone. It didn't get blown away. I still got good video and stills. That gimbal works magic - I could see the drone itself being tossed about (VLOS, remember ) yet the video is rock steady. I could certainly notice how winds were greater the higher I went, though, just listening to the drone, and battery life is certainly reduced in wind.

My only suggestion to others with the same fear is to just try it in a safe place. You may be surprised. I certainly am.

Not sure where to click to see this. Everyone else has got the hang of it!

 

[BobaFut]

I bought a cheap anemometer to use on windy days just to make sure I'm not launching into dicey conditions. But I've flown my Air2s in 20ish mph gusts and it was rock solid.

 

[Dbez1]

You’re correct Boba and if absolutely necessary, it’ll fly in more wind than that. Just stay close and use extra caution. If only recreational, don’t push it and keep your drone safe. Just sayin