Flying over water

[Kevins Mavic]

What are the dangers of flying over water or other reflective surfaces?

 

[Rowder]

What are the dangers of flying over water or other reflective surfaces?

Hi Kevin,
Do a quick search on this - there's lots of info in the forum.
I've flown over water a few times without changing settings; however, I've been flying high enough (20+ feet above) without incident.
There's also a good video from a member where he shows what happens when hovering close to the surface.
Fly safe.

Rog

 

[msinger]

It's a fairly safe activity as long as you have sufficient battery power and are not flying within several feet of the surface.

 

[Not A Speck Of Cereal]

I was flying over two water surfaces yesterday that were drastically different -- a still pond, then fast moving rapids -- and I found that I wasn't sure how the VPS works between those two. I would like to feel comfortable with what works best, so if anyone can link to the above mentioned video, I would appreciate that.

 

[Top Hat]

Avoid saltwater spray in case your flying @ the beach or ocean.

 

[Racin8de]

If you fly ten foot or lower above the water I would turn off the bottom sensors at least on the Mavic Pro, I know the glare and transparency of the water has caused others to have their drones bug out..... I would research into this more.. If I fly over water, I usually fly at least 40 feet or so...

 

[Hayabusa]

You can fly way lower than that.

 

[Meta4]

You can fly way lower than that.

But you can't count on the sensors correctly detecting the water's surface in all conditions.

 

[Phantomrain.org]

What are the dangers of flying over water or other reflective surfaces?

We fly over the water every other day and as long as your willing to fly with all your sensor off and the landing protection off you should be fine.

Fly over the water 2 ft min as the wind pushes the drone down. When flying out further stay above the horizon and continue to climb if your skimming the water for the boat shots.

The only real danger is if your Mavic goes in the water than its gone and most likely your warranty with it.

The other danger more likely is that you go to far out and dont make it back and you land in the water.

Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly you drone in and out of the Storm.

We do a lot of thos shots where you appear to be a boat and than turn into a plane , very cool but be cautious.

 

[tcope]

But you can't count on the sensors correctly detecting the water's surface in all conditions.

It does not matter. The downward sensors won't do anything at all.. over water or land. This is throwback to P3 says and people think it still applies.

 

[Meta4]

It does not matter. The downward sensors won't do anything at all.. over water or land. This is throwback to P3 says and people think it still applies.

It matters when people expect the sensors to prevent them from splashing their drone like this one:

Hep me figure out why impending water landing(sinking) wasn't detected

Hi. I was trying to take a picture of a reservoir, from a low angle as if I were on a boat, and ended up sinking into the water. Previously I had experimented with my pool, and the drone detects the water and stays a few feet above the water. In this case, the drone gave me one warning which I...

mavicpilots.com

Fly close to the water's surface and your piloting matters.

 

[tcope]

It matters when people expect the sensors to prevent them from splashing their drone like this one:

Yup. Sensors won't fix dumb. Downward sensors don't prevent a crash into flat ground anyway. So they work no different on water. If a person thinks the downward sensors are going to somehow level out flight, they need to to pick another hobby.

 

[dwolfe002]

Yup. Sensors won't fix dumb.

I agree with this. They also won't cure cancer. Although in some cases I prefer to call it excitement instead of DUMB. Your mileage may vary.

Downward sensors don't prevent a crash into flat ground anyway. So they work no different on water. If a person thinks the downward sensors are going to somehow level out flight, they need to to pick another hobby.

I agree with this in theory, about leveling flight, but am not sure it always works that way in real life. So far at least. I've done this probably 30 times or more at 2 ft. or less with the sensors on and have never crashed. The times I tried it with the sensors off, over land, I crashed twice in less than 10 tries. Basically it comes down to this. Sensors are no where near perfect and there are tolerances in all electronics to deal with also. Speed is also an added concern. When I go very slow and low over land, or water with the sensors off, I see the M2P changing altitude at times. When I go fast and low (2 ft.) over land, I have seen the M2P crash. When I go fast and low with the sensors on, over water or land, I have never seen the M2P drop or rise a noticeable amount except when the front sensors activated and it caused it to stop and rise about a foot. If you have tested this I would be very interested in your results/views. I know I could easily loose my M2P at any time doing this but I have fun with it whether it's 100 ft. over land or 2 ft. over water. Telling me to get another hobby just doesn't work for me. I like this one!

As to the original question asked by @Kevins Mavic, you could loose a prop, a battery might suddenly go bad, your electronics could shut down, the Mavic could just fly away, a bird may attack, someone may shoot at it, a boat may hit it, a big fish may try to eat it, a wave could hit it, or a thousand other things. I would say flying over water is no different than flying over land with the exception that if you crash over water you have to buy another drone. How low or high you want to fly is totally up to you but I would test the basics over land, sensors off, sensors on, so you will have an idea of how it will act. Have fun, like they say, pay your money and take your chances.

Take care and happy flying!

 

[Gazmg]

I fly over the sea many times no problems watch this...might help..