Hawk? Propeller loss? Malfunction?

[RS6_Pilot]

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Doing a sunrise flight when drone just wobbled and went down. When I finally found it it was missing one propeller on the front right arm. No trees or poles near me, just a huge golf course and a descending hillside.

Video is dark unfortunately but you can kind of see a shadow at one point.

I'm including both videos. One with SRT and the other just the video.

Any ideas?

Thank you.

 

[Phantomrain.org]

Post the raw video and I can try to change the exposure might be able to lighten this up a bit.

Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly your mini 2. in the Rain.

 

[msinger]

When I finally found it it was missing one propeller on the front right arm

It sounds like you already cracked the case... lost prop mid-flight.

 

[Yorkshire_Pud]

If you do not sync the logs with DJI or have not yet synced the logs with DJI DO NOT connect the screen device to wifi and please copy the .txt and .DAT to a computer etc. Upload the DAT to a file hosting website, make its page public and post a link to that page here.
Also upload the txt flight log to

DJI Flight Log Viewer | Phantom Help

Upload and view flight logs from your DJI drones

www.phantomhelp.com

and post the resulting URL here.
There are instruction about how to retrieve the flight logs on the phantomhelp webpage. If you have difficulty retrieving the logs tell us what the screen device is.
Above all else do not sync with DJI nor perhaps Airdata and the DAT will be removed during a sync.

Why 'protect' the DAT so? It contains motor rpms and a lost prop would cause the corresponding motor to greatly increase its speed.

 

[msinger]

Why 'protect' the DAT so? It contains motor rpms and a lost prop would cause the corresponding motor to greatly increase its speed.

The TXT flight log should also show the point in the flight log where the prop was lost. The OP already confirmed that occurred though, so I'm not sure how helpful that data will be at this point.

 

[Yorkshire_Pud]

The TXT flight log should also show the point in the flight log where the prop was lost. The OP already confirmed that occurred though, so I'm not sure how helpful that data will be at this point.

Not being awkward but a blade "missing" from a crashed drone could have been broken off and lost in the crash. If the blade and its screw are entirely missing that of course is likely to be a different matter.

How would the txt show a lost prop? Genuine question.

The point at which the drone goes crazy would be obvious and the pitch and roll would crazy but what else is there and what would specifically indicate a prop loss rather than motor trouble etc.?

 

[msinger]

a blade "missing" from a crashed drone could have been broken off and lost in the crash

Sure, that's a possibility for crashes in general.

Did you watch the first video above? It looks like the prop was lost mid-flight. And then I guess a more rare motor/ESC failure could have been the cause too.

 

[MS Coast]

Hawk was mentioned in the post title. Hawks are not nocturnal; they're not out flying during the night.

The incident took place 30 minutes before sunrise.

 

[rjwmorrell]

If the prop broke during impact with the ground, one would expect to find the prop pieces nearby. Entire prop missing but not screw,suggests mid-air impact and prop root flew off due to rotor spin. Screw missing too suggests faulty installation.

Impact with bird could result in change in attitude.

 

[msinger]

If the prop broke during impact with the ground, one would expect to find the prop pieces nearby

Yes, that is usually the case. It was dark outside though, so there is a chance the OP could have missed it even if it was nearby.

 

[RS6_Pilot]

Hawk was mentioned in the post title. Hawks are not nocturnal; they're not out flying during the night.

It was 6am. I've know crows fly early in the day and they can be hostile to drones. But I'm beginning to suspect a propeller loss because the screw was gone too.

 

[RS6_Pilot]

If the prop broke during impact with the ground, one would expect to find the prop pieces nearby. Entire prop missing but not screw,suggests mid-air impact and prop root flew off due to rotor spin. Screw missing too suggests faulty installation.

Impact with bird could result in change in attitude.

Yes I'm beginning to suspect this more. I switched out to after market propeller's a few months ago. The install was problematic because the dji pro mini 3 screws are notorious bad to work with and they strip easily. When I brought the drone home i screwed on a new propeller and tested it. Worked fine just doing basic maneuvers around the house. Haven't taken it out again.

 

[Yorkshire_Pud]

Did you watch the first video above? It looks like the prop was lost mid-flight.

Yes but I only have a laptop and can't see much in the video other than ground lights.
With the OP posting that the screw is missing I am 'satisfied' that the screw came out in flight and a blade was lost.

 

[RS6_Pilot]

Yes, that is usually the case. It was dark outside though, so there is a chance the OP could have missed it even if it was nearby.

At the time I didn't realize a propeller was missing I was just so happy I found it. But you can see it would have been near impossible to notice without actively looking for it.

 

[RS6_Pilot]

If you do not sync the logs with DJI or have not yet synced the logs with DJI DO NOT connect the screen device to wifi and please copy the .txt and .DAT to a computer etc. Upload the DAT to a file hosting website, make its page public and post a link to that page here.
Also upload the txt flight log to

DJI Flight Log Viewer | Phantom Help

Upload and view flight logs from your DJI drones

www.phantomhelp.com

and post the resulting URL here.
There are instruction about how to retrieve the flight logs on the phantomhelp webpage. If you have difficulty retrieving the logs tell us what the screen device is.
Above all else do not sync with DJI nor perhaps Airdata and the DAT will be removed during a sync.

Why 'protect' the DAT so? It contains motor rpms and a lost prop would cause the corresponding motor to greatly increase its speed.

Okay thanks for that information.

 

[Yorkshire_Pud]

At the time I didn't realize a propeller was missing I was just so happy I found it. But you can see it would have been near impossible to notice without actively looking for it.

Is it an optical illusion or does the drone have some coloured blades installed i.e. after market blades? If so were they installed in their presumed pairs?

 

[RS6_Pilot]

Post the raw video and I can try to change the exposure might be able to lighten this up a bit.

Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly your mini 2. in the Rain.

Good Idea

Here is the video with increased exposure.

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[RS6_Pilot]

So thanks to everyone. I'm guessing a propeller lost indeed. However, there is a dark shadow when the drone starts to flip which look like could be a wing buuuuuut....the screw was missing along with the propeller so probably not.

 

[Phantomrain.org]

I think this is just a propellar that popped off do to over tightening maybe , but that does not resemble a bird strike.

Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly in the Rain. land on the Water.

 

[thispilothere]

So, in the video, the initial lurching was the prop slipping as the screw was coming loose? And the prop falls off over the next few seconds, detaching completely when it starts spinning before impact?