He's gone...

[t4nk]

....gone forever. Sleeping at the bottom of Andaman sea. Together with precious footage. He was like a brother to me. We have been through so much together. Crashes, broken propellers, bird attacks (they weren't harmed), freezing and hot temperatures, rain, snow, wind, long distances, high altitudes and even a volcano erruption. He never failed me. But I failed today. Rookie mistake. I'm sorry, my brother. Rest in peace.

Dedicated to my beloved Mavic Air:

P.S. I don't know if this is the right place to post this, but I thought only you guys would understand this pain.

 

[old man mavic]

@t4nk so sorry for your loss,every flight is an adventure ,and you had many with your drone
but unlike a living being ,you can at least replace your drone and carry on the adventure ,as i am sure you will

 

[Kywon McCain]

Is it okay to tear up while reading this post?

 

[Rhody Seth]

As he sank into the cold darkness, know that he bore you no ill will. For he soared higher than most dared to dream. The sky was his playground and the wind his cloak.

Saltwater stung his circuit boards and his time grew short. He thought of your smiling face one last time. And was gone.

 

[Kywon McCain]

As he sank into the cold darkness, know that he bore you no ill will. For he soared higher than most dared to dream. The sky was his playground and the wind his cloak.

Saltwater stung his circuit boards and his time grew short. He thought of your smiling face one last time. And was gone.

Im gonna shed tears trying to watch this thread i swear

 

[Skywatcher2001]

Beautifully said t4nk . . .

I could feel your pain in every keystroke. Amazing how we get attached to these lil wonders. I am always amazed at SAR104, Meta4 and all the others who help with SAR. When I read their diagnoses of events that led to the loss and death of pilot's aircraft . . . they use adjectives like: fought, tried, struggled, pushed and couldn't, etc. as if they have a soul fighting for their lives.

I hope you upgrade to a new one and continue the dream . . . I'm sooo sorry

 

[Skywatcher2001]

As he sank into the cold darkness, know that he bore you no ill will. For he soared higher than most dared to dream. The sky was his playground and the wind his cloak.

Saltwater stung his circuit boards and his time grew short. He thought of your smiling face one last time. And was gone.

yeah . . . this one got me too !

 

[dirkclod]

Sure hate it. Have lost several but not to the deep. Did find all mine after awhile..tore up but still had them. Just keep on moving ahead

 

[Kywon McCain]

Sure hate it. Have lost several but not to the deep. Did find all mine after awhile..tore up but still had them. Just keep on moving ahead

It gets unexplainably hard sometimes to just... move ahead...

 

[dirkclod]

It gets unexplainably hard sometimes to just... move ahead...

Understand but we must sometimes Kywon.

 

[Deleted member 93449]

Probably a dumb question but what was the rookie mistake?

 

[Kywon McCain]

Probably a dumb question but what was the rookie mistake?

Sometimes first time fliers makes mistakes. Thats a rookie mistake

 

[old man mavic]

@Kywon McCain ,thanks for your explanation of a rookie mistake
in all fairness what i think @2edgesword was asking ,was what was the rookie mistake @t4nk made

 

[Deleted member 93449]

@Kywon McCain ,thanks for your explanation of a rookie mistake
in all fairness what i think @2edgesword was asking ,was what was the rookie mistake @t4nk made

Yes, I was asking what specific mistake was made that caused the crash.

 

[Kywon McCain]

@Kywon McCain ,thanks for your explanation of a rookie mistake
in all fairness what i think @2edgesword was asking ,was what was the rookie mistake @t4nk made

^^^ this comment made me very happy and i have no idea why

 

[dirkclod]

^^^ this comment made me very happy and i have no idea why

Read and learn. Sometimes silence is golden.
The OP will say when he is ready. Speculation is worthless
@t4nk will say if he does what happened. Any thing else is
just blind speculation.

 

[t4nk]

Probably a dumb question but what was the rookie mistake?

There was this perfect sunset. And it was supposed to be the last flight before wrapping up because it started getting dark. Sensors were not working, but there was only plain sea around (I thought) and there was a live map which for some reason didn't show one giant rock. It was there later in flight record data. Anyway my mistake for flying in dark conditions.
Direct hit at 30 km/h and grey screen "aircraft disconnected". When you know it can't be connection disturbances it's really a gut wrenching thing to see. Next day I tried to swim to the crash site to find it (to save the footage at least) but currents were too strong and rocks too sharp so I aborted the mission. But I'll keep searching the beach with hope he is gonna be washed ashore.
I know I can get a new one, but it won't bring the same good memories, it won't have the same scars.
At least he died in a beautiful place.

P.S. Thanks all for kind words.

 

[Kywon McCain]

I cannot watch this thread anymore its too sad and i really feel bad for op

Out of all the drone loss and crash post i red here so far this one got me

To the op: I really hope you get your drone back
If you have that dji refreshment thingy they might can fix it or replace it for you

 

[mario54]

As I understand you, when I lost my first small brush motor drone, I searched for it for hours and hours because of the wind, however I think these expensive dji drones should have a lot more safety systems than they currently have, even at a cost. to pay them more. Your story filled me with sadness and increased the insecurity in my future flights. Regards Mario

 

[t4nk]

As I understand you, when I lost my first small brush motor drone, I searched for it for hours and hours because of the wind, however I think these expensive dji drones should have a lot more safety systems than they currently have, even at a cost. to pay them more. Your story filled me with sadness and increased the insecurity in my future flights. Regards Mario

Sadness will fade away with time. Sensors system worked pretty well in a good light. I got a clear warning that it's too dark and sensors are not working and I ignored it. Don't be discouraged by just one stupid operator.