High/Strong Wind Warnings?

Ron_Dog · Jul 10, 2017

This evening I was flying my Mavic Pro,and got a strong winds warning? (Brown box). The strange thing is there was hardly any wind blowing,I was at 300-350 ALT. Never seen this before,unless there was actually strong winds in the area! Can't figure out why it was being displayed?

Qoncussion · Jul 10, 2017

Winds above ground, especially at 300+ft can be far more pronounced than winds (or an apparent lack there of) on the ground. I live in the woods. On the ground, you can feel no wind at all. As soon as the Mavic rises above the tree tops, I often get wind warnings. It's very common for winds to be much higher at elevation than on the ground.

Ron_Dog · Jul 10, 2017

Qoncussion said:
Winds above ground, especially at 300+ft can be far more pronounced than winds (or an apparent lack there of) on the ground. I live in the woods. On the ground, you can feel no wind at all. As soon as the Mavic rises above the tree tops, I often get wind warnings. It's very common for winds to be much higher at elevation than on the ground.

Thanks,Kevin! I was also thinking about the thermals in the area? Would they trigger the warnings?

4wd · Jul 10, 2017

That first warning box is triggered below 15mph which is nothing to worry about but good to be aware of.
When it gets stronger you will see a amber warning scroll along the top - this is more serious and best not to do anything too ambitious.

With obstacle avoidance turned on, top speed is considerably reduced and this compromises it's ability to counteract wind too.
You can switch to sport mode to quickly regain higher speeds.
Note using intelligent modes turns on obstacle avoidance until you turn it off again - it is easy to forget this.

sparky1111 · Jul 10, 2017

You also get the opposite. I regularly fly over the sea and the wind can be calm on the sand yet if I walk about 10ft down to sea level it's very windy.
I guess u must trust the instrumentation sometimes.

DMac4200 · Jul 10, 2017

Pretty much get a wind waring every time I fly. Just make sure you have enough battery to get home if you are down wind.

MrsTreat · Jul 11, 2017

DMac4200 said:
Pretty much get a wind waring every time I fly. Just make sure you have enough battery to get home if you are down wind.

Do you ever get the amber warning?

2nckayakers · Jul 11, 2017

I don't think I have ever had the amber warning. I have been in some really stiff winds before though but never seen more than the standard red box warning.

mw174620 · Jul 11, 2017

Here is a simple chart showing the difference between wind in a city, a wooded area, and flat open land. It depicts how the wind speed can change drastically with height, esecially when going from a sheltered place on the surface, to wide open air at 400 feet.

mw174620 · Jul 11, 2017

Ron_Dog said:
This evening I was flying my Mavic Pro,and got a strong winds warning? (Brown box). The strange thing is there was hardly any wind blowing,I was at 300-350 ALT. Never seen this before,unless there was actually strong winds in the area! Can't figure out why it was being displayed?

Where were you flying? I can pull up the hodograph for that area from yesterday and probably show you where the wind speed increases with height. Also a good way to check wind at heights for future flights.

Hauptmann · Jul 11, 2017

I too got the high wind warning nearly every time I flew. The warnings were annoying, as wind has never been severe enough to be a problem for me. Just yesterday I changed the wind parameter to a higher wind speed to lessen the problem. Next windy day, I'll try out the new settings, and report.

scooot · Jul 11, 2017

Hauptmann said:
I too got the high wind warning nearly every time I flew. The warnings were annoying, as wind has never been severe enough to be a problem for me. Just yesterday I changed the wind parameter to a higher wind speed to lessen the problem. Next windy day, I'll try out the new settings, and report.

Can you point me in the direction of this setting please.

Turnerm · Jul 11, 2017

I get this very often. I only take it seriously if I see my speed being significantly impacted by the wind and then I just make sure I've got enough battery to get home if I'm going to be flying into a stiff headwind.

Hauptmann · Jul 11, 2017

scooot said:
Can you point me in the direction of this setting please.

The link below is a video which will lead you through the process of changing parameter settings. In the vid, he tweaks a lot of stuff you may decide to leave alone, as I did.

DMac4200 · Jul 11, 2017

MrsTreat said:
Do you ever get the amber warning?

Yes. I just make sure to keep it somewhat close and upwind if possible. Also the intelligent flight modes are a bit iffy when its windy.

FatherXmas · Jul 11, 2017

Qoncussion said:
Winds above ground, especially at 300+ft can be far more pronounced than winds (or an apparent lack there of) on the ground. I live in the woods. On the ground, you can feel no wind at all. As soon as the Mavic rises above the tree tops, I often get wind warnings. It's very common for winds to be much higher at elevation than on the ground.

Same here. I live deep in the woods, with the satellite view in Google maps, you can't see my house, just tree tops. Once I get to 100 feet or so, I get the first warning a lot.

scooot · Jul 11, 2017

Hauptmann said:
The link below is a video which will lead you through the process of changing parameter settings. In the vid, he tweaks a lot of stuff you may decide to leave alone, as I did.

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