How do you judge "too windy"?

[edfrombama]

Good morning to all-
Being an old sailboat person, I am very sensitive to wind strength and wind behavior. I've been knocked down many times when I misjudged wind or the wind strength changed on me.

Anyway, I wonder how you all make judgements on fly/no fly when it comes to the Mini 2.

I look at the trees and the flag down at my flying field. If the main body of the trees is moving with the wind, I don't fly. If the flag is blowing out straight, I don't fly. And I pay particular attention to irregular wind gusts and calms, These are the conditions that present the most challenge to me- either flying my drone or sailing.

Interested in seeing how you make your decisions.

good day to all- Ed

 

[old man mavic]

@edfrombama very similar to yourself check first using UAV forecast and then when i get to the place where i am going to fly look at trees to give me an idea of wind velocity ,
also the terrain you are flying over can have a big part to play in wind strength and direction,
and although most of the time the wind tends to be stronger the higher you go ,that is not a guarantee that it will always be so, the wind can change direction and speed at different heights
a good way to assess the drones ability to handle a given wind is to take off and observe it in the hover if it goes straight up and sits fairly level ,then it should be ok to fly
if on the other hand it drifts with the wind on take off and then leans into the wind as it fights it ,then probably best to wait for better conditions
one other thing if you get a high wind warning on the screen while you are flying ,dont ignore it
react by reducing altitude and also look at the attitude indicator to see how much the drone is having to adjust to hold its position
a steady wind is much better than sudden gusts ,as these can catch you out and cause the drone to become unstable

 

[slup]

The first guidance you get is the info regarding maximum air speed for the different modes & max wind speed resistance you get from the specification ... regarding the Mini 2 they are:



It's not fully clear what DJI means by the "Max Wind Speed Resistance" ... but it can be the wind limits where the drone no longer can hover in place without drifting.

Out from the "Max Speed" you easily see what a remaining ground speed will be for the different modes if the drone have a head wind slowing the ground speed down ... if in S-mode with full forward into a head wind velocity of 16m/s ... the drone will not do any progress at all as the remaining ground speed will be 0m/s.

Then you have to judge what wind speed you actually face in reality ... including gusts. You can get a indication from various apps that not only give forecasts for ground level (you rarely fly on ground level) ... instead on higher altitudes where your drone actually will be during a flight.

One popular app is UAV Forecast ... get it here:

Android: UAV Forecast for DJI Quadcopter & UAV Drone Pilots - Apps on Google Play
IOS: ‎UAV Forecast

But note that various apps only give forecasts ... not real values from where you actually fly. To come around this you either test the winds out by going up on the height you will fly on & fly against the wind with full speed & take note of which ground speed you achieve ... getting 10m/s ground speed in S-mode, then you have winds+gusts up to 6m/s.

And to all this you will over time learn what your drone model can handle & what you're willing to risk ... & what that correlates to regarding trees, flags & so on.

Furthermore ... you should also get the habit to always fly out against the wind when in doubt ... if you have misjudged the wind speed then it will be easy to get your drone home as it will have a tail wind on the return leg.

 

[Deleted member 103366]

I look at the trees. If I am still uncertain it is useful to switch the gimbal to FPV mode and, at various heights, do a slow 360 yaw whilst the drone is in a hover. The image will tilt as the drone approaches side on to the wind, there amount of tilt is indicative of the wind strength. With a Phantom 3 I simply switch it to ATTI mode.

 

[Meta4]

Anyway, I wonder how you all make judgements on fly/no fly

Wind speed is only part of the story.
You also need to factor in the wind direction and consider how that will affect your intended flight.

 

[Paint Rock Drones]

I live not far from an airport that reports actual wind speed hourly (in addition to forecast). I use the Avia Weather app as a convenient way to view that data. Then if I decide to go out, I look at the trees and observe the hover as described by previous posters.

 

[Phantomrain.org]

In general , when I want to fly its because there is a reason to fly , and that wind might have everything to do with it. and that means getting comfortable with the wind even when is scary.

So I have a rule of thumb , if I lift the drone in Hover Position and it shifts more than 8 ft in standard Mode Im out.
But If it sways between the 6 to 8 ft I know that in Sport mode I can manage.

So the Wind Speed is not as Important as to what is actually happening with the Drone in front of me.

2o mph = 4 ft shift
30 mph = 6 ft shift
35 mph = 8 ft
40 /up = 8 to blowing clear away

Each drone is a little different but you can do your own tests, but get comfortable with the wind , its part of flying and being a good seasoned pilot.

Sometimes winds dont let up : See VIDEO

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

 

[MS Coast]

I look at the trees. If I am still uncertain it is useful to switch the gimbal to FPV mode and, at various heights, do a slow 360 yaw whilst the drone is in a hover. The image will tilt as the drone approaches side on to the wind, there amount of tilt is indicative of the wind strength. With a Phantom 3 I simply switch it to ATTI mode.

Hovering and checking the attitude indicator in the compass tool (lower left corner of the Fly app screen) is a quick way to understand the drone's pitch in response to wind.

 

[EsaT]

I live not far from an airport that reports actual wind speed hourly (in addition to forecast). I use the Avia Weather app as a convenient way to view that data. Then if I decide to go out, I look at the trees and observe the hover as described by previous posters.

Actually METARs are updated twice in hour in many airports.

Anyway nowadays should be easy to find basically almost realtime weather station data from web.

 

[PascalG]

There are many apps with actual wind speed data pretty much all over the world. That said in many places turbulence and terrain will have a significant impact

I use my drone from a boat 99% of the time so I am a bit more conservative when it comes to wind and avoid flying it over 15/18 knots. Coming back to land can be tricky when it’s windy. I always land and take off from the bow area to avoid turbulence from the boat but even then when the boat swing on its anchor it can be tricky. If it s blowing i dont land but grab and flick instead

 

[Deleted member 103366]

Hovering and checking the attitude indicator in the compass tool (lower left corner of the Fly app screen) is a quick way to understand the drone's pitch in response to wind.

Ahh I keep forgetting about the artificial horizon thing, it's not available in the Fly app I use with my Mavic Mini and unfortunately I don't like the later versions of the app.

 

[Paint Rock Drones]

Actually METARs are updated twice in hour in many airports.

Anyway nowadays should be easy to find basically almost realtime weather station data from web.

True. KBED reports every hour, unless there is a special. But some places do more often. I use the app for convenience; METARs are indeed available from other sources.

 

[vindibona1]

I use UAV forecast and look at trees and available flags. UAV forecast will help you determine anticipated wind speed at altitude. Right now, here, on the ground the wind speed is 12mph w/ 28mph gusts (we yanks don't do m/s). Att 100' AGL it becomes 15mph/30mph and at 250' 18mph/32mph. This would be generally unsuitable for my Mini 2. It could probably fly in these winds but would be unstable and the battery power would be more limited as the motors fight the wind. I wouldn't have a problem flying my Mavic 2, but would be cautious and make sure I flew out into the wind so I'd have a tail wind upon return as again, battery life is the concern.

 

[eaglesurfing]

When it blows off my Toupee, then I know it time to go inside.

 

[db4476]

In general , when I want to fly its because there is a reason to fly , and that wind might have everything to do with it. and that means getting comfortable with the wind even when is scary.

So I have a rule of thumb , if I lift the drone in Hover Position and it shifts more than 8 ft in standard Mode Im out.
But If it sways between the 6 to 8 ft I know that in Sport mode I can manage.

So the Wind Speed is not as Important as to what is actually happening with the Drone in front of me.

2o mph = 4 ft shift
30 mph = 6 ft shift
35 mph = 8 ft
40 /up = 8 to blowing clear away

Each drone is a little different but you can do your own tests, but get comfortable with the wind , its part of flying and being a good seasoned pilot.

Sometimes winds dont let up : See VIDEO

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

"Each drone is a little different but you can do your own tests, but get comfortable with the wind , its part of flying and being a good seasoned pilot. "

I agree, I often fly in wind at the coast and several times the wind has got hold of a drone, and it was a challenge to get the drone back, once I had to land where the drone was as there was no way to bring it back in that wind. The "secret" is to keep a level head and work through your options as you did in the video. Good piloting sir!

Cheers

 

[tibadoe]

UAV forecast and a little common sense. After some time, you just know when it's too much for your drone.

 

[db4476]

Using Apps and online resources is a good starting point, but I find that information to be general, not specific to a particular location. For that reason, I almost always have a handheld Anemometer in my kit. This makes it much easier to decide whether to fly or not. Just some added insurance and peace of mind for me.

Cheers!

 

[TwoSticks]

My limit with the Mini is about 25MPH using UAV Weather set to 100ft. At that point or just before I switch to a larger drone. If traveling and only have the mini I just dont fly.

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

Hovering and checking the attitude indicator in the compass tool (lower left corner of the Fly app screen) is a quick way to understand the drone's pitch in response to wind.

This is great they brought this in for the Fly app, and the way I monitor wind when increasing altitude.
Drop a sec and check what’s happening to attitude markings, will show what direction wind is coming from, and approx strength by exactly how the drone is coping.

 

[Phantomrain.org]

My limit with the Mini is about 25MPH using UAV Weather set to 100ft. At that point or just before I switch to a larger drone. If traveling and only have the mini I just dont fly.

So much for me being the Dare Devil : 25 mph with the Mini 2 is preposterous lol

Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly in the Rain.