IM SOOOO DEPRESSED

[old man mavic]

i went out to fly in January of this year,set off in a cold but sunny day drove for an hour to a spot in the Brecon beacons,and when i got there it was far to windy to fly my MM so i thought ok lets fly the MPP, by the time i had it all set up it started to rain sat in the car for around half an hour waiting for the rain to stop no luck it had set in for the day,finally gave up and went for some food, by now it was late afternoon and it was beginning to get dark by the time i got home i had driven about 120 miles in total
was i upset ,not really that's the nature of this hobby, but i still had both my drones in one piece and the following day i was able to get them both in the air
the pictures you want of somewhere, sometimes override your senses and you take risks to get them and that's when it can go badly wrong

 

[unionglzr]

No, I think he meant it the way he said it... JMO...be smart fly safe

i think sars was pulling your leg

 

[cyeung]

A drone eater ... I mean ... tree ... bit my drone once, so you are in good company. When it gets dark, your ability to gauge distance and detail becomes limited. If you are going to fly where lighting is limited, I encourage you to take a course on night flying (e.g. this one Gold Seal UAV Ground School | Pass your Part 107 Exam) and pick up a set of lights.

 

[AMann]

Just a bit of humor that I’ve shared with others here. Sorry for your loss!

 

[Classic flyer]

i think sars was pulling your leg

Gee ya think...LOL... BE SMART FLY SAFE

 

[AntDX316]

If you are flying at night you need to be 100% sure you are flying higher than the tallest obstacles at all times. If you have flown an area during the day and the ceiling of the tallest obstacles near you is 35m, if you fly at 50m+ you 100% know you will hit nothing.

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

If you are flying at night you need to be 100% sure you are flying higher than the tallest obstacles at all times. If you have flown an area during the day and the ceiling of the tallest obstacles near you is 35m, if you fly at 50m+ you 100% know you will hit nothing.

Also other obstacles you just can't see at night well, like poles / antenna, and transmission / telephone wires !!
Those wires are almost impossible to see during the day, let alone night.
Best to do a daytime flight of the same route you plan to do at night, and check surrounds in good light, noting all such problems areas to avoid later.

 

[AntDX316]

Also other obstacles you just can't see at night well, like poles / antenna, and transmission / telephone wires !!
Those wires are almost impossible to see during the day, let alone night.
Best to do a daytime flight of the same route you plan to do at night, and check surrounds in good light, noting all such problems areas to avoid later.

If I'm confident that it's clear I don't fly.

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

If I'm confident that it's clear I don't fly.

I guess you meant 'not confident'.

For sure, just saying, the poles, antenna, and particularly overhead wires are even more important than buildings at night.
I've seen videos of people literally flying through HT electricity cabling, hardly visible in the vids until last seconds, when flying they aren't really visible until you're in them with the viewing device vision.
There are usually some lights with buildings that could be seen, where the others have very little, or no such advantage.

We can't fly legally at night here (unless full licence and waiver), so guess if you're in the US and a hobbyist, you are lucky to have that freedom, with the pre flight common sense checks etc.

 

[AntDX316]

I guess you meant 'not confident'.

For sure, just saying, the poles, antenna, and particularly overhead wires are even more important than buildings at night.
I've seen videos of people literally flying through HT electricity cabling, hardly visible in the vids until last seconds, when flying they aren't really visible until you're in them with the viewing device vision.
There are usually some lights with buildings that could be seen, where the others have very little, or no such advantage.

We can't fly legally at night here (unless full licence and waiver), so guess if you're in the US and a hobbyist, you are lucky to have that freedom, with the pre flight common sense checks etc.

yeah of course : )

If you can see the horizon you are pretty much high enough. All you need to make sure of is can you climb on the spot and can you land on the spot, then you are free to roam anywhere. I had a FLIR XT in the air and you can see a lot of things in pitch-black darkness but it gets old after a while.

FPV drones are fun, fun for others though and you can go fast w/o limits except when you let go of the sticks it doesn't GPS hold and it can't RTH if you have an issue making it scary.

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

FPV drones are fun, fun for others though and you can go fast w/o limits except when you let go of the sticks it doesn't GPS hold and it can't RTH if you have an issue making it scary.

The FLIR would make all the difference of course
Would be nice to have, maybe one day.

FPV at night ? Not sure how many do that . . . I guess some might do some city lights cinematic type shoots, but in the main that is definitely a daytime thing, for obvious safety reasons, but mostly FPV type acrobatics are more suited to daytime filming.

Our cinematic GPS, 'pretty much fly themselves' consumer drones are easy to operate day or night, as long as the pilot has done the hard yards making sure safe flight is possible, and they fly close enough to ensure safe airspace for anything manned up there, then most of us know and can trust our drones day or night.
Of course anything can, and in very rare cases, does happen to the best of pilots, I'm sure that is always on the back of every pilots mind whenever taking off.
That's a good thing too, always expect to unexpected, be prepared by thinking each flight through before take off.

Cheers, and happy safe flights to you.

 

[AntDX316]

The FLIR would make all the difference of course
Would be nice to have, maybe one day.

FPV at night ? Not sure how many do that . . . I guess some might do some city lights cinematic type shoots, but in the main that is definitely a daytime thing, for obvious safety reasons, but mostly FPV type acrobatics are more suited to daytime filming.

Our cinematic GPS, 'pretty much fly themselves' consumer drones are easy to operate day or night, as long as the pilot has done the hard yards making sure safe flight is possible, and they fly close enough to ensure safe airspace for anything manned up there, then most of us know and can trust our drones day or night.
Of course anything can, and in very rare cases, does happen to the best of pilots, I'm sure that is always on the back of every pilots mind whenever taking off.
That's a good thing too, always expect to unexpected, be prepared by thinking each flight through before take off.

Cheers, and happy safe flights to you.

You need to setup the drone to have lights. Unless you are flying tactically or trying to have some sort of aerial light for illumination, it's just better to wait for day time to fly. It gets boring to fly imo unless you are flying over something different and photogenic or doing it for commercial purposes.

 

[lee82gx]

A drone eater ... I mean ... tree ... bit my drone once, so you are in good company. When it gets dark, your ability to gauge distance and detail becomes limited. If you are going to fly where lighting is limited, I encourage you to take a course on night flying (e.g. this one Gold Seal UAV Ground School | Pass your Part 107 Exam) and pick up a set of lights.

I thought I was aalone in my first crash, being an idiot. At least there appears to be a reasonable band of brothers here lol.

in OPs case I wonder if the lights on his M2z would have been bright enough to see and yet still be difficult to judge the heights....
In any case I offer my own condolences and say that it does feel sickening but surely you’ll get over it. Am glad everyone is safe and at the end of the day it’s just a burn in your wallet and perhaps a long nag from the wife if you dare tell.

 

[cyeung]

I thought I was aalone in my first crash, being an idiot. At least there appears to be a reasonable band of brothers here lol.

in OPs case I wonder if the lights on his M2z would have been bright enough to see and yet still be difficult to judge the heights....
In any case I offer my own condolences and say that it does feel sickening but surely you’ll get over it. Am glad everyone is safe and at the end of the day it’s just a burn in your wallet and perhaps a long nag from the wife if you dare tell.

The set of lights required by 14 CFR 107.29 help you gauge the height and orientation of the aircraft. More importantly, it helps any aircraft in the vicinity see you. You can also pick up a set of spotlights (e.g. from Lume Cube) to let you see forward.

 

[bapp1236]

Ok, I just have to vent. I crashed my M2Z last night. I was out with my M2P and the M2Z and it was getting dark. One last run is what I said to myself. Then, over the trees (I thought) and BAAM! Flight log stated "YOUR AN IDIOT!!" The rear arm broke off, et cetera. Like one of my kids getting injured. The LED lights scintillating through the trees, the sounds of the rotors mashing against the branches as it struggled to continue its objective. One leg gone, no more lift, only forward motion. No stopping it now. Another patch of trees, more mashing, and it was over. Just the blinking of the LEDs in the distant woods and a whisper through the trees, like vapors of mist, WHY, why'd you do it!
Well, there's no solace to the story. Even with the DJI Care Refresh, it wont be the same without her. Why? Why'd you do it.

Keep you eye out for a used one. I just picked up a used Zoom still under warranty with less than 5 hrs flight time and three batteries for $800.

 

[jpzend125]

Keep you eye out for a used one. I just picked up a used Zoom still under warranty with less than 5 hrs flight time and three batteries for $800.

What do you think is a safe site for used Drone?

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

What do you think is a safe site for used Drone?

A lot come up here in the classified section.

Classifieds

Buy and Sell Used Mavic Drones and Accessories

mavicpilots.com

Ebay, other local selling sites etc are a hit & miss affair, you could get lucky, or burned badly.

So, @E90RAW did you end up repairing or using Refresh ?
Back in the air ?
Depression fixed ?

 

[E90RAW]

A lot come up here in the classified section.

Classifieds

Buy and Sell Used Mavic Drones and Accessories

mavicpilots.com

Ebay, other local selling sites etc are a hit & miss affair, you could get lucky, or burned badly.

So, @E90RAW did you end up repairing or using Refresh ?
Back in the air ?
Depression fixed ?

Hey, thanks for thinking of me. I mailed it into DJI and awaiting their response. Repair worries me as it fell from 100 feet up. I would be worried about the IMU/accelerometers/et cetera, all that technology that keeps them flying. I still have my M2P.

 

[Thomas B]

Hey, thanks for thinking of me. I mailed it into DJI and awaiting their response. Repair worries me as it fell from 100 feet up. I would be worried about the IMU/accelerometers/et cetera, all that technology that keeps them flying. I still have my M2P.

DJI will not repair the drone. They will send a certified refurb if you select repairing it.

 

[E90RAW]

DJI will not repair the drone. They will send a certified refurb if you select repairing it.

Do they send a new one if you choose replacement or are they all refurb?