is the MM its own worst enemy?

[xspwhite]

This is what the Mavic Mini was intended for.

 

[Antaire]

But also does this very good

 

[Paulf10]

But it is a forcast not the actual condition. Willing to bet your Mini on a weather forcast. It was supposed to rain here yesteady but it didn't.

Perhaps you have not actually used the app or at the very least do not know how to use it. The UAV Forecast app most certainly does give current conditions. In fact it’s the main purpose of the app. It’s amazing when you see the different wind speeds at different altitudes. The indicators which tell you if it’s good to fly or not all have the ability to be set by the end user.

The UAV Forecast app is pretty much a must have tool for all drone pilots. I mean no offense but Please don’t spread misinformation on something that you don’t understand. Others will take it as fact.

 

[efer]

I took mine to Anguilla and flew it in high winds over the ocean and it truly handled itself very well. I was surprised and, I guess, very lucky.

 

[AIredale1]

The MM is my first drone and I am well aware of what it can do and what it cannot do.
It doesn't take a genius to realize that an aircraft that weighs less than 250 grams and is powered by 4 very small motors is going to have problems in high winds.
You must educate yourself and know the crafts limitations.
I too use UAV Forecast and I'm bright enough to know that when it shows this (see attached) you don't even think about flying.

 

[Paulf10]

The MM is my first drone and I am well aware of what it can do and what it cannot do.
It doesn't take a genius to realize that an aircraft that weighs less than 250 grams and is powered by 4 very small motors is going to have problems in high winds.
You must educate yourself and know the crafts limitations.
I too use UAV Forecast and I'm bright enough to know that when it shows this (see attached) you don't even think about flying.View attachment 89948

Well said sir!

 

[atsphenomenon]

I took mine to Anguilla and flew it in high winds over the ocean and it truly handled itself very well. I was surprised and, I guess, very lucky.

Same for me. In retrospect, i think i was plain lucky. Don't get me wrong, i was quite aware that the wind was strong, but the mm seemed to take it all in. This is when i travelled to Africa immediately after getting the mm. Once back, and joining this forum, i think i was very very lucky. I've flown it over the ocean, over the hills, and cliffs, at wind speeds of what i think we're easily 30+kmph.

 

[sar104]

it's a bit like fishing to use an analogy you buy the best rod you can, the best reel, get all the best spec gear, sit on the river bank for 6 hours and don't catch anything,
then along comes a fellow with a simple pole with a length of line and a hook tied to the end casts out and lands the biggest fish you have ever seen its not about the equipment its knowing where the fish are and it's the same with our drones

It's definitely all about knowing where your drone is...

 

[Sticksandgrips]

But it is a forcast not the actual condition. Willing to bet your Mini on a weather forcast. It was supposed to rain here yesteady but it didn't.

Maybe you don’t use it it is real time data. Not a forecast. Well then again I always use the airport location for it.

 

[sar104]

Perhaps you have not actually used the app or at the very least do not know how to use it. The UAV Forecast app most certainly does give current conditions. In fact it’s the main purpose of the app. It’s amazing when you see the different wind speeds at different altitudes. The indicators which tell you if it’s good to fly or not all have the ability to be set by the end user.

The UAV Forecast app is pretty much a must have tool for all drone pilots. I mean no offense but Please don’t spread misinformation on something that you don’t understand. Others will take it as fact.

The displayed winds aloft values in UAV Forecast are just forecasts - not current conditions. How do you imagine that they are being measured?

 

[raymacke]

Maybe I don’t understand. Please explain where and how the conditions are measured by UAV. From what I understand they are using forecast from Dark Sky and interpolating the data in a format geared to pilots. I certainly could be wrong.

 

[chriscuk]

I appreciate that the values on UAV are only estiamtes and going out further than a day is generally pointless but I've confirmed with a friend who flies for the army and the data is rather close to their predictions of wind-speeds at altitude. Sure they dont really care about the low stuff but the upper ranges on uav seems comparable.

 

[xspwhite]

The MM is my first drone and I am well aware of what it can do and what it cannot do.
It doesn't take a genius to realize that an aircraft that weighs less than 250 grams and is powered by 4 very small motors is going to have problems in high winds.
You must educate yourself and know the crafts limitations.
I too use UAV Forecast and I'm bright enough to know that when it shows this (see attached) you don't even think about flying.View attachment 89948

I cant wait to get a MM, but I cetainly wont fly it the same as I do my big drones.

 

[old man mavic]

for me the biggest problem with deciding if the conditions are ok for flying ,is the fact that in quite a small time frame ,they can go from ok to not ok, no amount of apps, assessment of the surroundings, looking at the trees ect,will make any difference if the wind and weather suddenly change and as drone fliers those situations require us to be able to react in an appropriate manner to bring our AC back safely, this is why i advocate learning to fly your drone manually,RTH is not going to cut it in certain conditions, but taking control and reducing altitude increasing forwards speed and looking for somewhere safe to land if the battery is getting low,will increase your chances of your drone living to fly another day

 

[pmshop]

I'll hop into the wind apps and devices arguement.
1) an anemometer only tells you wind at ground level.
The fly-aways are caused by winds at upper levels making an anemometer worthless.
2) I just checked out wind compass and it is the same - no upper level winds.
3) Contrary to prior posts, UAV Forecast does indeed have real time readings for upper level winds in the first bar separated from the rest of the readings.

 

[pmshop]

for me the biggest problem with deciding if the conditions are ok for flying ,is the fact that in quite a small time frame ,they can go from ok to not ok, no amount of apps, assessment of the surroundings, looking at the trees ect,will make any difference if the wind and weather suddenly change and as drone fliers those situations require us to be able to react in an appropriate manner to bring our AC back safely, this is why i advocate learning to fly your drone manually,RTH is not going to cut it in certain conditions, but taking control and reducing altitude increasing forwards speed and looking for somewhere safe to land if the battery is getting low,will increase your chances of your drone living to fly another day

Very true.
That was my very first fly-away.
Had the wind to my face, sent out a SYMA X8C to photograph an old farm house.
While it was out there, the winds shifted 180° and carried off the drone.

 

[dlincecum]

Well people don’t read the manual but the controller says “high wind land immediately”
That’s a pretty good warning. Promo videos usually promote the great things you can do with the product. Only drug commercials tell you how you may be risking your life by using the drug! I don’t think this is a scheme to make more sales. The mini appeals to first time buyers like me and the risks are mine alone.

 

[raymacke]

UAV Forecast does indeed have real time readings for upper level winds

But still no answer to my question. HOW are these readings obtained. Without that information you have no idea if they are really accurate. Why do you believe they ARE totally accurate? I am not saying they aren't, just want to know their method before I trust my MM to their data. All that is mentioned on their web site is they are using Dark Sky.

data is rather close to their predictions

How close? I hate to be a PITA about this but a difference of only 8 to 10 mph can be a death wish for the MM.

The fly-aways are caused by winds at upper levels making an anemometer worthless

Agreed but when you "think" the wind on the ground is 18 to 20 mph and it is actually 25 you setting up for a failure. And there are numerous YouTube videos giving new pilots the impression it is safe to fly in "20 mph" wind.

 

[netsonic]

Read the thread and everyone is right about the drone and it's capabilities. I'd like however to point out that you as a pilot should be aware of your capabilities as well, respective to visual line of sight. The mini is small, if you follow it while flying you are seeing it, then you turn around for 1 second and when you look up again, you cannot longer see it. This can happen to those with good eyesight, there is no hidden message. It's color on a sunny day is blending just perfectly with the blue sky once it's more than 120 m away from you and 45-60 m altitude.

As for the height, the max altitude I went for was 204 m. Mini was a small spot, but kept its position. I am watching closely and if there is any sudden movement or adrift I am prepared to immediately descend.

 

[johnbirt]

the risks are mine alone.

Not exactly. Even 249g falling on someone's head or next door's car puts others at risk. I doubt that those who don't bother to read manuals will pause to give that much thought.