Learning to Fly

[Letac]

Go straight to the top and get a Mavic Pro. It has a beginners mode, tripod and cinema mode that restrict speed heights etc so that you do not get into serious trouble. From reading this site for 4 months I see that most problems of failure are caused by pilot error ie. flying when too windy and by not being in line of sight.

Mavic Pro has been out for a while, and while it can fly longer and farther, from what I have gathered so far, the quality of footage is lower than that of the Mavic Air. And since footage quality is crucial for what I do, the Air is what I'd go with. Also, my intention is to upgrade to Phanton 5 once it's out (and I know how to fly it), so my hope is that I'll lose less once I sell the Air.

I think I'll get a cheap drone just to get a sense of how things work, then I'll go with the real thing. Thanks to all for your answers, this has been really useful.

 

[MavicCF]

I totally agree with getting a cheap 4ch to start with. Just makes sence to me to spend an extra $50 to help keep your $1000 investment safe! Someone mentioned the Eachine E58 and I would second that, awesome little guy plus it can be your Mavic's little brother. -CF

 

[ICHOTT]

[QUOTE="Letac, post: 417616, member: 53230"]I got my certificate the other day and I was about to order a Mavic Air just hours ago, but then I realized I'd never read a word about learning to fly a drone.

Something here is not making sense to me.
They are now saying that children born this year will never need to learn to drive a motor vehicle.
It may be only a few years away when you will not need to physically touch your controller, it could be done with voice alone. You will however need to read the instructions to know which voice commands the craft will respond to. You must have read something "to get your certificate", you must have read something to post to the forum, why would anybody not spend a couple of hours to read the instructions. Sorry this smells like a wind up.[/QUOTE]
Totally agree - what certificate?
What does one do to get a certificate?
Then realise you’ve never read something . . .?
Total rubbish . . .
Please

 

[dronerdave]

Heck I love flying small toy drones. By far I have more fun trying to crash whoever you're flying against into the ground. I've got a couple of these little Heliway and I'm not so worried about flying inside or destroying them. Super fun outside when it's calm, are tough, and they're quick. The Eachine E 58 is so much like a Mavic visually (for 60 bucks why not), but the real thing is quite different. I was allowed to fly a P3P for an hour or more a friend had so the Mavic felt somewhat comfortable on my first flights. At least the screen had similar characteristics. Maybe wait till the Tello is on the market? At a hundred bucks yeah I want one.


Ryze DJI Tello
Heliway 903 with altitude hold

 

[JMF]

Learning To Fly, good Pink Floyd tune.....

 

[microlinux]

If you have a teen getting ready to to drive, I recommend you buy them a battery powered Barbie car first so they can learn how to drive the real thing . . . or if you want a pilot's license, you should hit up the Dumbo ride at Disney world first.

 

[ifly2high]

If you have a teen getting ready to to drive, I recommend you buy them a battery powered Barbie car first so they can learn how to drive the real thing . . . or if you want a pilot's license, you should hit up the Dumbo ride at Disney world first.

Lol ...I agree but, I had fun with a couple cheaper drones basically to make sure I wanted to spring the big $ for a dji drone, which I did!

 

[lightbg]

Here's my nomination for trainer drone::

$69.99 USD with controller , battery, and charger. Basic stuff, but Mode 2 sticks, AND this was the basis for the Tiny Whoop - the easiest and most fun way to get into FPV on a budget. Great indoors, can fly outside, and put a mini camera and get some goggles, and you're into FPV with minimal investment.

Inductrix: Blade - #1 By Design
Jake

 

[dronerdave]

If you have a teen getting ready to to drive, I recommend you buy them a battery powered Barbie car first so they can learn how to drive the real thing . . . or if you want a pilot's license, you should hit up the Dumbo ride at Disney world first.

Well I kinda agree. Two different worlds with stick control similarities. But I'll bet a lot of DJI drone owners who have never flown a toy one would probably crash it (a toy version) within the first few minutes of flight. There's a big difference between cheap drones and something like the Spark, Mavic, or Phantom series aircraft. I'd say buy a toy drone for the fun of flying it and expect to crash. If the OP really wants to be careful, fly with somebody who has actually been using a DJI quad during the first few flights. That's what I did and a couple days later I was out of beginner mode and off to more challenging targets.

 

[j_man99]

Love my MPP, but HAD to check out the E58. Great 2MP/720 camera, onboard MicroSD, video streaming to free smartphone app, under $100 (w/2 extra

 

[j_man99]

Well I kinda agree. Two different worlds with stick control similarities. But I'll bet a lot of DJI drone owners who have never flown a toy one would probably crash it (a toy version) within the first few minutes of flight. There's a big difference between cheap drones and something like the Spark, Mavic, or Phantom series aircraft. I'd say buy a toy drone for the fun of flying it and expect to crash. If the OP really wants to be careful, fly with somebody who has actually been using a DJI quad during the first few flights. That's what I did and a couple days later I was out of beginner mode and off to more challenging targets.

Hi there I’m new here don’t know if this is a crack or a not crack on my mavic air only fly it 8 times!

 

[Letac]

Something here is not making sense to me.
They are now saying that children born this year will never need to learn to drive a motor vehicle.
It may be only a few years away when you will not need to physically touch your controller, it could be done with voice alone. You will however need to read the instructions to know which voice commands the craft will respond to. You must have read something "to get your certificate", you must have read something to post to the forum, why would anybody not spend a couple of hours to read the instructions. Sorry this smells like a wind up.

Totally agree - what certificate?
What does one do to get a certificate?
Then realise you’ve never read something . . .?
Total rubbish . . .
Please [/QUOTE]

One becomes a licensed drone pilot. Becoming a Pilot

 

[microlinux]

I'll bet a lot of DJI drone owners who have never flown a toy one would probably crash it (a toy version) within the first few minutes of flight. There's a big difference between cheap drones and something like the Spark, Mavic, or Phantom series aircraft. I'd say buy a toy drone for the fun of flying it and expect to crash.

Oh, no doubt. Count me among those people! They're fun, nothing wrong with them.

It just seems absurd to me to say a Mavic in ATTI flies the same . . .

 

[Gruven]

I very deliberately started with an $80 toy and learned stick movements and other basics before I got the MP. I think it helped. One time flying in a tight spot on a windy day I had to maneuver with no GPS suddenly and without warning. I didn’t panic precisely because I know how to fly a dumb drone. I’m certain I would have lost the MP in the rapids I was over if I hadn’t learned the basics first. For me, it was just a matter of feeling comfortable and confident in my ability to fly. Just my two cents.

 

[dronerdave]

I very deliberately started with an $80 toy and learned stick movements and other basics before I got the MP. I think it helped. One time flying in a tight spot on a windy day I had to maneuver with no GPS suddenly and without warning. I didn’t panic precisely because I know how to fly a dumb drone. I’m certain I would have lost the MP in the rapids I was over if I hadn’t learned the basics first. For me, it was just a matter of feeling comfortable and confident in my ability to fly. Just my two cents.

I went the other route and purchased a cheap Syma X5 for a friend and myself after I had been flying my Mavic. I was able to almost fly the X5 out of the box because I was somewhat expecting what would happen. Of course I didn't get too far before it hit the ground especially since it didn't have altitude hold.
I've only had one major incident with ATTI mode on my Mavic and this was after I was a bit proficient with the few cheapo drones I had. Did it help? Maybe. Was I excited and freaked what the Mavic was doing even though I had been doing pretty good on my cheapo's? Sheer panic. But I made it back to about 50 feet from my launching pad. At home it said the FW was out of date, and after an update, it has yet to happen again. Probably just a matter of time though. I agree with others saying that the Mavic series should have a way to acquaint yourself with the ATTI mode. It's best to practice with the real McCoy IMO.

 

[ICHOTT]

Totally agree - what certificate?
What does one do to get a certificate?
Then realise you’ve never read something . . .?
Total rubbish . . .
Please

One becomes a licensed drone pilot. Becoming a Pilot[/QUOTE]
WHAT! You’ve become a “licensed drone pilotl and start this thread stating you ”realised you’ve not learned how to fly a drone” get a life and go trolling elsewhere,
Please don’t reply further to this goons empty queries just to get a reaction !!!!!

 

[Launchpad McQuack]

It's a shame there's not an official way to put the Mavic into ATTI mode manually. There are some hacks people have suggested, but I'd be cautious of anything that doesn't allow to you move in and out of ATTI from the controller/device.

If you're concerned that you wouldn't be able to manually pilot the Mavic back against the forces of nature, you may be flying in conditions generally beyond your skill level. Take it slow and get a feel for how it's reacting to your inputs, don't panic.

Thank you

 

[Letac]

One becomes a licensed drone pilot. Becoming a Pilot

WHAT! You’ve become a “licensed drone pilotl and start this thread stating you ”realised you’ve not learned how to fly a drone” get a life and go trolling elsewhere,
Please don’t reply further to this goons empty queries just to get a reaction !!!!![/QUOTE]
You have some serious emotional issues. You should address those, for the sake of people around you. In case there are any.

 

[ICHOTT]

WHAT! You’ve become a “licensed drone pilotl and start this thread stating you ”realised you’ve not learned how to fly a drone” get a life and go trolling elsewhere,
Please don’t reply further to this goons empty queries just to get a reaction !!!!!

You have some serious emotional issues. You should address those, for the sake of people around you. In case there are any.[/QUOTE]
Nah, not really, just amazed at the contrast of some fabulous questions and advice on here and the occasional weird questions “I’ve got a certificate to fly a drone but I just realised I’ve never read how to fly a drone - advice please”

Suspiciously odd and ingenuine, that’s all.

Have you read any responses to your post, taken any advice, got a drone yet (no), ignore the few ‘you know’ who have crashed theirs and listen to those thousands who haven’t.

Anyway, get one, any one, fly it, enjoy it, that’s all most of us do!

 

[Letac]

Happy to report that I took the advice from those of you who recommended getting a "toy" drone to learn some basics. The E58 had a rough afternoon yesterday in my backyard (lots of trees around + some wind), so today I went to a large (and empty) park and had a great time. I didn't expect to enjoy it as much. Have 3 more batteries coming today and can't wait to do it again.