Lost Zoom. Need advice.

[joshmentele]

I lost my Mavic 2 Zoom about a month after purchase. I flew along the shore in Florida but about 100 yds out over the water, parallel to the shore, roughly. I had the drone in sight, but lost all contact instantly. The controller immediately began searching to reconnect. The aircraft also failed to RTH as it was set to do and had done in the past. I could see the aircraft over the water hovering with 28 minutes of battery remaining. All attempts to reconnect failed. I couldn't stand there and watch my drone go in the drink, so I left.

I filed a claim with DJI and after uploading my flight data and explaining what happened, they've offered me a 30% discount on a new aircraft (only). I realize that without the old lost aircraft, they are in a tough spot. I suppose I could have dropped the drone into a waiting boat and then falsely claim I lost it. Anyway....

I responded and asked for a discount on a new controller as well, being that I can no longer trust the controller to not have been the problem that caused my original loss. They replied that I am free to send the controller in for warranty repair, but no discount on a new one. What happens if they find a faulty controller?

Not looking for something for nothing, but at these price points, I would hope DJI would work to keep the customers they have than to overly protect themselves from fraud. I lost a $1300 drone by obvious failure of the product. Should I pursue a controller repair or call it and buy a new drone with controller?

I would have stayed to see if the drone would reconnect or return to home rather than assume it was gone for good.

My suggestion to you is to get a new drone. Something like the Autel Evo. Autel probably would have replaced you drone as I heard a story very similar to yours and it was replaced for free by Autel. Currently, Autel is giving you 2 extra batteries, extra props, and a case for free when you buy an Evo.

 

[ajbeebster]

I would have stayed to see if the drone would reconnect or return to home rather than assume it was gone for good.

My suggestion to you is to get a new drone. Something like the Autel Evo. Autel probably would have replaced you drone as I heard a story very similar to yours and it was replaced for free by Autel. Currently, Autel is giving you 2 extra batteries, extra props, and a case for free when you buy an Evo.

I stayed on the beach, just left the spot where it was out over the water. didn't watch it go in. Wife was at RTH. Couldn't bear to. Thanks. Will check them out.

 

[ajbeebster]

Did you retrieve the drone, assuming it went in the water?

It went in the water. The lack of drone works out bad for DJI purposes, but good for insurance purposes. DJI wants the old drone, insurance MIGHT cover loss, but not failure. Jury still out.

 

[ajbeebster]

Or winds.
To little to late, but when I run into the sun "spotting" issue, I just rotate the drone maybe 15/30 degrees and carry on/home.
But yes, I am curious to see the data....

Interesting because I seldom rotate to steer unless it's sharper turning. I tend to steer by slipping left or right. I also got an unexplained collision avoidance warning for no apparent reason and I didn't change flight direction much for the whole 2-minute flight.

 

[dvarapala]

I could see the aircraft over the water hovering with 28 minutes of battery remaining. All attempts to reconnect failed. I couldn't stand there and watch my drone go in the drink, so I left.

Had this happened to me, I would have spent all 28 of those minutes trying everything I could possibly think of to reconnect, including cycling power on everything. As a last resort, I would have waded/swam out to where it was going to land to try and catch it and/or retrieve the carcass.

 

[ajbeebster]

Had this happened to me, I would have spent all 28 of those minutes trying everything I could possibly think of to reconnect, including cycling power on everything. As a last resort, I would have waded/swam out to where it was going to land to try and catch it and/or retrieve the carcass.

I did all of that except get in the water. And as I type this, it may have been a good decision as it seems more likely to get a new one from my credit card loss insurance policy than had I recovered it only to have DJI they won't replace it because they can't demonstrate with flight data that anything went wrong.

 

[ajbeebster]

I would have stayed to see if the drone would reconnect or return to home rather than assume it was gone for good.

My suggestion to you is to get a new drone. Something like the Autel Evo. Autel probably would have replaced you drone as I heard a story very similar to yours and it was replaced for free by Autel. Currently, Autel is giving you 2 extra batteries, extra props, and a case for free when you buy an Evo.

I like that the screen is built in. I never had great confidence in the use of a nonproprietary device (iphone) with a DJI controller. Apps are another whole story.

 

[sar104]

I did all of that except get in the water. And as I type this, it may have been a good decision as it seems more likely to get a new one from my credit card loss insurance policy than had I recovered it only to have DJI they won't replace it because they can't demonstrate with flight data that anything went wrong.

Are you going to post the flight data?

 

[ajbeebster]

DAT

 

[ajbeebster]

TXT

 

[ajbeebster]

Are you going to post the flight data?

It wouldn't let me post them as a reply to you, so they're on the thread. It wouldn't even let me upload them together.

 

[Meta4]

I lost my Mavic 2 Zoom about a month after purchase. I flew along the shore in Florida but about 100 yds out over the water, parallel to the shore, roughly. I had the drone in sight, but lost all contact instantly. The controller immediately began searching to reconnect. The aircraft also failed to RTH as it was set to do and had done in the past. I could see the aircraft over the water hovering with 28 minutes of battery remaining. All attempts to reconnect failed. I couldn't stand there and watch my drone go in the drink, so I left.

I'm puzzled that you said you could see the drone as it was 3500 ft away from the launch point.
Where were you that you could see the drone?

 

[ajbeebster]

I'm puzzled that you said you could see the drone as it was 3500 ft away from the launch point.
Where were you that you could see the drone?

On the beach looking down the flight path parallel to the shore. I realized i was further from shore than I wanted to be so made a slight correction left (west) before losing contact. I could see the drone over water. I immediately raised the controller in the air, running north on the beach (roughly down the flight path). I toggled RTH options. I flipped antennas. I can't remember all the things I did simply trying to reconnect, knowing it wasn't returning to home. My wife was at the launch site. I returned to the launch site ultimately taking my eyes off the drone, but by the time it flew just shy of 2 minutes, I ran the three thousand whatever feet up the beach to hopelessly see it over water, stand there trying to get it to reconnect in vane. I ultimately restarted the whole controller, but obviously as a last resort. I realize a seagull could have killed it, or sun spots or solar flares or just dumb luck. It sucks. I should have shed my clothes to retrieve a drone I would have expected might be covered if I was able to produce it. I didn't. Shame on me. I've been labeled an irresponsible drone pilot for some reason. Abandoning a hovering drone out over the ocean I guess. But my question was and is, should I take an offer by DJI of a replacement aircraft only for 30% off (I don't know the dollar value of just the aircraft.) and have to either use it with a suspect controller, or pay retail and bank on a credit card loss insurance claim to succeed. I don't think I'd trust the controller even if it went for a warranty check, so I think I'm answering my own question. I did pick up a few causes though and some lessons. I discovered my credit card has loss coverage on anything purchased with the card for 90 days. This will play a role in my future purchases. I few I can think of I'd have used, had I known. Another lesson is that the insurance policy expects a loss and a warranty claim requires a failure (i.e. can provide aircraft remains). Each precludes the other. The insurance company has already asked for any compensation provided by the manufacturer. I don't want to burn a claim by accepting a 30% off aircraft I have to use with a suspect controller. Now I'm repeating myself. Long day. I will fly again. Maybe tomorrow.

 

[ajbeebster]

Or winds.
To little to late, but when I run into the sun "spotting" issue, I just rotate the drone maybe 15/30 degrees and carry on/home.
But yes, I am curious to see the data....

I remembered the winds being relatively calm and the flight data showed between 1 and 2 mph if I remember right

 

[DanMan32]

I have to remember about OA issues with sun glare, conflict with RTH and signal loss. The perfect storm. That could have happened to me late this afternoon when I flew about an hour before sunset, much of it up and down a small river.
We/DJI need to work something around that catch-22.

 

[Meta4]

TXT

We have two issues, loss of signal and failure to return
This is probably why you lost signal

You flew past a bump in the coast at the golf club, following the beach.
Your Mavic was low, only 31 ft above launch point.
This resulted in you flying the Mavic behind the golf course bump and the line of sight from the controller to the drone (the yellow line) was blocked.

Shame on me. I've been labeled an irresponsible drone pilot for some reason. Abandoning a hovering drone out over the ocean I guess.

You are reading a different thread from the one I am.
I haven't seen those accusations.

I ran the three thousand whatever feet up the beach to hopelessly see it over water, stand there trying to get it to reconnect in vane.

So you would have been only a couple of hundred feet away?

The failure to return is a puzzle as we have no data to look at after you lost signal.
That the drone sat there suggests that it may have lost the downlink but not the uplink.
Normally it is very easy to reconnect when you re-establish a line of sight.
Or if all else fails, simply turning off the controller forces the drone to RTH due to loss of signal.
This is very reliable and is something all new pilots should get experience with.

I toggled RTH options. I flipped antennas. I can't remember all the things I did simply trying to reconnect, knowing it wasn't returning to home.

How much experience have you had with RTH previously?
Have you experimented so you know how it works, how to activate it and cancel it?
Pushing the RTH button when the drone is returning, cancels RTH so inexperienced flyers could actually stop a returning drone.
But if you had enough signal to cancel RTH, you would expect to have also had a connection with the app and more flight data to show this.

Could you make out which way the Mavic was facing when you left it?

I realize a seagull could have killed it, or sun spots or solar flares or just dumb luck. It sucks.

You said you saw it hovering and not returning - so a seagull isn't the problem.
Sunspots and solar flares have no effect on drone flying.

 

[ajbeebster]

I have to remember about OA issues with sun glare, conflict with RTH and signal loss. The perfect storm. That could have happened to me late this afternoon when I flew about an hour before sunset, much of it up and down a small river.
We/DJI need to work something around that catch-22.

You know I'm totally cool with where DJI is coming from up until the part where they won't extend a discount on a controller replacement too. It's prompting me to send in the controller for warranty review because they at least owe me that and if for no other reason than I can confidently sell it. But by the time they deal with a warranty process they'd save money offering me 30% off the drone and controller.

 

[Meta4]

You know I'm totally cool with where DJI is coming from up until the part where they won't extend a discount on a controller replacement too. It's prompting me to send in the controller for warranty review because they at least owe me that and if for no other reason than I can confidently sell it. But by the time they deal with a warranty process they'd save money offering me 30% off the drone and controller.

But my question was and is, should I take an offer by DJI of a replacement aircraft only for 30% off (I don't know the dollar value of just the aircraft.) and have to either use it with a suspect controller provided by the manufacturer. I don't want to burn a claim by accepting a 30% off aircraft I have to use with a suspect controller.

Why have you assumed the controller is faulty?
RTH is baked into the drone, so a failure to return is not a failure of the controller.

 

[ajbeebster]

We have two issues, loss of signal and failure to return
This is probably why you lost signal

This resulted in you flying the Mavic behind the golf course bump and the line of sight from the controller to the drone (the yellow line) was blocked.

The actual flight path was further out over water. I don't know if the disparity is due to GPS accuracy, overlay or what, but visually, it was further out the whole flight.

You are reading a different thread from the one I am.
I haven't seen those accusations.

Yes I am.

So you would have been only a couple of hundred feet away?

RIght.

The failure to return is a puzzle as we have no data to look at after you lost signal.

Thats what DJI is hanging their hat on. It could have RTH as far as they're concerned. I'm cool with that.

Or if all else fails, simply turning off the controller forces the drone to RTH due to loss of signal.

I did all of that. I rebooted the controller on the beach standing in view of it.

How much experience have you had with RTH previously?

I have a great deal of experience with RTH. I would have welcomed DJI telling me I didn't have RTH selected or that the altitude wasn't set prior to flight. But their response is that everything worked fine right up until you lost connection and since you lost connection, we can't be sure it didn't RTH. I'm cool with that too. **** happens.

Have you experimented so you know how it works, how to activate it and cancel it?
Pushing the RTH button when the drone is returning, cancels RTH so inexperienced flyers could actually stop a returning drone.
But if you had enough signal to cancel RTH, you would expect to have also had a connection with the app and more flight data to show this.

I concur with all of this. I have a lot of experience with RTH, canceling it, enabling it, disabling it and would have frankly been relieved for DJI to tell me it was my error and I did something wrong. But isn't the flight record on the controller/app so it would have recorded an inadvertent cancel?

Could you make out which way the Mavic was facing when you left it?

I could not make out the direction and the display was locked on its last facing direction when it lost signal. I of course lost video and flight signal simultaneously.


You said you saw it hovering and not returning - so a seagull isn't the problem.

Yeah the only affect a seagull could have had an affect was after I abandonded the drone to RTH if it had tried to RTH.

Sunspots and solar flares have no effect on drone flying.

I was being sarcastic.

Why do you suspect the controller?
RTH is baked into the drone, so a failure to return is not a failure of the controller.

Good point. That's somewhat comforting.

 

[FlyGuy8675309]

OP: Are you 100% sure you it set to 'RTH' in the event of signal loss and not 'hover' prior to taking off?