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Mavic 2 Pro Falls from the sky from 70m using Litchi app. Major Failure.

fishys

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Recently flying in rural UK without warning at a height of 70m and a distance of 2400m the video frame froze and the disconnected message appeared. The drone never returned but plummeted to the ground, fortunately not causing damaged to life or property. I found it at the last known position badly damaged with the battery about 3m away, in half with the damaged cells exposed. Unfortunately the video footage just stops suddenly and shows nothing of the decent or any collision with a bird. I had been in waypoint mode on the Litchi app and had recently saved a waypoint and was flying further away so I climbed to maintain a strong signal. There were no warnings of any kind, battery level was still at 76%.
I sent the drone off to DJI support in Europe, I supplied this link to my airdata:

and this link to the video footage

They have given me a quote of about 360 euro to repair but it will not be covered under warranty. This is what they say:

Thank you for getting back to us.
Your requirement already submitted to our technical team so I will inform you when I receive the reply from him. However, we don't accept the third party of APP for making the data record. So we have to remind you before if the record in DJI APP is not able to be analysis then we can not give the conclusion for you.
Kind regards,
Support.eu2
Ying
SUPPORT NL
DJI Europe

and later:

"I just got the reply from our technical team and they told me that there is no data can be analyzed. So the case will retain in the same result as before in no warranty."

So they will not use the airdata out of the Litchi app. There is no other data that I have but I assumed there would be data in the drone itself for their use.
I was very keen to find out what their explanation would be for this major failure. If I have it repaired I don't think I can fly with confidence anywhere I might not be able to retrieve the drone. I'll always fly within LOS now and never over water as I don't think DJI would replace a lost drone that had gone missing.
This is a major failure and without an explanation from DJI I've lost confidence in their products.
 
Sorry to hear about your crash.

So, what they are saying, is that if you are not using DJI Go 4 to fly, they are not going to cover it because they have no way to analyze the flight.

I think that has been the case for other after market accessories as well such as using non OEM props, non OEM battery, etc. If you use them, the warranty will not be applicable.

In your case, in my opinion, there is no reason for DJI not to cover it, but they are the judge, jury and executioner. This is a good reason to have insurance coverage such as DJI Refresh or other hull damage insurance.
 
Hi

Sorry but DJI not going to cover
Andre warranty your drone
In their warranty policy they say
They will cover drone repair if you use original or certified by DJI
Parts and original software
In your case you use Litchi witch is good app but it is not certified by DJI that why they put all responsibility on you

Good luck
 
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So we have to remind you before if the record in DJI APP is not able to be analysis then we can not give the conclusion for you.

"I just got the reply from our technical team and they told me that there is no data can be analyzed. So the case will retain in the same result as before in no warranty."
So they will not use the airdata out of the Litchi app.
It has always been the case that DJI won't accept the data files from 3rd party apps.
That is a problem when the drone cannot be retrieved but if it can be, the internal recorded data should be sufficient for them to work with.

The software you used shouldn't matter but they would only honour a warranty clain where there is clear evidence to show the cause of the incident was a DJI issue.
It's possible that their explanation was very poor (it wouldn't be the first time) and they meant that the internal data was there but didn't show any conclusive evidence to show the cause of the incident.

I'll always fly within LOS now and never over water as I don't think DJI would replace a lost drone that had gone missing.
They would ... but only if there is good evidence as described above.
Without the drone, it isn't always possible to prove the cause of the incident but there have been cases where lost drones have been replaced.
In that situation, you must have been using DJI Go rather than a 3rd party product.
 
That's a very poor response from DJI - you need to pursue it further for the reasons below. Call them and ask to escalate it to a supervisor.

Firstly, if they have the aircraft then the have access to the onboard DAT file, which is independent of the control app and is the completely definitive record of the flight - that's what they should be using.

Secondly, even when using the Litchi app, in addition to the Litchi flight log, it uses the DJI SDK to create exactly the same txt log on your mobile device that the DJI Go 4 app creates - they could have asked you for that. It's in Litchi » Documents » SDK_logs » FlightRecord.

In terms of the event itself there are two obvious possibilities, based on Mavic 2 history. Either the battery was not fully latched (pilot error) or, more likely, it was a sudden FC shutdown (hardware/firmware failure) - a number of those have been reported here. The onboard DAT file will be able to tell the difference.
 
That's a very poor response from DJI - you need to pursue it further for the reasons below. Call them and ask to escalate it to a supervisor.

Firstly, if they have the aircraft then the have access to the onboard DAT file, which is independent of the control app and is the completely definitive record of the flight - that's what they should be using.

Secondly, even when using the Litchi app, in addition to the Litchi flight log, it uses the DJI SDK to create exactly the same txt log on your mobile device that the DJI Go 4 app creates - they could have asked you for that. It's in Litchi » Documents » SDK_logs » FlightRecord.

In terms of the event itself there are two obvious possibilities, based on Mavic 2 history. Either the battery was not fully latched (pilot error) or, more likely, it was a sudden FC shutdown (hardware/firmware failure) - a number of those have been reported here. The onboard DAT file will be able to tell the difference.
I was toying with the idea of getting a Mavic 2 but if what you say is corect.

“or, more likely, it was a sudden FC shutdown (hardware/firmware failure) - a number of those have been reported here. The onboard DAT file will be able to tell the difference. “

If they randomly fall from the sky I don't think I will.
 
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I was toying with the idea of getting a Mavic 2 but if what you say is corect.

“or, more likely, it was a sudden FC shutdown (hardware/firmware failure) - a number of those have been reported here. The onboard DAT file will be able to tell the difference. “

If they randomly fall from the sky I don't think I will.

You may have misunderstood my observation. Mavic 2 failures are extremely uncommon but, of those that have been reported, that is one of the notable causes. All models of drone randomly fall from the sky, just like all types of consumer electronics exhibit random (but hopefully infrequent) failures.
 
That's a very poor response from DJI - you need to pursue it further for the reasons below. Call them and ask to escalate it to a supervisor.

Firstly, if they have the aircraft then the have access to the onboard DAT file, which is independent of the control app and is the completely definitive record of the flight - that's what they should be using.

Secondly, even when using the Litchi app, in addition to the Litchi flight log, it uses the DJI SDK to create exactly the same txt log on your mobile device that the DJI Go 4 app creates - they could have asked you for that. It's in Litchi » Documents » SDK_logs » FlightRecord.

In terms of the event itself there are two obvious possibilities, based on Mavic 2 history. Either the battery was not fully latched (pilot error) or, more likely, it was a sudden FC shutdown (hardware/firmware failure) - a number of those have been reported here. The onboard DAT file will be able to tell the difference.

Also I have a feeling there’s a tighter relationship between DJI and Litchi then they’d like you to think. In tinkering around inside of the DJI GO 4 code there are references to Litchi and no other 3rd party developer. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if Litchi is actually made by DJI and then passed off as a third party so they can make money off it. Don’t you always find it surprising that even when DJI brings Litchi like features to DJI GO 4 they still aren’t as good as Litchi? A smell a conspiracy
 
Also I have a feeling there’s a tighter relationship between DJI and Litchi then they’d like you to think. In tinkering around inside of the DJI GO 4 code there are references to Litchi and no other 3rd party developer. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if Litchi is actually made by DJI and then passed off as a third party so they can make money off it. Don’t you always find it surprising that even when DJI brings Litchi like features to DJI GO 4 they still aren’t as good as Litchi? A smell a conspiracy

I'm not convinced. Litchi competes directly with other DJI products. If it were a DJI product then they would almost certainly take credit for it. VC Technology Ltd is a small London-based company.
 
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Thanks all for your words of consolation. As its possible to fly without using any app (Not that I would) I don't think its Litchi at fault. Maybe the battery wasn't inserted properly. I'll have to do a test to see if it will power up with a partially inserted battery when I get it back. I doubt if I did that but who knows, I really want to know the cause of this failure, its a safety issue for me. In the future I will always wonder if the drone were to fail again would it hit someone or something? I will look for that file mentioned by SAR104 before I give them the go ahead to repair. Its tempting to just let it go and get the repair done ASAP so I can get back to what I love doing - making awesome videos using an amazing drone. (or so i thought)
 
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Hi
For reference and clearly understand what DJI will not
Cover please see below
This is from DJI warranty policy

What This After-Sales Policy Does NOT Cover
This policy does not cover the following:
× Crashes or fire damage caused by non-manufacturing factors, including but not limited to, pilot errors.
× Damage caused by unauthorized modification, disassembly, or shell opening not in accordance with official instructions or manuals.
× Damage caused by improper installation, incorrect use, or operation not in accordance with official instructions or manuals.
× Damage caused by a non-authorized service provider.
× Damage caused by unauthorized modification of circuits and mismatch or misuse of the battery and charger.
× Damage caused by flights which did not follow instruction manual recommendations.
× Damage caused by operation in bad weather (i.e. strong winds, rain, sand/dust storms, etc.)
× Damage caused by operating the product in an environment with electromagnetic interference (i.e. in mining areas or close to radio transmission towers, high-voltage wires, substations, etc.).
× Damage caused by operating the product in an environment suffering from interference from other wireless devices (i.e. transmitter, video-downlink, Wi-Fi signals, etc.).
× Damage caused by operating the product at a weight greater than the safe takeoff weight, as specified by instruction manuals.
× Damage caused by a forced flight when components have aged or been damaged.
× Damage caused by reliability or compatibility issues when using unauthorized third-party parts.
× Damage caused by operating the unit with a low-charged or defective battery.
× Uninterrupted or error-free operation of a product.
× Loss of, or damage to, your data by a product.
× Any software programs, whether provided with the product or installed subsequently.
× Failure of, or damage caused by, any third party products, including those that DJI may provide or integrate into the DJI product at your request.
× Damage resulting from any non-DJI technical or other support, such as assistance with “how-to” questions or inaccurate product set-up and installation.
× Products or parts with an altered identification label or from which the identification label has been removed.

Good luck
 
I'm recently finding litchi beyond useless, unless you want your waypoints in straight lines with zero gimbal movement, otherwise it's so glitchy!
 
So basically what they do cover is an inherent manufacturing fault if you can prove it.
19 against / 1 for.
It's pretty straightforward.
They'll cover you if there is evidence that the incident was caused by something DJI is responsible for.
Which is reasonable and what you'd expect.
 
Litchi for straight lines only?
You need to find out what you are doing wrong because Litchi doesn't have that restriction.

I think you misunderstood my comment. Litchi is buggy as hell at the moment, it's useless for anything thing else but straight line waypoints and zero gimbal movements.
 
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I think you misunderstood my comment. Litchi is buggy as **** at the moment, it's useless for anything thing else but straight line waypoints and zero gimbal movements.
I think you misunderstood my comment.
I was suggesting (pretty clearly) the problem is not with Litchi and you need to look elsewhere to find the solution.
 

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