Mavic Mini completely lost signal, and now I've lost the drone.

[Brad Nada]

Greetings, I was flying my Mini over the riverfront in Austin. All was going well until I got a message that the signal was completely lost. I walked closer and closer to where the drone lost connection, but could not reconnect. It did not return home. Flight data is here:

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I worry it either crashed, or ran out of batteries and drowned in the river. Could anyone decipher it's last moments in the log file?

Thank you kindly,
Brad

 

[Meta4]

I worry it either crashed, or ran out of batteries and drowned in the river. Could anyone decipher it's last moments in the log file?

You flew behind the Hyatt hotel building which caused the loss of signal.
The building is higher than the RTH height you had set.
The Mini will have hit the SE side of the Hyatt hotel.

 

[ChipDjipro]

Unfortunately that will do it all the time. That is why it is very important to set your return home much higher than anything around you. I always have mine set at 300 feet because I know there’s nothing higher than that around no matter where I go.

 

[slup]

... I always have mine set at 300 feet because I know there’s nothing higher than that around no matter where I go.

Not a very good strategy to try to shortcut a setting that should be situation & location dependent ... sooner or later you will end up in a situation were you absolutely doesn't want to climb to 300 feet in case of a disconnect.

The RTH height isn't one of the settings you shall consider to be "set & forget" ...

 

[spudpie]

Not a very good strategy to try to shortcut a setting that should be situation & location dependent ... sooner or later you will end up in a situation were you absolutely doesn't want to climb to 300 feet in case of a disconnect.

The RTH height isn't one of the settings you shall consider to be "set & forget" ...

Your last sentence is one of the best pieces of advice I've read on here.

 

[sar104]

RTH was not the problem here. The problem was that the aircraft was flying sideways at 15 mph towards the wall of the building with OA off. The log ends with it around 7 m from the wall - i.e. one second from collision.

 

[Brad Nada]

Thanks for the replies everyone, extremely helpful. I called the hotel, and security found the drone. It somehow landed safely on the property, without a scratch on it! Maybe it bumped the wall and decided to land, or didn't end up crashing.

 

[sar104]

Thanks for the replies everyone, extremely helpful. I called the hotel, and security found the drone. It somehow landed safely on the property, without a scratch on it! Maybe it bumped the wall and decided to land, or didn't end up crashing.

Interesting, although I cannot imagine how it avoided collision with the wall given the location and speed at the end of the log file.

 

[CareyL]

If you look at Google Earth you will see that you flew into the Hyatt at about its 8th floor. The pieces of your drone should be scattered about on top of its meeting hall roof unless they blew onto any people in the parking lot below.

Greetings, I was flying my Mini over the riverfront in Austin. All was going well until I got a message that the signal was completely lost. I walked closer and closer to where the drone lost connection, but could not reconnect. It did not return home. Flight data is here:

DJI Flight Log Viewer | Phantom Help

Upload and view flight logs from your DJI drones

www.phantomhelp.com

or


I worry it either crashed, or ran out of batteries and drowned in the river. Could anyone decipher it's last moments in the log file?

Thank you kindly,
Brad

 

[sar104]

If you look at Google Earth you will see that you flew into the Hyatt at about its 8th floor. The pieces of your drone should be scattered about on top of its meeting hall roof unless they blew onto any people in the parking lot below.

Except they are not - it was recovered undamaged, apparently after a controlled landing.

 

[Frustrated]

Happy ending

 

[ChipDjipro]

Not a very good strategy to try to shortcut a setting that should be situation & location dependent ... sooner or later you will end up in a situation were you absolutely doesn't want to climb to 300 feet in case of a disconnect.

The RTH height isn't one of the settings you On my way backshall consider to be "set & forget" ...

Not a very good strategy to try to shortcut a setting that should be situation & location dependent ... sooner or later you will end up in a situation were you absolutely doesn't want to climb to 300 feet in case of a disconnect.

The RTH height isn't one of the settings you shall consider to be "set & forget" ...

it has worked for several years so far. I understand what you’re saying though. Usually on my way back I start my dissent.

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

Happy ending

For sure, and lucky too some sort of auto landing, rather than crash / fall onto something / someone below.

A get out of jail card @Brad Nada . . . second life for the Mini, and hopefully you learned from this.
The Mini has no OA so a bit more careful pre flight planning is needed, RTH height set each flight perfectly, or simply don't fly near such urban buildings.
It may or not be legal to fly such places, but it's always higher risk with the little mini and signal / wifi interference etc.

Glad security found it, have you been in to collect it yet ?

 

[Western Hedge]

You’re going to get a ton of WiFi interference in built-up areas, especially near a major hotel.

 

[Meta4]

You’re going to get a ton of WiFi interference in built-up areas, especially near a major hotel.

Interference is nothing compared to losing signal when you fly behind a building.

 

[Brad Nada]

A little update for those who are interested. Picked up the drone from the hotel today. Cosmetically looks pretty untouched. a couple props were mildly dinged. The battery had popped out and was cracked. It flies completely fine, BUT the gimbal is stuck/getting that error, even though it seems like the camera head is floating just fine. Wonder if it's a connections issue. So it must have indeed smacked something, but not too hard, and then decided to land. Luckily no trees were blocking the path. It was found pretty much where indicated.

Anyways, glad it's back, and seems fixable. Thanks again to everyone!

 

[Crouching Leopard]

Greetings, I was flying my Mini over the riverfront in Austin. All was going well until I got a message that the signal was completely lost. I walked closer and closer to where the drone lost connection, but could not reconnect. It did not return home. Flight data is here:

DJI Flight Log Viewer | Phantom Help

Upload and view flight logs from your DJI drones

www.phantomhelp.com

or


I worry it either crashed, or ran out of batteries and drowned in the river. Could anyone decipher it's last moments in the log file?

Thank you kindly,
Brad

Glad you found it. Google earth shows its last location as going towards the side of the Hyatt. Minis don't have O.A so these things are an added issue to remember. I know the feeling. Minis are tough little drones and mine has survived a freefall to the ground of around the same height after crashing into the canopy of a very tall tree. Perhaps the trees below broke its fall. Do yourself a big favour and get it thoroughly checked out / serviced as not all damage can be easily detected by the eye.