Mini 4 Pro Landing Pause, Option to Turn It Off?

[Brian_MavicPro]

I have been flying DJI since the Phantom FC40. I have had two crashes in all those years and each have been on a watercraft. The most recent was my DJI Mini 4 Pro. I am curious if anyone has experienced a similar situation when out on the water. I took off in alligator-infested Lake Okeechobee, FL. I wanted to film the numerous gators swimming around me. So, I launched from the rear of my Seadoo. I had plenty of room, done it before numerous times before. However, this was a wee bit different. Although on a lake and in a side channel, I did not recognize that there was a current. Must have been caused by the draining of the lake through the locks they have. So, when I tried to land after my filming, I was able to bring it right back and place it over the tail of the jet ski. However, the drone will not land until it hovers for about 3-4 seconds while it senses the ground, then it commits to the landing. Well, the Seadoo would float just enough in that short time to cause the drone to be hovering over water as the Seadoo floated away. I even thought I was a genius and tried to place it forward of the Seadoo. I would either catch it or allow it to land on the tail...nope. The drone detected the changes in elevation from the bow of my jet ski, to the height of my head, to the hight of the seat, then to the rear deck...at no time was there complete stillness for it to remain with the jet ski for 3-4 solid seconds of the exact landing height...so, it would not land until it was over water again.....and it did. lol. Buh Bye. I guess DJI insurance calls it a fly away but I was not going to fetch it. Sunk like a rock, and the water clarity is that of mud. Taking in the area around me, there were no less than 4 alligators within 30 feet. NO SIR! The lake takes that one. NOW! Can anyone tell me if there is a way to force the drone to land even though it wants to sense, measure, pause, etc? I know how to land a drone on a dime..even while moving. The problem is, the drone does not want any movement of the terrain below. If I could disable this so called feature, I would still have my drone. I could have simply hand caught it or dropped it quickly onto the rear deck. I had no chance to do it though. The drone refuses to land until it sees steady terrain with no height variance. Just like when you go to hand catch, it pauses for what seems like eternity before it commits to land in your hand. I am so frustrated because that was my one fly away coverage and when you add up the cost of the warranty and the cost of the replacement...I have spent just over $300 to get a new drone back. Althoug cheaper than a refurbished Mini 4 Pro...it hurts the wallet and now I am out big time should I actually have a real fly away. I will have jump in gator infested water if it happens next time, lol.

 

[Brian_MavicPro]

So...it turns out that, according to a random AI generated query about this topic, I may have found a solution. However, have not tested it. Holding the left stick down overrides the avoidance sensors but NOT UNTIL 5 seconds pass. This would not work in my scenario, as this is exactly what I did, I keep the stick held down from the moment I wish to commit to a landing, it refuses, lol. So, the secondary solution is the one that interests me. It says to put the drone into sport mode to avoid having those sensors function. Thus, it should stick a landing exactly when you tell it to. Again, i have not tested AI's solution but it may work come to think of it.

 

[BossBob]

Yes, I would say that the AI is correct but like you, I much prefer to be the one to tell my drone when to land and hate the pause between pulling down the left stick and the manoeuvre taking place. I was able to turn off landing protection on my Mavic Pro but that isn’t possible on the Mini 4 Pro, (or if it is I’ve not discovered the settings yet!).

 

[BossBob]

Apparently, you have to turn off the APAS system which allows the drone to decide how it is going to avoid obstacles, which is on by default. I’ll give it a go next time I’ve got the mini 4 pro up.

 

[BossBob]

Yes, turning off the object avoidance works. The Mini4pro will then drop to maybe 30cm, hesitate fractionally and then land, straight down onto whatever is below it, just as my Mavic Pro does.

 

[Matt W]

If it has landing protection, turn that off. Sport mode should also help your issue. Last ditch attempt maybe do the emergency shut down over your head then catch it.
As a dude from an area with no gators, I gotta say I think you are nuts running a wave runner in gator infested waters!

 

[Brian_MavicPro]

So...it turns out that, according to a random AI generated query about this topic, I may have found a solution. However, have not tested it. Holding the left stick down overrides the avoidance sensors but NOT UNTIL 5 seconds pass. This would not work in my scenario, as this is exactly what I did, I keep the stick held down from the moment I wish to commit to a landing, it refuses, lol. So, the secondary solution is the one that interests me. It says to put the drone into sport mode to avoid having those sensors function. Thus, it should stick a landing exactly when you tell it to. Again, i have not tested AI's solution but it may work come to think of it.

I am following up. As of mid-May 2025, there is no way to turn off or avoid the pause before landing. Sport mode or turning off all safety avoidance does not matter. So, you'd better be certain your watercraft is not drifting or blowing. You could be in for a real treat when landing in a tight space...including your palm. Mittigate your chances of a splashdown by anchoring or being beached. If you must get in an awesome technical shot that involves you being followed, leave lots of battery to secure the drone and then secure your drifting before you launch again.

 

[Brian_MavicPro]

I am following up. As of mid-May 2025, there is no way to turn off or avoid the pause before landing. Sport mode or turning off all safety avoidance does not matter. So, you'd better be certain your watercraft is not drifting or blowing. You could be in for a real treat when landing in a tight space...including your palm. Mittigate your chances of a splashdown by anchoring or being beached. If you must get in an awesome technical shot that involves you being followed, leave lots of battery to secure the drone and then secure your drifting before you launch again.

Based on a YouTube short, I just found out that there was a very recent firmware update that allows the owner to turn off the downward facing sensors to allow for low level flight and landing on moving objects. Is it possible this has been a problem for others or does DJI actually monitor this chat, lol. Yeah, its wishful thinking that my comment caused an actual change but I am happy nonetheless. Now I can return to fim the numerous alligators and land my drone on my palm without fear of having to dive into the water with them, lol Also, saving me the hassle of having to claim the DJI Care replacement for future drone issues while on watercraft. Thank you DJI. I am going to update that right this moment.

 

[AeroJ]

Don't we need that pause before it goes into the landing routine ? Sometimes when I coming down quite quickly from high up my Mini4P gets confused and thinks I want to land, and that pause gives me a chance to release the sticks and inform it otherwise...

 

[BossBob]

No, we want it to land when WE tell it to as landing later might mean that the surface we want it to land on has moved off.
Your drone isn’t confused. You haven’t planned your drones descent and it is saving itself from smashing into the ground.

 

[AeroJ]

You haven’t planned your drones descent and it is saving itself from smashing into the ground.

No I have planned my descent and I am doing it ! I am not telling it to land, just to descend !

 

[mavic3usa]

No, we want it to land when WE tell it to as landing later might mean that the surface we want it to land on has moved off.

Are you saying this as in landing on the deck of a boat or trying to land on a "landing plan" that could get blow away before you stick the landing or landing on the top of a moving car?

 

[BossBob]

No I have planned my descent and I am doing it ! I am not telling it to land, just to descend !

But the way you’ve flown your planned flight path hasn’t taken account of the rapidly approaching ground and the drone is pausing, giving you the chance to release the stick, and then continue on your flight, basically saving you a repair bill.
In the case of the OP, he’d planned to land when he pressed the stick down, but the drone paused before descending and his landing surface wasn’t there any more.

 

[BossBob]

Are you saying this as in landing on the deck of a boat or trying to land on a "landing plan" that could get blow away before you stick the landing or landing on the top of a moving car?

Why not. I like remote controlled objects to move when I tell them to, not to second guess my inputs and pause or refuse. You wouldn’t put up with the mouse pointer on your computer not keeping up with your inputs?
It’s as bad as ‘emergency lane keeping’ in cars. My car has this. If I drive too close to the edge of a lane the car senses this and moves the steering wheel to move the car away from the edge of the lane. But what if this is a single track road with passing places and I’ve adjusted my speed to meet an on-coming timber wagon at a passing place but I need to get right to the edge of the road to avoid a collision. Do I really want the car to steer me into the path of a 40 tonne articulated lorry with trailer. I don’t think so!

 

[mavic3usa]

Why not. I like remote controlled objects to move when I tell them to, not to second guess my inputs and pause or refuse. You wouldn’t put up with the mouse pointer on your computer not keeping up with your inputs?
It’s as bad as ‘emergency lane keeping’ in cars. My car has this. If I drive too close to the edge of a lane the car senses this and moves the steering wheel to move the car away from the edge of the lane. But what if this is a single track road with passing places and I’ve adjusted my speed to meet an on-coming timber wagon at a passing place but I need to get right to the edge of the road to avoid a collision. Do I really want the car to steer me into the path of a 40 tonne articulated lorry with trailer. I don’t think so!

I don't disagree with you and especially for an FPV drone where that hesitation might not be needed. Not sure why on a regular camera drone but an on/off switch might be appropriate here. Apparently with those cars it easy to override because the car is supposed to be smart enough to understand what is happening. Perhaps we'll get there with AI in our drones.

 

[BossBob]

Here in the UK, because we are an insignificant market compared to the EU we have to put up with whatever they mandate. The EU decided that if you want to turn off that setting it has to be done each time you start the ignition. It’s two menus deep and six button presses to turn it off. As for overriding the automatic steering input, not going to happen without some cursing.

 

[Dogpilot]

I was using a small GoPro Hero 4K on the bottom of the Mini 4 Pro. I should have tried the sensor off position, didn't know that setting existed. When I would fly it it would do just fine, but did not want to descend, except at an excruciatingly slow rate. At one point I was wondering if the race between battery exhaustion and landing would be won by landing. So obscuring the sensor is a poor choice if you do not disable the sensor beforehand.

The lane keeping functions, at least on my Land Rover Defender, work about as good as letting a drunk Kangaroo do the driving.