RTH Question

[adam3112]

I took my Mavic Pro to the Pyrenees last week and went for a hike up some mountains. There were some fantastic views up there and I got some lovely photos and videos. Had a blast flying it there.

At one point in the flight, I flew the Mavic about 1,700 feet away over a mountain ridge. I was at 400 feet altitude above the home point and the ground below was getting close with hundreds of pine trees visibly close as you can imagine.

I then lost video transmission, my screen went black and panic started kicking in. I thought I could press RTH, but realised that my RTH altitude is about 50 metres so I hesitated. The controller was still connected to the drone and the telemetry screen was telling me it's distance away (life saver). So I pressed back on the sticks and the distance started closing in. Eventually got my video feed back.

The question: If I did press RTH or allowed the drone to auto-return to home after a few moments, would it descend to 50 Metres above my home point thus hitting the mountain ridge or would it come back at it's current alt (400ft)?

Thanks.

 

[Meta4]

The question: If I did press RTH or allowed the drone to auto-return to home after a few moments, would it descend to 50 Metres above my home point thus hitting the mountain ridge or would it come back at it's current alt (400ft)?

Like all heights, RTH height is relative to the launch point.
If your Mavic is already higher than the set RTH height, it will come straight home at whatever level it is already at.

 

[adam3112]

Like all heights, RTH height is relative to the launch point.
If your Mavic is already higher than the set RTH height, it will come straight home at whatever level it is already at.

Thanks Meta4. I thought that was the case but wasn't entirely sure.

 

[kndll]

It would come back at what you had the return to home setting set to, so if it was at 50m the drone would descend to 50m and start it return flight path to home. If you have the obstacle avoidance enabled then the mavic pro would recognize the mountain and ascend to go around it then descend on the other side of the mountain to continue its return state. The settings are on be default so unless you had them turned off you should of been fine---depending on when the drone recognizes the mountain then starts to ascend and above the drone there is an interference (overhanging rock cliff, tree sticking out of mountain etc) then it would hit that since the mavic pro has no top sensors

coindex 765 the Mavic will never descend to the set RTH height if it is above that height !

 

[adam3112]

It would come back at what you had the return to home setting set to, so if it was at 50m the drone would descend to 50m and start it return flight path to home.

That contradicts what Meta4 said though, as he's saying that if you're higher than the RTH altitude it will stay there which is what I suspected was the case but wasn't 100% sure.

If true that it descends then I could have run in to some problems initiating RTH. That Telemetry screen really is useful in situations like this if there's no video feed and you're not sure which direction you're facing.

 

[Starz]

Watching the signal strength bars on the screen will give you some clues as to when that screen will disappear. The left stick being pushed in the
up goes the aircraft direction will help a little when you don’t have clear line of sight between the rc and the ac. There should have been a message to let you know there was an issue with signal.

 

[kndll]

That contradicts what Meta4 said though, as he's saying that if you're higher than the RTH altitude it will stay there which is what I suspected was the case but wasn't 100% sure.

If true that it descends then I could have run in to some problems initiating RTH. That Telemetry screen really is useful in situations like this if there's no video feed and you're not sure which direction you're facing.

coindex is wrong

 

[adam3112]

Watching the signal strength bars on the screen will give you some clues as to when that screen will disappear. The left stick being pushed in the
up goes the aircraft direction will help a little when you don’t have clear line of sight between the rc and the ac. There should have been a message to let you know there was an issue with signal.

There was but I stupidly ignored it.

 

[coindex765]

ok I may be wrong though I thought that's what my mavic did yesterday when it went into failsafe

 

[pgh1949]

It would come back at what you had the return to home setting set to, so if it was at 50m the drone would descend to 50m and start it return flight path to home.

I too would like to contradict this statement. Many times I have had my Mavic Pro flying higher than the 50m RTH I have set and I can confirm it returns at the HIGHER altitude it was already flying at. It DOES NOT descend to RTH altitude.

 

[Starz]

I too would like to contradict this statement. Many times I have had my Mavic Pro flying higher than the 50m RTH I have set and I can confirm it returns at the HIGHER altitude it was already flying at. It DOES NOT descend to RTH altitude.

Correct

 

[Starz]

There was but I stupidly ignored it.

We all learn everyday. Think how much more you know now!

 

[Meta4]

ok I may be wrong though I thought that's what my mavic did yesterday when it went into failsafe

You could:
1. Check the flight record for yesterday to see what really happened .. or
2. Check what the manual says .. or
3. Do some flight testing to see what happens.
The result will be the same.
Your Mavic will never descend to RTH

 

[msinger]

The question: If I did press RTH or allowed the drone to auto-return to home after a few moments, would it descend to 50 Metres above my home point thus hitting the mountain ridge or would it come back at it's current alt (400ft)?

The Mavic Pro (or any other DJI drone) never descends before returning home.

 

[Mr. Salty]

This is a good opportunity to point out what happens when you fly into a situation where there is an obstacle between the controller and the aircraft. Terrain and trees block radio signals.

 

[adam3112]

This is a good opportunity to point out what happens when you fly into a situation where there is an obstacle between the controller and the aircraft. Terrain and trees block radio signals.

Yup. It’s a lesson learnt from me. It’s quite easy to get too confident with the range / signal capabilities and things can go wrong.

Still, I got the little guy back that’s the main thing!

 

[ToddCarey]

We also need to alway remember that these are digital signals, and although you may get a warning, it can also drop off VERY quickly when it starts to drop. Just like cell phone, it is there and sometimes almost instantly it can be gone.

 

[macfawlty]

I experience loss of video feed to my M2P fairly often (I'm not alone). Initiate RTH on the controller and restart the Go4 app. Often times, the video feed will return as it gets closer. When I start to lose feed, I'll typically increase altitude (if I'm flying lower) and see if that resolves the feed.