Speed for max flight distance?

Papa Echo · Jun 30, 2024

The manual of the Air 3 says that the max flight distance is 32 km. At what speed do you get this range?

Meta4 · Jun 30, 2024

Papa Echo said:
The manual of the Air 3 says that the max flight distance is 32 km. At what speed do you get this range?

You won't get that distance because DJI does that under laboratory conditions.
But to get the max distance you should fly at or slightly below the max speed in N Mode.
You would also need to avoid headwinds, climbing, changing speed etc.

Papa Echo · Jun 30, 2024

Yes, I know that it is a distance under optimal lab conditions. And you would drain the battery from 100% to 0%.
The max speed in N mode is 43,2 km/h according to the manual.

GadgetGuy · Jul 1, 2024

Papa Echo said:
The manual of the Air 3 says that the max flight distance is 32 km. At what speed do you get this range?

Max flight distance can only be achieved by maximizing Air 3 flight time to 46 minutes, which requires:

Flying at a constant speed of 28.8 kph in a windless environment at sea level, with APAS off, AirSense off, camera parameters set to 1080p/24fps, video mode off, and from 100% battery level until 0%.

"Data is for reference only."

DJI Air 3 - Specs - DJI

View the specs of DJI Air 3, an advanced all-around drone with two powerful cameras, for detailed information about features, functions, and configurations. DJI Air 3 is an advanced all-around drone with two powerful cameras— a wide-angle and a 3x medium telephoto. Enjoy optimized flights with a...

www.dji.com

Meta4 · Jul 1, 2024

GadgetGuy said:
Max flight distance can only be achieved by maximizing Air 3 flight time to 46 minutes

That's to achieve max flight time, but that's quite different from max distance.
To fly for 46 minutes at a constant speed of 28.8 kph, the drone would only cover 22 kilometres.

DJI used to spell it out better in the specs for earlier models.
You can see the max distance vs max time speeds and how they differ in the specs for the Mavic 3 pro here:

DJI Mavic 3 Pro - Specs - DJI

View the specs of DJI Mavic 3 Pro, a triple-lens flagship camera drone with multiple focal lengths, for detailed information about features, functions, and configurations. Mavic 3 Pro has a 4/3 CMOS Hasselblad camera and dual tele cameras, and all three cameras of the Cine version also support...

www.dji.com

howardK · Jul 1, 2024

I know i am old (65) and my eyes aint what they used to be but for me 22Km (13+miles) is clearly BVLOS.

Papa Echo · Jul 1, 2024

I just did some calculations: if someone would fly at a speed of 43.2 km/h he would need 44.44 minutes to travel for 32 km. I doubt that this speed of 43.2 km/h is the speed for the max distance. The speed needs to be higher and the flight time should be shorter. My guess is that the speed should be around 50 km/h.

Papa Echo · Jul 1, 2024

howardK said:
I know i am old (65) and my eyes aint what they used to be but for me 22Km (13+miles) is clearly BVLOS.

This is not a question about BVLOS, but a question about the best efficiency. You could fly around your home point and travel 32 km.

marcosvc · Jul 6, 2024

I made a test wich mode is more effective. Both distance and battery the normal mode is the best. (its in portuguese, but i think you may understand.

A friend of mine made a similar test but comparing maximum speed and medium speed and he foud the 39 km/h the best battery duration efficiency .

Papa Echo · Jul 6, 2024

@marcosvc: this is very interesting. If you fly the 6000 m out and back in Sport Mode at the max EU speed of 68.4 km/h then you will need 10:32 minutes (Tempo de voo = flight time).
You say that you measured 7926 m in 18:56 minutes (N mode). That's an average speed of 50.2 km/h. It seems a little high for the N mode.

I think about a test with waypoints. This way I have the same distance back and forth and I can fly it with different speeds. I want to use always a fully charged battery for every speed.
Any ideas how to plan this experiment?

Meta4 · Jul 6, 2024

Papa Echo said:
That's an average speed of 50.2 km/h. It seems a little high for the N mode.

Papa Echo said:
The manual of the Air 3 says that the max flight distance is 32 km. At what speed do you get this range?

Where does it say this?
Is it correct?

Since the Air 3 has the same Sport Mode top speed as the Mavic 3 (21 m/s or 75.6 km/h), it's likely to have a similar top speed in N Mode.
For the Mavic 3 that's 15 m/s or 54 km/h.

What N Mode top speed do Air 3 users get when they push the right stick fully forward, flying in still air?

Papa Echo · Jul 6, 2024

In the Air 3 manual v1.6 on page 48: the maximum flight speed is 12 m/s.
That is 43.2 km/h in N mode.
The max flight distance of 32 km is on page 103.

Meta4 · Jul 6, 2024

Papa Echo said:
In the Air 3 manual v1.6 on page 48: the maximum flight speed is 12 m/s.
That is 43.2 km/h in N mode.

But is this correct?
I explained why I'm doubtful in my previous post.

Papa Echo · Jul 6, 2024

I don't know if it is correct. In the next days I can hopefully test the speed when I push the right stick fully forward in N Mode.

Meta4 · Jul 6, 2024

Papa Echo said:
In the Air 3 manual v1.6 on page 48: the maximum flight speed is 12 m/s.

OK ... I think I've found the issue.
The manual states:
When the vision systems are enabled, and lighting and other environmental conditions are sufficient, the maximum pitch angle is 30° and the maximum flight speed is 12 m/s.

Note the part I underlined.
If you disable Obstacle Avoidance, I'd expect the Air 3 to make 15 m/s in N mode.
To test that would be quick and easy.