Sudden Flyaway with DJI Mavic 3 - Full Details & Flight Logs Attached

[Daisy L.]

Hi everyone, hoping to get some expert eyes on a terrifying incident today. My Mavic 3 (Cine, 3 months old, latest firmware) suddenly lost control and flew away at ~300ft altitude near the coast. Here’s the full breakdown:

Pre-Flight:

• Battery: 98% (authentic DJI, 15 cycles)
• GPS: 18 satellites locked
• Winds: 12mph (per UAV Forecast)
• Location: Open shoreline, no known interference sources

The Incident:

1. Normal flight for 8 minutes (gentle orbit shots)
2. At 2:34, got "IMU ERROR -07" warning
3. Drone abruptly pitched left, ignored stick inputs
4. Entered ATTI mode, drifted seaward at 22mph
5. Last transmission at 2:41 before signal loss

Recovery Attempts:

• Home point was valid (confirmed on map)
• Tried CSC, Sport mode toggle - no response
• DJI Find My Drone shows last coords 500m offshore

Attachments:

1. Full TXT flight log (AirData Link)
2. Screenrecording of controller telemetry
3. KMZ file of flight path

Key Questions:

1. IMU Error Theories: Could salt air corrosion cause this? (Drone was never wet but coastal humidity is high)
2. Recovery Options: Worth hiring a boat to search given last coordinates?
3. DJI Care Refresh: If unrecovered, will they cover this given the error logs?

Bonus: Photo of the flight area attached - zero obstructions.

 

[GFields]

Hi everyone, hoping to get some expert eyes on a terrifying incident today. My Mavic 3 (Cine, 3 months old, latest firmware) suddenly lost control and flew away at ~300ft altitude near the coast. Here’s the full breakdown:

Pre-Flight:

• Battery: 98% (authentic DJI, 15 cycles)
• GPS: 18 satellites locked
• Winds: 12mph (per UAV Forecast)
• Location: Open shoreline, no known interference sources

The Incident:

1. Normal flight for 8 minutes (gentle orbit shots)
2. At 2:34, got "IMU ERROR -07" warning
3. Drone abruptly pitched left, ignored stick inputs
4. Entered ATTI mode, drifted seaward at 22mph
5. Last transmission at 2:41 before signal loss

Recovery Attempts:

• Home point was valid (confirmed on map)
• Tried CSC, Sport mode toggle - no response
• DJI Find My Drone shows last coords 500m offshore

Attachments:

1. Full TXT flight log (AirData Link)
2. Screenrecording of controller telemetry
3. KMZ file of flight path

Key Questions:

1. IMU Error Theories: Could salt air corrosion cause this? (Drone was never wet but coastal humidity is high)
2. Recovery Options: Worth hiring a boat to search given last coordinates?
3. DJI Care Refresh: If unrecovered, will they cover this given the error logs?

Bonus: Photo of the flight area attached - zero obstructions.

Greetings from Birmingham Alabama!

The Air Data link doesn’t work

 

[Meta4]

hoping to get some expert eyes on a terrifying incident today

1. Full TXT flight log (AirData Link)

Would love to have a look but the Airdata link isn't valid.

 

[russellg]

Hi everyone, hoping to get some expert eyes on a terrifying incident today. My Mavic 3 (Cine, 3 months old, latest firmware) suddenly lost control and flew away at ~300ft altitude near the coast. Here’s the full breakdown:

Pre-Flight:

• Battery: 98% (authentic DJI, 15 cycles)
• GPS: 18 satellites locked
• Winds: 12mph (per UAV Forecast)
• Location: Open shoreline, no known interference sources

The Incident:

1. Normal flight for 8 minutes (gentle orbit shots)
2. At 2:34, got "IMU ERROR -07" warning
3. Drone abruptly pitched left, ignored stick inputs
4. Entered ATTI mode, drifted seaward at 22mph
5. Last transmission at 2:41 before signal loss

Recovery Attempts:

• Home point was valid (confirmed on map)
• Tried CSC, Sport mode toggle - no response
• DJI Find My Drone shows last coords 500m offshore

Attachments:

1. Full TXT flight log (AirData Link)
2. Screenrecording of controller telemetry
3. KMZ file of flight path

Key Questions:

1. IMU Error Theories: Could salt air corrosion cause this? (Drone was never wet but coastal humidity is high)
2. Recovery Options: Worth hiring a boat to search given last coordinates?
3. DJI Care Refresh: If unrecovered, will they cover this given the error logs?

Bonus: Photo of the flight area attached - zero obstructions.

Only 18 satellites, I usually wait about 2 minutes after powering up and get at least 23.

 

[Meta4]

Only 18 satellites, I usually wait about 2 minutes after powering up and get at least 23.

The number of satellites isn't the important thing.
What's important is that the drone has full GPS reception which is required before the drone can record a home point.
That can happen with less than 18 sats or it might take more than 23.
You need to watch the satellite icon as it changes colour from red to yellow to white which indicated full GPS reception.

But none of this would have had anything to do with the incident as described.