Thoughts on flying over water

Dronebow · Oct 12, 2016

Ok, weird question I know but here is my logic. With the P3/P4 I have heard many stories of the bird going into the water, then retrieved and put in rice for several days then finding that the bird is alive. It gives a bit of comfort which is why I purchased a GetterBack to put on my P3 a while back.

But the Mavic seems so technology driven component wise I'm wondering how it would fare in the same situation. I plan to purchase the DJI warranty but it specifically does not cover water damage.

Thoughts? Is this just a stupid question/concern?

msinger · Oct 12, 2016

Only time will tell for sure, but it might be recoverable if the crash does not occur in salt water.

The Editor · Oct 12, 2016

Dronebow said:
Ok, weird question I know but here is my logic. With the P3/P4 I have heard many stories of the bird going into the water, then retrieved and put in rice for several days then finding that the bird is alive. It gives a bit of comfort which is why I purchased a GetterBack to put on my P3 a while back.

But the Mavic seems so technology driven component wise I'm wondering how it would fare in the same situation. I plan to purchase the DJI warranty but it specifically does not cover water damage.

Thoughts? Is this just a stupid question/concern?

Rice will actually slow the drying process and is not a good idea.
Pretty much anything electronic that takes a swim in salt water if powered up at the time will be history due to not only the corrosive nature of sea water but also it's conductivity

Fastrack · Oct 13, 2016

Using Rice... lol... I've read this so many times.. It does nothing! It's more likely the TIME in the rice that's drying it.

Ask yourself, does a bag of rice at 80% RH turn into a soggy mess? (It doesn't...........)

Best solution is to purchase bulk Silica Gel from Amazon or such. Buy orange (it turns green when 80% absorbed with water), you can re-generate it in the oven. Blue works too, it turns pink, but the color changing element causes cancer or something - so I stick with the orange. It needs to be "cobalt free".

As for flotation, not sure where to attach it yet, I'll have to wait until I receive mine before I rig that up.

Ben

Fly_Me_To_The_Moon · Oct 13, 2016

Hope I never have to experience a water landing. I live on the ocean and 90% of my flying will be over the beach and water.

tomnjfl · Oct 13, 2016

As a general rule, I always take a few moments to say "goodbye" to my drone any time I fly it, whether it's over land, water, trees...wherever.

You just never know...LOL

Fastrack · Oct 13, 2016

tomnjfl said:
As a general rule, I always take a few moments to say "goodbye" to my drone any time I fly it, whether it's over land, water, trees...wherever.

You just never know...LOL

Good point. I fly 90% over fresh water over Georgian Bay, Ontario. And with my luck it'll crash land into the granite rock instead of the water (I have a float for my Inspire). Granted water can be like hitting concrete, but impact damage I'm sure would be less.

Ben

Rick · Oct 13, 2016

Fly_Me_To_The_Moon said:
Hope I never have to experience a water landing. I live on the ocean and 90% of my flying will be over the beach and water.

I notice you're still wearing your bathing costume.

MavicPro83 · Oct 13, 2016

I've always worked on the principle that water or land, a crash from anything above 50 feet probably means its a write off in any case, generally find water best for flying over, nothing to hit, great signal... all good so far!

CCDD · Oct 14, 2016

MavicPro83 said:
I've always worked on the principle that water or land, a crash from anything above 50 feet probably means its a write off in any case, generally find water best for flying over, nothing to hit, great signal... all good so far!

My thoughts are the same, nothing beats flying over water for stronger signal, and far less likely to run into anything unless of course, it decides to do a nosedive in the drink.

bighi · Oct 15, 2016

I've now got about 600 long range flights over salt water. I can't believe this is still a subject of concern. Your chances of personal and property damage are slim to none over water. Signal strength is far greater. Noise complaints or the usual complaints folks in here often write about, are again, just about non existent. Fear of loss? Is one any better off with the drone self landing on the roof of, say, a neighbor's house. One who hates drones. Or over the police department. How about a crash over the two former. Nah, this is why I feel better and recommend flying over water or empty mountains over all other locales. Far less risk.

Strat · Oct 15, 2016

tomnjfl said:
As a general rule, I always take a few moments to say "goodbye" to my drone any time I fly it, whether it's over land, water, trees...wherever.

You just never know...LOL

I thought i was the only one that did this.. my misses laughs at me each time and says i have problems LOL

99.98% of my flights are over water.

Dirty Bird · Oct 15, 2016

The Mavic will be my 7th DJI drone. Haven't lost one yet & I fly over water quite frequently. You'll get your best range over water or clear LOS rural areas.

Ed Windham · Oct 15, 2016

Water is not your friend if you crash. Fortunately in all my years of flying, much of it over water, I have not experienced a water landing. I always fly above VPS range, which for the Mavic is higher than the P3/P4/Inspire. That requires an adjustment on my part. But for me 30m is more than sufficient.

tomnjfl · Oct 17, 2016

bighi said:
I've now got about 600 long range flights over salt water. I can't believe this is still a subject of concern. Your chances of personal and property damage are slim to none over water. Signal strength is far greater. Noise complaints or the usual complaints folks in here often write about, are again, just about non existent. Fear of loss? Is one any better off with the drone self landing on the roof of, say, a neighbor's house. One who hates drones. Or over the police department. How about a crash over the two former. Nah, this is why I feel better and recommend flying over water or empty mountains over all other locales. Far less risk.

Yeah but the problem is that flying over water will get boring. If you're looking for good footage, some terrain or buildings is going to be far more rewarding than water.

kmaluo · Oct 17, 2016

tomnjfl said:
Yeah but the problem is that flying over water will get boring. If you're looking for good footage, some terrain or buildings is going to be far more rewarding than water.

Not if you can find some boats to buzz!

Dronebow · Oct 17, 2016

kmaluo said:
Not if you can find some boats to buzz!

Yes... Boat chasing is fun...

kmaluo · Oct 17, 2016

Observing Whales, dolphins, sharks, seals, manatees, schools of fish, etc from the sky is rewarding as well.

Theron · Oct 17, 2016

I found a couple of sea turtles in my videos that I didn't notice during filming. I hope the new goggles will improve my vision.

BruteForce65 · Oct 17, 2016

Ed Windham said:
Water is not your friend if you crash. Fortunately in all my years of flying, much of it over water, I have not experienced a water landing. I always fly above VPS range, which for the Mavic is higher than the P3/P4/Inspire. That requires an adjustment on my part. But for me 30m is more than sufficient.

Ed, is 30m the VPS range for Mavic? So as long as I was above that height I could leave the VPS on?

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