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What happened?

the reason I am more concerned is cause where i live as i was going forward and pulling up at the same time the drone started drifting to the left no obstacle around it.
Is this your typical take off location or was this a first time there. As others have stated, there is A LOT of metal in the pictures / video we see and they are close - probably not close enough for OA to warn you. Flying in tight locations like we see here requires a lot more prechecks to make sure all is okay.

Seeing what DJI says won't hurt and they may actually tell you to return the drone or if you bought it at a reseller that takes them back like Best Buy, Costco, etc - then you can return to them and let them deal with DJI. Let us know what DJI has to say as well, since they will want to look at all your flight files. to understand if there really is an issue.

In close quarters on next flights on new drone of the one you have - pay closer attention to your surroundings (all that metal you can and cannot see) and do the checks the folks above have mentioned just to be safe.
 
Might add in this ...

As the .DAT logs from a M3 can't be decrypted & read by us we can't say if this yaw error was due to a magnetic interfered power on location (can be handled by the pilot) ... or a IMU error.

If you follow the pre-take off check on the map as I proposed in my previous post & everything looks good but the craft behaves anyway ... it CAN be due to a faulty IMU.



If your craft was pointing in this direction at take-off ... you didn't have a yaw error then.

View attachment 139277


i didn't have any issues at this location before taking it downtown, also when i was in downtown i tried to take off from a parking lot but couldn't get gps lock then i moved to the location i had the issue.
 
i didn't have any issues at this location before taking it downtown, also when i was in downtown i tried to take off from a parking lot but couldn't get gps lock then i moved to the location i had the issue.
🤷‍♂️

As said ... we can't say more out of the data available.

Either it was magnetic interference that caused it ... which is a whole lot more common, especially from pilots that don't check the map before take off. OR it was a much more rare IMU failure. No way to say which.
 
Might add in this ...

As the .DAT logs from a M3 can't be decrypted & read by us we can't say if this yaw error was due to a magnetic interfered power on location (can be handled by the pilot) ... or a IMU error.

If you follow the pre-take off check on the map as I proposed in my previous post & everything looks good but the craft behaves anyway ... it CAN be due to a faulty IMU.



If your craft was pointing in this direction at take-off ... you didn't have a yaw error then.

View attachment 139277



just checked the video and yup it was facing the correct direction.
 

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just checked the video and yup it was facing the correct direction.
Worth returning for evaluation from DJI perhaps.
If they agree there might be an imu problem you will get a replacement, and at this early stage in the M3 life, it would likely be a new unit.
Also if from a reputable dealer / retailer with good returns policy, that might be worth doing.
Be nice to find out though, and that would be via DJI.
 
just checked the video and yup it was facing the correct direction.
Great ... & that confirms that the IMU & the reality was in agreement, which in turn meant that no yaw error was created (due to magnetic interference at least)... and you could have a flight without surprises.

Put this with the map check & the drone icon there in your pre-flight checklist ... it's something you should do every time.

Then ...

A tip to distance your craft as much as possible from hidden magnetic objects that can upset your compass & IMU during power on.

-Turn on your controller & app first ...

-Then hold the craft in your hand (without watches, rings, bracelets or other metal objects), power it on & directly stretch the arm with the craft straight out in front of you.

-Hold the craft there until the live view turns up in your mobile device.

-Once the live view is up & running you can place the craft on ground.

-Check the map & the drone icon so the pointing direction match reality.

-Take -off.


In this way you firstly keep the craft as far away from magnetic interference as possible during the IMU initialization ... then you confirm the result on the map. With this procedure every time you will clear a yaw error due to magnetic interference.
 
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-Then hold the craft in your hand (without watches, rings, bracelets or other metal objects), power it on & directly stretch the arm with the craft straight out in front of you.
-Hold the craft there until the live view turns up in your mobile device.
-Once the live view is up & running you can place the craft on ground.


I like the idea and will incorporate it in my future operations...
 
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As said, a yaw error isn't anything permanent if it's due to a power on in a magnetic interfered location ... & isn't then a sign of a faulty craft.

When you power up your craft the IMU heading direction is initialized by the compass ... if this happens in a magnetic interfered location the compass will be deflected & by that the IMU will get the wrong information regarding how the craft is pointing.

As soon as the craft ascends away from the magnetic interfered location the compass will correct it self but not the IMU, which mainly is what tells the flight controller in what direction the craft points during the flight.

All this with a wrongly initialized IMU is easy to see before getting airborne ... just look at the map view in the FLY app & the drone icon there ... if that icon is pointing equal there in relation to other map object as the drone does in reality ... all is good. If not ... you need to power the craft down, move away to another take-off location & power up & repeat.
I've had this happen more than a few times. Just move to a new spot and try again.
 
Do you have to report this to the NTSB since it was an uncontrolled error in controls?
That is not required under Part 107 since:
  1. It didn't result in an accident that triggered the reporting criteria (107.9);
  2. It didn't result in an in-flight emergency that led to the pilot deviating from any of the operating rules (107.21).
And had either of those happened, the reporting requirement is to the FAA, not NTSB.
 
That is not required under Part 107 since:
  1. It didn't result in an accident that triggered the reporting criteria (107.9);
  2. It didn't result in an in-flight emergency that led to the pilot deviating from any of the operating rules (107.21).
And had either of those happened, the reporting requirement is to the FAA, not NTSB.
Actually it is from

49 CFR § 830.5 - Immediate notification​

Flight control system malfunction or failure;

and not Part 107. I recall this from a course I took to get my Part 107 license.
 
Actually it is from

49 CFR § 830.5 - Immediate notification​

Flight control system malfunction or failure;

and not Part 107. I recall this from a course I took to get my Part 107 license.
49 CFR 830 only covers unmanned aircraft accidents, which it defines as:

Unmanned aircraft accident means an occurrence associated with the operation of any public or civil unmanned aircraft system that takes place between the time that the system is activated with the purpose of flight and the time that the system is deactivated at the conclusion of its mission, in which:​
(1) Any person suffers death or serious injury; or​
(2) The aircraft has a maximum gross takeoff weight of 300 pounds or greater and sustains substantial damage.​
 

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