Cold Weather Flying

[flyNfrank]

For those of you that have never flown yet in cold weather may want to bookmark this topic. Pay closer attention to what those with Member Register Dates either in or before cold months. Also those who display their location that is subject to a cold climate sometime throughout the year. These members will likely have the experience and knowledge about cold weather flying.

I want to point out the importance of knowing what to expect in the way of battery performance when go out to fly in colder weather. Be prepared for much shorter fly times. If I get 18 mins in 75+degrees temps, I will get 11-12mins max in cold temps. If it's below 25 degrees, I might get 7-9 mins. This is as long as all 4 battery cells are good. If you have a bad cell on your battery in cold weather, be ready for a huge loss in fly time! When the battery has a weak cell, it is not able to supply enough volts and will very likely what causes the aircraft to drop from the sky.

You guys that mention receiving a lot of "Propulsion update" messages.....just wait until you begin flying in temps below 70 degrees. They will appear more the colder the temp gets. Btw, the propulsion messages are not meant to be bad. Some of what is taking place is the stick input for speed is being reduced so the volts will not be drained as fast. You just needed to be aware that when this happens you will not have as much power to fly against wind. If it is strong wind you may have to land the aircraft rather then risk dropping the volts below the safe limit. If any battery cell reaches 3.0 volts the aircraft is suppose to go into critical landing mode.

The GO app has settings to display the Volts on the main screen so you can view the volt reading while flying. It is highly suggested to watch the volts display while flying should you have a battery with a weak cell.

As a reminder this topic is about Cold Weather Flying. So fill free to add tips pertaining to flying in cold weather.

 

[Mark The Droner]

...
As a reminder this topic is about Cold Weather Flying. So fill free to add tips pertaining to flying in cold weather.

Warm your battery before flying - at least to 20C.

 

[Ken Nash]

Useful to know, I'll bare that in mind.....many thanks

 

[BigAl07]

Good topic for the newbies who may not have given flying in cold a single thought.

In cold weather my batteries stay inside and insulated container with "hand warmers" inside. Once in the aircraft and in use they will self heat but having them prewarmed makes a HUGE difference.

 

[alokbhargava]

Also your fingers get stiff in cold conditions and that may affect accuracies for flying between objects.


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots

 

[flyNfrank]

Warm your battery before flying - at least to 20C.

Dji sells a battery warmer to be used before flight. I use either a heating pad, or I sit the battery on the window ledge if the sun is shining. This should help give more flying time depending on weather conditions.

 

[kirk2579]

Also your fingers get stiff in cold conditions and that may affect accuracies for flying between objects.


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots

I cut a finger tip off a glove for winter control.

Under 20F though it don't take long to need to warm up the operator

and be careful handling the props once they are cold
--much easier to snap....

 

[NRJ]

Also your fingers get stiff in cold conditions and that may affect accuracies for flying between objects.


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots

Good point alokbhargava. Also, if you normally have shaky hands, the cold weather may or may not help. Or, if you have arthritis, it may give you more discomfort/pain in colder weather and that may cause problems in being able to maneuver. Play it safe according to your own physical needs in cold weather.