I've found a DJI Phantom Drone outside of a cabin we were renting in Gatlinburg, TN. I was able to pull the card and get some video. There's no owner info on the drone, but if you can tell me what cabin you were at, when you stayed there (based off the timestamp of the crash video), then it's yours. I'd love to fix it myself and fly it, but can't do it in good conscience without trying to find the owner. I know these things are expensive. If I don't have any luck here, does anyone else know what to do? I'm trying to find the rental property's info so I can see if they can contact who stayed there at the date on the video. Any forums or websites that could help locate the owner? Thanks.
Found DJI Phantom Drone in Gatlinburg, TN
- Thread starter satalac
- Start date
Get the serial number from the drone and start there:
- If the owner registered it (they should have) then DJI will have a record of who the owner is.
- If the owner registered with the FAA then the FAA should also have a record of who the owner is. Although unfortunately too many people fail to do this.
My hat is off to you satalac. What a stand up thing to do in a world that seems to not give a care about anyone else. It is you and your like that makes this world a better place. Hope you find the owner and get some instant karma.
Looking at more video, I believe I have found the owner's home address based on landmarks and finding it on Google Earth. Fingers crossed I can get this back to them. I still may contact DJI just to see if they can contact the owner as well. Thanks for the help.
Well yes the requirement is that that the FAA registration number needs to be on the drone, but that's not always the case. Someone could register and not mark it on the drone. However there is also the case that the drone itself would only be registered if it's under Part 107. Otherwise the owner registers just themselves and not the drone. So the FAA would not have the serial number anyway.
@satalac KUDOS to you for making the attempt to reunite the operator to their lost sUAS.
Does it happen to have a long strange # written/labeled on it anywhere? It could even be in the battery compartment. If it does you can give the # to a local law Enforcement Agency and they can use that # to locate the registered owner and get them back together. They probably won't give you that information but we''ve helped do this a couple of times recently for registered and labeled aircraft. One of them was an Inspire 2 and the owner was ELATED to get it back (and it was not damaged at all).
Here is an example of what the FAA Registration # will look like.
Does it happen to have a long strange # written/labeled on it anywhere? It could even be in the battery compartment. If it does you can give the # to a local law Enforcement Agency and they can use that # to locate the registered owner and get them back together. They probably won't give you that information but we''ve helped do this a couple of times recently for registered and labeled aircraft. One of them was an Inspire 2 and the owner was ELATED to get it back (and it was not damaged at all).
Here is an example of what the FAA Registration # will look like.
I didn't see anything like an FAA# on it, but did get this back from DJI.
Oso
Premium Pilot
Wow, that's wonderful. I don't think that I have ever seen them respond in this way. It seems that every time over the last several years that someone has reached out to DJI regarding a found drone, DJI has not responded as favorably. Thanks for sharing, and of course thanks again for your effort.
Outstanding!! Job well done.
Please keep us updated and THANK YOU for being honest.
Please keep us updated and THANK YOU for being honest.
That is awesome! I'm impressed that DJI is responding so quickly and taking action but that is a good thing. Even more so, PROPS to you good man for being a really good guy and doing your best to find the owner. It is very commendable!
In contact with the owner and working on getting it shipped back. So in the future, if anyone needs help trying to find the owner of a lost drone, contact DJI with the serial number and have them have the owner contact you. Hope this helps, and I appreciate the help from the board.
RodPad
Premium Pilot
I would really like to hear the rest of the story, what was this person's flight that caused the lost of their phantom? Would be ironic if it was one of the stories in a thread in here! Please give us some more details if you can 
Shipped it back to the owner yesterday. Talked with him a bit. Said it was his first drone and the wind caught it a bit while he was close to a tree. Got stuck (it was a tall tree on a mountain side with the branches starting halfway up) and couldn't recover. I'm guessing it finally blew out and that's where we found it.
satalac, you are one great person. On behalf of anyone that has ever lost something, I salute you. May your efforts be rewarded 10 fold.
Satalac, I would like to echo a heartfelt Thank you and “atta-boy” for going above and beyond in this situation. It is good to know that there are still honest people willing to go the extra mile. You are definitely one of this sports unsung heros.
Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas!
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