Well I've owned my P3S for a little over a month and the inevitable happened, I let a friend fly the drone and she flew it into a very high tree. So long Dizzy it was fun while it lasted, I don't think I will be buying another drone, its too expensive a hobby to risk losing it on every flight. I know the moral of the story is dont let friends fly your drone (she is mortified right now and offering to buy a replacement but I just can't take her money).
Fun while it lasted
- Thread starter dhodgson80
- Start date
Sorry for your loss but IF you fly them you will eventually crash them. Part of the hobby.
Maybe offer to go in halfs with her?
Maybe offer to go in halfs with her?
Every time I flew it was with a bit of fear that I would lose it, as you say nature of the hobby. She's already given me most of the money but I declined, I just can't take money to feed my expensive hobby.
Go back there and try to locate it... eventually it will come down... did you put your phone number on it?
If it flew straight into the tree and got stuck, most likely the damage is minimal, would be a shame to abandon it there. Maybe talk to a local tree-cutting company... some of those guys can climb on crazy-tall trees, might take them 30 minutes to go up and down, make some money...
If you can't recover your drone, you might want to look at a refurbished unit ($399 on DJI site) and sell your RC, or contact DJI and see if they can give you a significant discount on a new AC, considering you bought yours just a month ago.
As for crashes being part of the hobby, it's true but there's no question that many could be avoided. I'm saying this not to criticize you for letting your friend take the controls, but because I don't want you to think that you should expect to lose a drone every month. If you're careful and diligent in the way you plan and conduct your flights, crashes are an extremely rare occurrence.
If it flew straight into the tree and got stuck, most likely the damage is minimal, would be a shame to abandon it there. Maybe talk to a local tree-cutting company... some of those guys can climb on crazy-tall trees, might take them 30 minutes to go up and down, make some money...
If you can't recover your drone, you might want to look at a refurbished unit ($399 on DJI site) and sell your RC, or contact DJI and see if they can give you a significant discount on a new AC, considering you bought yours just a month ago.
As for crashes being part of the hobby, it's true but there's no question that many could be avoided. I'm saying this not to criticize you for letting your friend take the controls, but because I don't want you to think that you should expect to lose a drone every month. If you're careful and diligent in the way you plan and conduct your flights, crashes are an extremely rare occurrence.
Thanks for the advice, unfortunately it's on top of a huge hill practically the middle of nowhere surrounded by a barbed wire fence. Stupidly I didn't put my number in it but if it dislodged and fell the fall would cause a lot of damage, it was a very high tree.
I'm absolutely gutted right now i loved the drone and had to put in overtime at work that only cones round once a year so that I could buy it and some birthday money went towards it.
I'll contact my home insurers and DJI see if they can help.
Next time I just wont let my friends fly it, not much to plan on this one it was a wide open field with this one small clump of trees, sods law!
I'm absolutely gutted right now i loved the drone and had to put in overtime at work that only cones round once a year so that I could buy it and some birthday money went towards it.
I'll contact my home insurers and DJI see if they can help.
Next time I just wont let my friends fly it, not much to plan on this one it was a wide open field with this one small clump of trees, sods law!
RodPad
Premium Pilot
Hum, 2 hours that sucks.
Trees are Phantom magnets.
P3S, flying close to my house on missions. Following roads around the neighbor hood, I didn't want to have to walk in a bunch of snow to look for it.
Had ideas to retrieve it, weather and time was not on my side, I could see through the camera, start and stop motors, before the battery went dead. Fell out of the tree a couple months later, with in a 12 hour period from when I had last checked on it.
It was now in 5 pieces, still using the battery and Marco Polo.
Missing P2V+, 50 min drive, with friends spent 40+ man hours walking in the woods.
Believe it is or was stuck in the old growth timber, 200'+
Tried in may this year to much snow, tried 2 weeks ago, road closed due to a fire.
Rod
Trees are Phantom magnets.
P3S, flying close to my house on missions. Following roads around the neighbor hood, I didn't want to have to walk in a bunch of snow to look for it.
Had ideas to retrieve it, weather and time was not on my side, I could see through the camera, start and stop motors, before the battery went dead. Fell out of the tree a couple months later, with in a 12 hour period from when I had last checked on it.
It was now in 5 pieces, still using the battery and Marco Polo.
Missing P2V+, 50 min drive, with friends spent 40+ man hours walking in the woods.
Believe it is or was stuck in the old growth timber, 200'+
Tried in may this year to much snow, tried 2 weeks ago, road closed due to a fire.
Rod
Consider that it's more of an insult to NOT replace the drone now that "she's given you most of the money".
Might be best for your friendship.
Very big tree, no low branches to even start would need specialist equipment.
Both Home Insurance and DJI have said they can't help. So my days of flying are over for now.
Both Home Insurance and DJI have said they can't help. So my days of flying are over for now.
RodPad
Premium Pilot
It must have been missed, but I think the OP didn't take the money?
"She's already given me most of the money but I declined, I just can't take money to feed my expensive hobby."
Rod
"She's already given me most of the money but I declined, I just can't take money to feed my expensive hobby."
Rod
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I put my first P3S in a tree in my back yard. I started climbing then realized a 65 yr. old man shouldn't be climbing trees, especially at night. So I just started working the controls back and forth until it came crashing down. All that happened was some messed up props.These things are tougher than they look!
Tried starting the motors to get it out of the tree, it wasn't having any of it. Part of the issue with not trying to rescue it is that I don't drive and would have to rely on friends to get me to the same spot, walk for about an hour to get to the spot with perhaps some long poles to connect together to try to poke it out. Anyway no matter, friend insisted in giving me some towards the cost of the new drone, she would not take no for an answer, managed to get a discount code as well for the store I bought it from and purchase gift vouchers through a work perk scheme to get a bit more off. I'll have Dizzy II and be back in the skies by tea time.
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you can buy screw in tree steps to get up to the branches brother you can find them at Walmart dicks sporting goods bass pro and any other place that sells hunting supplies and they are cheap usually a couple bucks per step. I would have been up that tree the same day I lost it.
RodPad
Premium Pilot
If you do decide to get another one get insurance. I have not used it yet, but it's not a question of "if" it is just when.
I'm in the UK and trying to find insurance, proving difficult, looks like insurers foresee too many claims from idiots crashing their drones into trees!!!
I think you should replace, if you took most of the money from Her.That would be the right thing. Even if you get a used one , she did pay . You should replace . Just my thoughts
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