Launching from a pontoon boat

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I live in a very wooded area adjacent to a lake.......if I could safely launch from my pontoon boat, likely I would have sufficient sats to fly in GPS mode, which is often not the case from land.

Does anyone have first hand experiencing with this?

I would guess that the aluminum would have no effect on the compass, but I am hesitant to test it.

Also I would assume that the home position would have little use, since the boat would drift from launch point.

Any help appreciated......
 
I don't have any experience with this specific scenario, but I would suggest you calibrate the compass before you get on the boat and you should be fine from a compass perspective. The aluminum boat shouldn't impact the GPS. With the P2, you should be able to re-set the home point to your new location once you are ready to land?
 
If the boat is stationary and only floating around the anchor you should be ok. You just control the landing. If the boat is going to be moving you may want to check out the use of dynamic home point. That way every 5 seconds the home point is updated to your location. It may help with your scenario.
 
I found this video to be quite useful, even if he is using the older version of the Vision+

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I did some shots with dolphin watching and kayaking trips. One was a boat for 100 people, the other one bit smaller like for 20. What I learned was that in the initial 10 secs. when Phantom powers up you want to avoid vibration (so boats engines off!) and too much waves. Choose a calm day if possible. Landing in my scenarios was always in hand so you should be familiar with it. Also keep in mind that reflections of the antenna signals on the water arriving miliseconds later than the signal that took the direct path can cause you problems...
 
I have launched from a pontoon boat many times, I just set up a table to lift off and land on. Master hand launching and catching if your concerned about crashes. I just uploaded a vid where I recorded a pontoon boat wedding. Had to launch from there...
 
Ive also flew from my pontoon boat as well. I drop anchor or pull up to a bank before I fly. I calibrate away from radio speakers, etc. Rest of boat is aluminum and stainless steel.
 

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