Near disaster with Litchi

Joined
Jan 10, 2016
Messages
218
Reaction score
187
Location
Boston MetroWest
I created a mission for my P3S using Litchi, which I just got a couple of days ago. My overconfidence nearly cost me my Phantom! The flight was made just after dusk in early October in New England, and I planned a mission from my house to a nearby pond, do a swing around, and come home. I didn't know until I saw the video how close I came to losing my drone.

OTOH, given that I did not lose my drone, this shows what a beginner can do with Litchi. I'm licking my chops thinking what I'll be able to do in a year.

Edited in Premiere. Music by Kai Engel.

To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1800BigRob
Ironically, more often than not, near-disasters such as this seems to yield the best footage.

Even though it was accidental, gotta give credit where credit is due. Well done. :)
 
Ironically, more often than not, near-disasters such as this seems to yield the best footage.

Even though it was accidental, gotta give credit where credit is due. Well done. :)
Thanks. Imagine my chagrin (and mounting horror) when I first watched the video. I patiently waited several minutes for the drone to return, not knowing how close it came to never returning. In retrospect, I didn't realize that the other pond I flew to is about 50 feet higher in elevation than my driveway, the home point of the flight. The comfortable margin I had programmed had a serious deficit.

Note to self: you have a topographic map of the neighborhood on the wall. Use it!!!
 
Very nice but....YIKES! I knew it had a happy ending but it still made me nervous watching!
 
What did you set the altitude to when you got to the pond?
The first point over the lake, the low point, was 62 feet above the home point. Actually it was about 10 feet or less over the lake, and I probably had a foot or two clearance over that last tree!:eek:
 
This wasn't even my drone and my heart jumped watching this haha glad it came back to you.
 
Very close but looks great! I assume u had no video feed


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Nope. I just had to stand around and wait anxiously.


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots
 
Use Google Earth to create your flight path and export that to the Litchi mission hub. That the safest way of Navi Flight. In Goggle Earth you can set the path to follow the ground in a certin hight. and you can also chech that your flight path is over trees and cliffs.

There is a good youtube video here that explains how to use google earth:
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.
 
Use Google Earth to create your flight path and export that to the Litchi mission hub. That the safest way of Navi Flight. In Goggle Earth you can set the path to follow the ground in a certin hight. and you can also chech that your flight path is over trees and cliffs.

There is a good youtube video here that explains how to use google earth:
To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.
Funny thing about that. I had loaded up this video to watch on my computer but hadn't watched it before my Litchi mission. Now that I've downloaded Google Earth and checked out the relative altitudes of that pond vs my driveway launch point, I see how close to disaster I really did come. Thanks for the link.
 
As others have said, lovely, lucky video. Google Earth will help with terrain height above sea level but it wont tell you the height of the local trees. You can plan a route from your armchair but you still need to recce it with the mark 1, industrial grade eyeball.
It is a fine line between spectacular footage and heart palpitations, enjoy.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Philltayl
Interesting and useful link to how to use google earth with Litchi, but why did he use an intersection and street for his flight demo?
Seems a bit odd to show how to keep your drone safe but put the public at risk.
 
As others have said, lovely, lucky video. Google Earth will help with terrain height above sea level but it wont tell you the height of the local trees. You can plan a route from your armchair but you still need to recce it with the mark 1, industrial grade eyeball.
It is a fine line between spectacular footage and heart palpitations, enjoy.

The mark 1 eyeball has yet to be improved.........:)

Same as the laws of gravity have yet to be repealed....:)
 
The mark 1 eyeball has yet to be improved.........:)

Same as the laws of gravity have yet to be repealed....:)

Ah gravity, now there is a thing of much wonder.
Did you know that before Sir Isaac Newton, apple growers used to throw nets over trees waiting for apples to fall upwards and into the net. Thanks to him the technique was revolutionised and apple growers simply waited for the ripe fruit to fall to the ground where it could easily be picked up.
Personally I think gravity is a transient thing. Most of the time we are lucky, take walking for instance...we place each foot down in sequence and by pure chance a gravity wave grabs the sole of our feet and keeps us safe and upright. Occasionally the gravity wave is absent and we stumble, it also explains why objects fall from perfect safety when placed on a table. Gravity shifts and pulls it to the floor.
Also explains and very neatly why your stable drone is suddenly plucked from mid hover to crash to the ground in the most inconvenient place with the greatest amount of damage. The softest of crash landings are ruined by the inexorable strength of gravity twisting solid pieces like gimbal arms into bizarre shapes.
I will get my coat.....
 
Ah gravity, now there is a thing of much wonder.
Did you know that before Sir Isaac Newton, apple growers used to throw nets over trees waiting for apples to fall upwards and into the net. Thanks to him the technique was revolutionised and apple growers simply waited for the ripe fruit to fall to the ground where it could easily be picked up.
Personally I think gravity is a transient thing. Most of the time we are lucky, take walking for instance...we place each foot down in sequence and by pure chance a gravity wave grabs the sole of our feet and keeps us safe and upright. Occasionally the gravity wave is absent and we stumble, it also explains why objects fall from perfect safety when placed on a table. Gravity shifts and pulls it to the floor.
Also explains and very neatly why your stable drone is suddenly plucked from mid hover to crash to the ground in the most inconvenient place with the greatest amount of damage. The softest of crash landings are ruined by the inexorable strength of gravity twisting solid pieces like gimbal arms into bizarre shapes.
I will get my coat.....

Great.......:)
 
Wow nice footage!! Is litchi actually safe??.. i was thinking bout purchasing but now...


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots

To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.
this is a test of a mission where remote lost signal from the drone


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots
 

Recent Posts

Members online

No members online now.

Forum statistics

Threads
143,066
Messages
1,467,352
Members
104,933
Latest member
mactechnic