Need help. DJI won't cover flyaway crash. Ignores flight data.

[kirk2579]

DJI Phantom 3 Flyaway crash:

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Once the phantom has compass malfunction on the air, the firmware logic calculates the wrong result. Even just for hovering (with no input command), it will drive it to wrong dirrection. That's what causing "toilet bowl effect".

The dangerous thing is, the phantom didn't even realize that its compass is malfunctioning, so it won't show any error message and keep calculating wrong values of trajectory over and over.

How to avoid this is make sure your actual heading is match with the heading on the map. Maybe only your self who can confirm the situation on that location, between the onboard video vs the flightlog video on your 1'st post. Make sure it is perfectly match the orientation (N,E,S,W) not only the rotation movement on the map.

And this youtube video i post here is one example, that phantom didnot realize its compass malfunction, so it won't show any error message. The worst thing is the pilot also didnot aware about it.

I believe this is exactly match your case, i can see it from the same "toilet bowl" trajectory.

Sent from my D5503 using PhantomPilots mobile app

I would say the odds are a bad compass calibration on the ground near metal interference.
then when it became airborne and no longer influence by that metal the compass became disoriented to true heading.
thus ---toilet bowl
as it keeps going in wrong direction and then gps tries to correct the heading over and over again!

 

[cdronefly]

The only thing I can say to the OP and to ANY beginners that read this thread - is stuff like this:

1. Most pilots should not start with a $1,000 camera drone as their "beater" or learning machine.
2. The vast majority of mishaps such as this seem to happen to those who do not follow #1. If DJI machines were somehow defective en masse, we'd be seeing them happen exactly as much to experienced pilots.
3. Many articles have been written on flyaways and how to avoid them. First, tho, one must accept that most flyaways (of DJI machines, at least) are user error of some sort...and./or could have been avoided.

For the benefit of the OP - it's worth mentioning that many - like myself - have had 4 or 5 Phantoms over 3+ years and not put a scratch on them. It's also worth the typing to say that many pilots don't fly over water until they are FAR into their training and confidence. The DJI stuff is so good that it can give you false confidence (true of any advanced technology - in fact they have a name for it).

We have published a number of drone books - which are now available FREE:
FREE Drone eBooks - Droneflyers.com

IMHO, it takes a minimum of 12-15 hours of study and flight to be called an "advanced beginner" and be capable of basic flight. From there one should build up more hours and knowledge. The Part 107 test is worth taking just for the learning experience - that probably takes a minimum of another 20+ hours of study.

Just as with any technical undertaking, prep and experience are key.

Here are just some of my articles on "flyaways"
Fear of Flying 2016 - The Last Word on Drone Flyaways! - Droneflyers.com
DJI Phantom 3 how to avoid Flyaways and Crashes - Droneflyers.com

Oh, it should always be mentioned that drones are not warranted against crashes and flyaways. DJI sells extra cost insurance as does Neary Aerial - some of which will cover any event as long as you retrieve the drone.

 

[Gerard Lim]

The arrow of the drone while flying (pointing north west) is not the same of the angle of the video recorded. Does it mean anything?

When my drone is pointing North, my camera is pointing North also. The arrow of the drone while flying will be pointing North. Your video shows that your camera is not pointing at where the drone arrow is.

 

[Baggycat]

A few things spring to mind here:
1) The Phantom temperature range is 0 to 42˚, with snow on the ground the temp is likely to be below that - fly at your peril.
2) Flying over water is NOT a good idea at all, especially so close to it... so many things can happen.
3) Flying sideways or backwards that low indicates to me that the pilot doesn't have a clue what he's doing!

I don't think that this is anything to do with drone malfunction at all. Learn to fly in an open field and practice for hours, not a couple of flights in a terrible location. This has pilot error written all over it.

 

[Baggycat]

They are awful money grubbing people that make buggy products and do not take responsibility. You are out of luck

That's a ridiculous comment to make... no doubt you fly a Yuneeq. If so, what are you doing in a Phantom forum? Buggy product? Stupid trolling!

 

[P4PCommander]

The first thing that catches my eye is all that metal in the bridge. The initial flyaway was probably caused by interference with the compass caused by the bridge. Just my impression. I personally would not have flown my bird there. Especially underneath it like that.


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots

We Have Flown our P4 and P4P many times under Bridges along side them with ZERO problems.. DJI is getting pretty Cocky with their SUPPORT! We still can't get ANY PARTS for the new P4P, and will not live stream to facebook as they claimed when they started pushing the new P4P

 

[tcaggie24]

This is the 4th such crash I have seen in forums. Things they all had in common: River and bridges. In some of these cases, pilots tried to fly under the bridges. Bottom line.... be careful around big bridges and bodies of water. It appears that both conditions are needed. I have seen many cases where Phantoms have flown over water and as long as they stayed high enough...no problem. I have flown over lakes and got some very nice pics and vid.

 

[dave kotinsky]

With that little experience you hsould not have been flying under bridge and so low to water!

 

[NWYeti]

I'm sorry you probably aren't happy with the replies on here but by your video it clearly shows that you are in error. You begin your flight underneath a steel bridge where there won't be any satellite coverage, which also shows that you failed to calibrate your compass. You then slightly raised your bird then flew in reverse. But at takeoff you bumped the ground again causes the aircraft to fly uncontrollably while searching for satellite coverage. Then before crashing into the river (UNDERNEATH A BRIDGE), you fly the P4 only a couple feet above the water in reverse. DJI quadcopters are designed to be aerial aircraft which fly hundreds of feet MSL, not toys that fly 2 feet off a river underneath a bridge. And next time you buy a drone, practice flying manually so you can be in full control of your bird.

 

[AlecW]

1. Most pilots should not start with a $1,000 camera drone as their "beater" or learning machine.

I jumped in the deep end and only really realized it while my drone was in UPS land on the way to me after I downloaded a 65 page manual in a single language, gulp! I knew right away I needed to google "Phantom Forums".

Without getting long winded I don't know how flying a non intelligent drone would have helped me however. Lets take this crash, my thoughts are the OP calibrating the compass at that location probably caused this crash. Lets assume I'm right (even if I'm not a bad cal has caused similar crashes), how would flying a cheap drone prevent this? Sure, knowing how to fly in atti mode may have been a solution to regain control once the toilet bowl started to happen but you see where I'm going.

Now in my case I've done a crap ton of reading and have been taking lots of baby steps flying from my house mostly. I'm somewhat lucky to have some fields to play around in right from my backyard. I got my P4 in early December and have flown it 32 times, 4 and half hours flight time and about 20 miles total distance. I had one landing that I flipped (no damage although I haven't used those props again). I also lost all sats at a buddies house and had to fly in atti mode to get it landed (his place is surrounded with tall pine trees on a mountain). Lesson learned, his house is a horrible place to fly from. I've yet to fly over water, under a bridge etc. but I do try atti mode when it's not windy for a couple of minutes on some flights.

I doubt I would fly from the location the OP is was at yet and I know 100% I would not have calibrated a compass near that parking lot or bridge..

So basically, a newbie can successfully learn with a P4 but you just have to spend a good deal of time learning, reading and taken baby steps. That's why I read these types of threads, I'm learning from other's mistakes and knowledge, in combination with my own flight practice in a relatively safe place.

Hopefully by the time summer rolls in I'll have enough skills to fly somewhere a bit more interesting than my backyard and can get some cool mountain shots.

 

[NWYeti]

.
...I'd like to preface this by saying I've seen and read about DJi doing some pretty rotten $!#$%, but I gotta say I don't think i've ever seen a post crash or incident video or flight-log that showed any pre-flight-flight checks,
.
View attachment 76219
.
IIIDaemon
www.GasRecovery.net

I've only had my P3 Standard for a month but I'm already studying for my Commercial UAS Pilot Test. It seems many "pilots" don't treat drones as aircraft. More as expensive toys. No pre-flight, during-flight, or post-flying checks, etc etc. I'm learning to fly manually so I can feel confident while performing aerial photography/ videography. I haven't crashed my P3 yet and hopefully never will. I treat it like an aircraft and if I do crash it, I'm responsible enough (through FAA flight studying) to recognize that it is nearly always pilot error.

 

[GFields]

I'm not sure the heading direction on the app is accurate though. When I turned the map on my app The Heading also turned with my map orientation. See these screenshots Imgur: The most awesome images on the Internet

But if the compass was acting incorrectly, why would the aircraft accelerate in the way that it did? Why didn't it stop moving when I pressed the RTH function? Why didn't it ascend to the preset height? And why did it descend into the water when it was a 165 feet from the home point? The AC clearly knew it wasn't over the home point. I'm not trying to call you out here, I'm just genuinely curious. I really appreciate your feedback.

And what really makes me suspicious, is that DJI continually refuses to acknowledge the events before the RTH function. Even when I call them out on it. Over the phone or through the complaint process they just act like I didn't even mention the events prior to the RTH. Makes me think they know it was a malfunction... but maybe I'm reading too much into it

First of all, I am interested to know if a low flight over water and under a bridge was planned from the beginning or is that a result of an error? Secondly, in the image you posted from DJI, it shows that you were having compass errors. This could be the result of your recent calibration near the bridge or the bridge itself. Either way, to me I see this as a risky place to fly. I learned this lesson myself. Yes, I had a bridge crash! Fortunately for me mine crashed onto the bridge, not the river. but a lesson learned nonetheless ( an expensive one at that).

 

[snowghost]

We Have Flown our P4 and P4P many times under Bridges along side them with ZERO problems.. DJI is getting pretty Cocky with their SUPPORT! We still can't get ANY PARTS for the new P4P, and will not live stream to facebook as they claimed when they started pushing the new P4P

Do you fly in ATTI mode when going under or do you let the bird change modes if GPS signal drops?

 

[kirk2579]

The only thing I can say to the OP and to ANY beginners that read this thread - is stuff like this:

1. Most pilots should not start with a $1,000 camera drone as their "beater" or learning machine.
2. The vast majority of mishaps such as this seem to happen to those who do not follow #1. If DJI machines were somehow defective en masse, we'd be seeing them happen exactly as much to experienced pilots.
3. Many articles have been written on flyaways and how to avoid them. First, tho, one must accept that most flyaways (of DJI machines, at least) are user error of some sort...and./or could have been avoided.

For the benefit of the OP - it's worth mentioning that many - like myself - have had 4 or 5 Phantoms over 3+ years and not put a scratch on them. It's also worth the typing to say that many pilots don't fly over water until they are FAR into their training and confidence. The DJI stuff is so good that it can give you false confidence (true of any advanced technology - in fact they have a name for it).

We have published a number of drone books - which are now available FREE:
FREE Drone eBooks - Droneflyers.com

IMHO, it takes a minimum of 12-15 hours of study and flight to be called an "advanced beginner" and be capable of basic flight. From there one should build up more hours and knowledge. The Part 107 test is worth taking just for the learning experience - that probably takes a minimum of another 20+ hours of study.

Just as with any technical undertaking, prep and experience are key.

Here are just some of my articles on "flyaways"
Fear of Flying 2016 - The Last Word on Drone Flyaways! - Droneflyers.com
DJI Phantom 3 how to avoid Flyaways and Crashes - Droneflyers.com

Oh, it should always be mentioned that drones are not warranted against crashes and flyaways. DJI sells extra cost insurance as does Neary Aerial - some of which will cover any event as long as you retrieve the drone.

DJI advertises the Phantom as Ready to Fly--and THEY are!

like you say though
IT often is the OPERATOR that is NOT ready to Fly...

hec , even after owning a p1, 2-p2's. and 2 p3's
I still spent hours going over my standard when I bought it
to be sure what is what and howthings differed etc.

 

[Billyds132]

The first thing that catches my eye is all that metal in the bridge. The initial flyaway was probably caused by interference with the compass caused by the bridge. Just my impression. I personally would not have flown my bird there. Especially underneath it like that.


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots

Well I agree w/ the metal part as I tried to fly my P3S at my work place's warehouse area but due to the metal it would not takeoff due to safety but when I backed up it did then started to mess up when getting close again.

 

[kirk2579]

I jumped in the deep end and only really realized it while my drone was in UPS land on the way to me after I downloaded a 65 page manual in a single language, gulp! I knew right away I needed to google "Phantom Forums".

Without getting long winded I don't know how flying a non intelligent drone would have helped me however. Lets take this crash, my thoughts are the OP calibrating the compass at that location probably caused this crash. Lets assume I'm right (even if I'm not a bad cal has caused similar crashes), how would flying a cheap drone prevent this? Sure, knowing how to fly in atti mode may have been a solution to regain control once the toilet bowl started to happen but you see where I'm going.

Now in my case I've done a crap ton of reading and have been taking lots of baby steps flying from my house mostly. I'm somewhat lucky to have some fields to play around in right from my backyard. I got my P4 in early December and have flown it 32 times, 4 and half hours flight time and about 20 miles total distance. I had one landing that I flipped (no damage although I haven't used those props again). I also lost all sats at a buddies house and had to fly in atti mode to get it landed (his place is surrounded with tall pine trees on a mountain). Lesson learned, his house is a horrible place to fly from. I've yet to fly over water, under a bridge etc. but I do try atti mode when it's not windy for a couple of minutes on some flights.

I doubt I would fly from the location the OP is was at yet and I know 100% I would not have calibrated a compass near that parking lot or bridge..

So basically, a newbie can successfully learn with a P4 but you just have to spend a good deal of time learning, reading and taken baby steps. That's why I read these types of threads, I'm learning from other's mistakes and knowledge, in combination with my own flight practice in a relatively safe place.

Hopefully by the time summer rolls in I'll have enough skills to fly somewhere a bit more interesting than my backyard and can get some cool mountain shots.

I agree it is possible to start like you and I did.
I did also realize very quickly I had far more technology than I thought .
and after a minor crash without damage I knew I had to learn more fast.

within a week or 2 I bought a basic p2 just to fly for fun and practice ,
saving the HD camera for real stuff. this worked out very well.

then more and more phantom's it seemed.

But in all honesty I also bought a syma 5 for indoor use and learning sticks and orientation etc.
I have now gone thru 4 syma's because they are just so much fun to fly . no nerves, no worries and the things I can do with it are just plain fun. also very quiet so I can go out in the evening when the wind is down and go nuts.

gave the 3 old ones to 14 yr old kid next door with extra motors etc and he fixes up for himself.


good luck and have fun flying

 

[Method007]

Looks like the result of a bad compass calibration. Sorry for your loss!

 

[rhfrhf]

Hey Everyone!

I'm sorry if this isn't the correct area for this post. If it isn't just let me know. This post will be kind of long....

So I've been wanting to get into this hobby for ages now. I finally saved enough and was persuaded by my wife enough to finally buy a drone (P4). I flew it three times before it flew away on it's own and crashed into a river....

Here is the flight data:

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Here's the video of the crash:

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The following is the complaint I eventually sent in to the BBB. It describes the incident in detail:



So that's the nuts and bolts of what happened. I originally got the following from DJI: Imgur: The most awesome images on the Internet

After my BBB complaint I got the following response:



Again, they ignored everything that happened before the RTH....

So here I am... What do I do now?

Thanks!!

I also filed a complaint with BBB but DJI just denies it

 

[pe9999]

According to his flight log, the crash occurred AFTER op switched back to P mode. In other words, the crash occurred when op was in control. From his video, he was flying backwards in circular motion and near the ground. At his flying height, I am not surprised that a low branch or tall grass might be the cause for his crash.

One thing I found odd is when he hit the rth button, his p4 did not raise high to 20m. I wonder what was his rth height setting

 

[AlecW]

I also filed a complaint with BBB but DJI just denies it

If it wasn't their fault they should deny it.