Neighbor kid lost drone, let a kid fly the P4

[jakobe75]

So the kid across the street got two walmart type drones for xmas, He threw away the instructions and isnt very good at flying them yet. I think he is 8.

One has an app that fpv's to a smart phone...kinda neat.
He keeps flying it, about the size of a paper plate. He wont calibrate it so it flys like crap...I have rescued it out of trees at least three times already...i dont mind helping, these kids are like family and parents recently divorced.

Now I am afraid it's gone for good this time. I will use the phantom to scan the tree tops tomorrow.

Been trying to teach him how to care for his drone stuff,.i.gave bim an old metal briefcase to keep it organized and that way it always works and is ready to use. But his absent father wont keep up with the hobby.

I let his 12 year old sister fly the P4 yesterday. She was so stoked! Very careful and inquisitive. Then i let her fly a few passes in sport mode. She was able to active track the dog and auto land and auto takeoff.

 

[Quamera]

So the kid across the street got two walmart type drones for xmas, He threw away the instructions and isnt very good at flying them yet. I think he is 8.

One has an app that fpv's to a smart phone...kinda neat.
He keeps flying it, about the size of a paper plate. He wont calibrate it so it flys like crap...I have rescued it out of trees at least three times already...i dont mind helping, these kids are like family and parents recently divorced.

Now I am afraid it's gone for good this time. I will use the phantom to scan the tree tops tomorrow.

Been trying to teach him how to care for his drone stuff,.i.gave bim an old metal briefcase to keep it organized and that way it always works and is ready to use. But his absent father wont keep up with the hobby.

I let his 12 year old sister fly the P4 yesterday. She was so stoked! Very careful and inquisitive. Then i let her fly a few passes in sport mode. She was able to active track the dog and auto land and auto takeoff.

Without trying to typecast anyone its often the boys that are given the fun toys but it is the girls that take more care and have less accidents. The girls are often more grateful for the opportunity too because they have less of them than their brothers.

 

[bprsnt]

It's great to hear that you are showing them the kindness and mentoring them in an amazing always evolving technology. It's too bad their dad is disconnected. Hat off to you!


Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots

 

[ob1415]

Good man.

 

[jakobe75]

It's great to hear that you are showing them the kindness and mentoring them in an amazing always evolving technology. It's too bad their dad is disconnected. Hat off to you!


Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots

The girl is a tomboy and loves art and technology. The boy just likes to break things and sports.

I looked late last night for his drone hoping the leds were still lit and blinking, but no luck. Went out at day break this morning and cant see anything, but its a little misty and foggy here in the GA mountains. If the weather holds I will try maybe use one of my quads to spot it from above.

 

[eatpasta]

So the kid across the street got two walmart type drones for xmas, He threw away the instructions and isnt very good at flying them yet. I think he is 8.

One has an app that fpv's to a smart phone...kinda neat.
He keeps flying it, about the size of a paper plate. He wont calibrate it so it flys like crap...I have rescued it out of trees at least three times already...i dont mind helping, these kids are like family and parents recently divorced.

Now I am afraid it's gone for good this time. I will use the phantom to scan the tree tops tomorrow.

Been trying to teach him how to care for his drone stuff,.i.gave bim an old metal briefcase to keep it organized and that way it always works and is ready to use. But his absent father wont keep up with the hobby.

I let his 12 year old sister fly the P4 yesterday. She was so stoked! Very careful and inquisitive. Then i let her fly a few passes in sport mode. She was able to active track the dog and auto land and auto takeoff.

you're a good man, charlie brown. You're making a big impact on those kids whether they even know it or not yet. It's amazing how far just a little bit of effort and compassion goes with a kid.

It breaks my heart to see absentee parents....especially fathers as I'm trying to be a good dad.

I have a three year old and we belong to a pretty big parent group and hang out a lot. Whenever we meet at the beach or the park some of the kids are weirded out when I play with them - because when they go to the park, their dad plops down on the bench to drink a beer or play on the phone.
I love takin those kid out for rides on the mini bike or giving them a couple of tosses in the ocean - the kids absolutely love it and the look on their dads' face is almost always the same. Mixed confusion and some regret.

Play with your kids people.

 

[jakobe75]

you're a good man, charlie brown. You're making a big impact on those kids whether they even know it or not yet. It's amazing how far just a little bit of effort and compassion goes with a kid.

It breaks my heart to see absentee parents....especially fathers as I'm trying to be a good dad.

I have a three year old and we belong to a pretty big parent group and hang out a lot. Whenever we meet at the beach or the park some of the kids are weirded out when I play with them - because when they go to the park, their dad plops down on the bench to drink a beer or play on the phone.
I love takin those kid out for rides on the mini bike or giving them a couple of tosses in the ocean - the kids absolutely love it and the look on their dads' face is almost always the same. Mixed confusion and some regret.

Play with your kids people.

Yeah it sucks for them, their Dad was a good friend of ours for many years, then he decided that doing heroin and getting arrested was more important than anything else...and he has 4 kids! 2 twin 17 y/o's, the 12 y/o and the 8 y/o.

We live in a great wooded subdivision on North GA. only about 40 homes it's a very close knit community, total shock to learn this about him...drugs are bad. Grandparents had bought the boy a drone last year for xmas too, just some cheap one but Dad sold it on craigslist...stole my weed eater and sold that too.

I am the same way, my wife and I dont have kids, but this neighborhood has at least 30 kids in it so they are always around...and it being so rural around here we have a ton of ATV trails and some cool abandoned housing developments to exlplore, almost everone here has an ATV and we are always taking the kids on rides and interacting with them...some of the parents here are the same way, just beer drinkin, football watching rednecks.

Havent had time to send the Phantom out today, but I was able to look at the trees with some binoculars and dont see anything...I cant image that this flimsy drone could penetrate the canopy very deep, its all loblolly pines here that are at least 70ft tall...I might move the search to house on the other side.

was kinda waiting for kids to get off the bus before I fired up the other quads so they could participate in the search.

 

[eatpasta]

Yeah it sucks for them, their Dad was a good friend of ours for many years, then he decided that doing heroin and getting arrested was more important than anything else...and he has 4 kids! 2 twin 17 y/o's, the 12 y/o and the 8 y/o.

We live in a great wooded subdivision on North GA. only about 40 homes it's a very close knit community, total shock to learn this about him...drugs are bad. Grandparents had bought the boy a drone last year for xmas too, just some cheap one but Dad sold it on craigslist...stole my weed eater and sold that too.
.

I think you would be blown away at how many functional alcoholics/drug addicts there are in this country and how well they hide it.

Especially the prescription pill popping types like House from the TV show - It's way more common than people believe.

Every now and then someone comes off the rails and you find out.

 

[jakobe75]

I think you would be blown away at how many functional alcoholics/drug addicts there are in this country and how well they hide it.

Especially the prescription pill popping types like House from the TV show - It's way more common than people believe.

Every now and then someone comes off the rails and you find out.

I agree, Thats how it started for him, he was a functional alcoholic. Hid it well from his family, but everyone kinda knew, I had a couple talks with him about it and how it would affect his kids in the future...he didnt seem to care. Then the buzz wasnt good enough and started with pills then eventually got to heroin....40 years old and a heroin addict, what a waste. Started stealing stuff from neighbors around the subdivision. My buddy is the GM of BestBuy and went to that dudes store and stole stuff and got arrested.

I am just glad he got removed from his home before I bought my quads. He would have been eyeballing them.

His older daughters dont know about his problems, they moved out at 15 to live with their bio mom, but the 12 y/o understands whats happening with the divorce and whatnot, she is a tough kid, pretty bright and level headed for her age. I think she willl be fine in life....but the boy doesnt understand at all, just misses his dad. sucks.

 

[eatpasta]

I agree, Thats how it started for him, he was a functional alcoholic. Hid it well from his family, but everyone kinda knew, I had a couple talks with him about it and how it would affect his kids in the future...he didnt seem to care. Then the buzz wasnt good enough and started with pills then eventually got to heroin....40 years old and a heroin addict, what a waste.

That's terrible - I really feel for the kids as he is damaging them for life. My moms dad was an abusive alcoholic and it's STILL rears it's ugly head in how my mom wants to teach my son...

ugh

 

[jakobe75]

SUCCESS!

Flew the Phantom around couldnt spot it, broke out the binoculars again and found it on the forest floor!

He wanted to fly mine and I said "hey'ell no", but I let him press auto land and auto takeoff buttons.

 

[schlepprock]

SUCCESS!

Flew the Phantom around couldnt spot it, broke out the binoculars again and found it on the forest floor!

He wanted to fly mine and I said "hey'ell no", but I let him press auto land and auto takeoff buttons.

Good job brother.

 

[eatpasta]

SUCCESS!

Flew the Phantom around couldnt spot it, broke out the binoculars again and found it on the forest floor!

He wanted to fly mine and I said "hey'ell no", but I let him press auto land and auto takeoff buttons.

ha - right on.

Persistence pays off again!

We should have a master tally for lost / found drones.

 

[jakobe75]

ha - right on.

Persistence pays off again!

We should have a master tally for lost / found drones.

I was thinking the same thing, would love to hear crazy success stories and RTH stories.

 

[JetFalcon]

I let some kid fly my drone. He seemed super into it, even if it was just pushing forward on the stick.

Would have been cool if we had drones in early 2000s. Wonder if kids can get in trouble bringing these to school. I'd def fly on lunch break or after school, and pull pranks on friends.