P4P Never came back

[CPN83]

Hi,

Long time ready and now a first time poster, Was flying my drone last night and lost connection with the controller and it never back back.

Previous Flight - DJI Flight Log Viewer - PhantomHelp.com
Last Flight - DJI Flight Log Viewer - PhantomHelp.com

I would have thought it would not have had any problems making it back, Spent hours looking for it with no luck.

 

[Gulfstream]

Hi,

Long time ready and now a first time poster, Was flying my drone last night and lost connection with the controller and it never back back.

Previous Flight - DJI Flight Log Viewer - PhantomHelp.com
Last Flight - DJI Flight Log Viewer - PhantomHelp.com

I would have thought it would not have had any problems making it back, Spent hours looking for it with no luck.

Someone will probably see something that will help you - I don't, but I'm always sorry when someone loses their bird.
Do you know what Firmware version was installed and what App version you were using?

 

[Meta4]

Long time reader and now a first time poster, Was flying my drone last night and lost connection with the controller and it never back back.
I would have thought it would not have had any problems making it back, Spent hours looking for it with no luck.

If you look at where you lost signal and then allow for 3 seconds of additional movement before loss of signal RTH initiated, you'll what blocked your signal and what was right in the path that the Phantom would have flown to get home.

You were flying at 37 metres and you had the default RTH height set at 30 metres so the Phantom would have returned without climbing.
The Flower Dome is 38 metres high.
Obstacle avoidance isn't going to help you in the dark.
It looks like your Phantom bumped into the top of the Flower Dome.

ps ... launching with a partially discharged (82%) battery is very risky.

 

[CPN83]

The flower dome is very well lit at night so I would have thought the drone would have been able to see it....or does it just not work at night regardless of how "bright" the surrounds are?

On the battery side, I had only planned on doing a loop around the dome and coming back so I thought 82% would have been heaps?

 

[Meta4]

The flower dome is very well lit at night so I would have thought the drone would have been able to see it....or does it just not work at night regardless of how "bright" the surrounds are?
On the battery side, I had only planned on doing a loop around the dome and coming back so I thought 82% would have been heaps?

Here's a list of some of the limitations to the Obstacle Avoidance system, the dome probably ticks a few boxes there

Setting an appropriate RTH height is always a good idea before flying behind an obstacle.

The battery % indication is a very rough indication and is OK for a fully charged battery but it can be very misleading when the battery is partially discharged.
What matters to the Phantom is the actual voltage the battery can deliver and if your battery has been sitting and discharging, it's going to be giving a lower voltage even before you start.
There have been many fell-from-the-sky reports from people that flew with partially discharged batteries.

 

[NoCoDrones]

Wow, that flower dome is very cool. I would love to check that out. If you can’t spot it And can send me air fare, I’ll bring my P4P and we can do an aerial search.

 

[babaco]

Wow, that flower dome is very cool. I would love to check that out. If you can’t spot it And can send me air fare, I’ll bring my P4P and we can do an aerial search.

He can just buy another drone with the money he would spend on your airfare [emoji23][emoji23][emoji23] seriously? He just lost a P4P, I think your solution isn't doing any good to this guy...

 

[babaco]

Hi,

Long time ready and now a first time poster, Was flying my drone last night and lost connection with the controller and it never back back.

Previous Flight - DJI Flight Log Viewer - PhantomHelp.com
Last Flight - DJI Flight Log Viewer - PhantomHelp.com

I would have thought it would not have had any problems making it back, Spent hours looking for it with no luck.

What some people here say about RTH height is true... I'm pretty sure your bird is somewhere inside the premises of this dome structure. Your P4P probably failed to detect the structure at night and crashed... I think, you should find a way to search the dome site... Sorry for your loss, good luck buddy.

 

[CPN83]

I have had to leave it behind, Flew back to Australia the next day. I am struggling to find somewhere that sells just the P4P as I dont need all the other bits.

 

[Tommy J 111]

ive only had mine a couple of weeks, so nothing i say is gospel but i dont ever plan on using obsticle avoidance. I do leave it on to hopefully cover me when i make a mistake.

 

[iflyp3s]

If you look at where you lost signal and then allow for 3 seconds of additional movement before loss of signal RTH initiated, you'll what blocked your signal and what was right in the path that the Phantom would have flown to get home.

You were flying at 37 metres and you had the default RTH height set at 30 metres so the Phantom would have returned without climbing.
The Flower Dome is 38 metres high.
Obstacle avoidance isn't going to help you in the dark.
It looks like your Phantom bumped into the top of the Flower Dome.

ps ... launching with a partially discharged (82%) battery is very risky.

Sorry to hear about your situation. All I can say is that it is almost certain that your P4P collided with the dome. Also when setting RTH altitudes (for everyone else in future), make sure that you give a decent leeway in space. So if you think that the highest point of an object in your area is say 45m, go to at least 55m as a precaution. I've almost been caught out in misjudging the height of something for RTH as well. Good luck with your future flights