please help scared pilot

[skbaja999]

hi gang!
I've owned my phantom 2 with Zenmuse, FPV (black pearl screen) IOS for almost a year now. I have flown many times without a problem. Learned a few things about what not to do etc. I done some cool things with it...

http://vimeo.com/100771002

But.... Can someone please give me advice on how I can stop stressing so much on each Flight?. I am on a boat, so I do have to fly over water sometimes, but even on land, I am always so afraid that the thing is going to crash, I can't enjoy my flight even though it's never given me a reason to suspect a problem.

How can I gain confidence so I can enjoying my flying?.

 

[paulgrenga]

I'll be in Tampa flying a P2V from a boat all week. Hopefully, I won't turn it into a submersible - which I have done before. It sucked, but no one was hurt (which is pretty unlikely anyway). I saved up, bought another, modified it again and went back to flying. The one I dumped became just another funny story and not "the end of the world". I having been flying small airplanes for 20 years with a certain amount of anxiety before every flight. That's ok, I still fly, & that anxiety keeps me focused on checklists, flight plans, maintenance, whether, etc. Same with the Phantom (except that crashing an airplane literally could be the "end...").

Pilots of any kind are adventurist spirits. If you keep flying the DJI - a pretty high performance toy - eventually you are going to bang it around. It's a fact of life. Whether you put her in the water or up in a tree, chances are really good that you'll be able to fix it. When it happens, it's just another part of the adventure. No worries... you will be just fine.

 

[skbaja999]

Thanks so much for your reply. Good advice - guess I have to just Suck it up and fly!.
Have you flown from a boat before?. Of course I'm worrying a bit about Electronics and if they would Affect anything.
Thanks again,

Sharon

 

[Zinnware]

If you go into the water, you will definitely lose at least a battery. If it is salt water the it could be a complete loss. I base this on what I have read in these forums.

I like the attitude of paulgrenga below.

Pilots of any kind are adventurist spirits. When it happens, it's just another part of the adventure. No worries... you will be just fine.

It does take courage. Although I am nervous when flying, I get a real big rush.

I believe you will lower your risk of loss if you fly within the line of sight.

I believe that the highest risk area is batteries. I had two fail. Both failures were not fatal nor did either result in a crash. They resulted in an auto land situation that I overcame by switching to ATTI mode and bringing it back home safely. I only suggest to use your best and healthiest battery. Keep an eye on the battery's voltage level in addition to the Batter percent level. If it is getting down and close to 10.6v then be careful, I too like to fly over water and try not to push the Phantom's limits when doing so.

 

[Buckaye]

hi gang!
I've owned my phantom 2 with Zenmuse, FPV (black pearl screen) IOS for almost a year now. I have flown many times without a problem. Learned a few things about what not to do etc. I done some cool things with it...

http://vimeo.com/100771002

But.... Can someone please give me advice on how I can stop stressing so much on each Flight?. I am on a boat, so I do have to fly over water sometimes, but even on land, I am always so afraid that the thing is going to crash, I can't enjoy my flight even though it's never given me a reason to suspect a problem.

How can I gain confidence so I can enjoying my flying?.

Basic psychology on this is "exposure therapy". The more you do it, the less afraid you'll be. The key, however, is to push it just a little more each time..IE don't get in a rut and only fly in one orientation or one height.

I have to use this on myself... I find my knees buckling over height... So each time I fly I try to go a little higher and get used to what it looks like.

You'll get there.

The one thing you also have to get used to...is in this hobby crashing is part of it... Doesn't mean frequently... But expect it someday. It's not the end of the world...

 

[lake_flyer]

I'm in the same boat (pun intended),

I have to fly over water if I want to fly close at home. It's always exciting to say the least. I just know it is going in the drink some time in the future. It gets a little less exciting when I fly daily in a period with good weather but after 2 or 3 weeks bad weather I'm all chicken again and it takes all my courage to take it a mile out over the water.

But the lake is so beautiful and every flight it looks different. I have 2 Phantoms, if I lose one in the lake, at least I can keep flying with the other.

 

[WPSPETE]

I have been flying my phantom since July. I have been very anxious... But I also have anxiety and insomnia(found out two months ago). Tricky flights would keep me up all night worrying(among other things) I was terrified to crash. I found going slow and learning to fly properly helps me solve my anxiety. And walking away from certain flights if something doesn't feel right.

When I was a paraglider pilot I had a screw it lets fly attitude. I had many sketchy flights and eventually crashed and broke my back. Flying the phantom I take great pride in flying well and flying safe. It keeps my anxiety down and when I get great footage I feel even better. I took off from a boat in the summer in a cove. It was very unnerving. But the flight went fine. I have flown over water many times. Sometimes I hand my wallet and phone to my wife just in case I need to swim. Not sure I would now with freezing temps. Not worth my life lol.

 

[jason]

hi gang!
I've owned my phantom 2 with Zenmuse, FPV (black pearl screen) IOS for almost a year now. I have flown many times without a problem. Learned a few things about what not to do etc. I done some cool things with it...

http://vimeo.com/100771002

But.... Can someone please give me advice on how I can stop stressing so much on each Flight?. I am on a boat, so I do have to fly over water sometimes, but even on land, I am always so afraid that the thing is going to crash, I can't enjoy my flight even though it's never given me a reason to suspect a problem.

How can I gain confidence so I can enjoying my flying?.

Take what you read about flyaways, crashes and the like with a grain of salt.

 

[aburkefl]

Basic psychology on this is "exposure therapy". The more you do it, the less afraid you'll be. The key, however, is to push it just a little more each time..IE don't get in a rut and only fly in one orientation or one height.

I have to use this on myself... I find my knees buckling over height... So each time I fly I try to go a little higher and get used to what it looks like.

You'll get there.

The one thing you also have to get used to...is in this hobby crashing is part of it... Doesn't mean frequently... But expect it someday. It's not the end of the world...

I'm over in Leesburg, so not very far from you. I'm in the same boat, no pun intended. Got mine up to around 90' today - a personal high for me so far. I'm finally up in the air far enough I can see over most of the trees and out to Lake Harris. At that altitude, the Phantom 3 does not look like a dot - it is still very recognizable, but it gets pretty small. With a recommended max height of 400' I just can't image what it would look like.

Crashed mine on the roof today - highly fortunate it wasn't fatal. Damaged a prop and popped part of the body out of alignment. Made a 10-minute flight after that with no probs. Ordered some new props from DJI. Guess one has to be prepared for even more crashes LOL! Thus far I've been flying in a pretty close range to the house. Heaven forbid I fly this thing over water until I get braver!

 

[Ezookiel]

Try adding a "Water Buoy" or two to it, that will help you feel confident of getting it back if the worst happened and it went for a swim.
Even add a tracker of some sort to it to help allay the fear of having it lost through a fly away, then just enjoy it.

For me, I had to take the same attitude I have to my 4WD - I can leave the 4WD in the garage, or drive it only on roads, and it won't get scratched and damaged, or I can decide that even though it's going to get scratched and possibly damaged, I bought it to USE IT, so take it off-road, enjoy it, and just live with the consequences IF they ever happen. The quadcopter is the same, I can refuse to fly over water, refuse to go above a few feet, refuse to go too fast so it has limited momentum if it crashes, or I can just decide that I bought it to enjoy it, and I'll just have to deal with the disasters if they ever occur, and enjoy every minute of it in the meantime.
Prepare yourself a thorough checklist to reduce the risk of stupid mistakes like not putting a prop on properly, and then just clench your gut tight, and determine to enjoy it whatever happens.

 

[IrwinMedia]

I've been flying for about a year now as well. And I'm just starting to get rid of the jitters when flying. Slowly, becoming more confident in more confined areas and higher winds. I've crashed 2 Phantoms and each time is a whole new learning experience. Practice makes perfect.

 

[gary Guzzardo]

Sharon, Outstanding footage and the editing is superb , Enjoyed it .... I'm stressing over a crash 2 weeks ago . I have NO confidence at this time . I got my bird fixed but I'm awful gun shy about flying at this point . My crash was mechanical catastrophic loss of power for no reason ...still don't know why it happened ..

 

[Fyod]

This may not apply to you, but also don't let family/friends pressure you into flying far/high/fast.
I understand your nervousness and like others have said, just keep flying and concentrate on the flight. What really helped me was not looking at the Phantom at all, just the monitor. The Phantom sometimes makes noises and movements like its about to do something wrong, which makes me nervous. But then I remember the guys that have to pilot around huge commercial airliners and not make any mistake, and realize my worries are unfounded.

 

[MPPilot]

Hi V,
SIGINT refers to signals intellengce, think NSA. Generally SIGINT towers tent to be passive receivers, not transmitters. That said, SIGINT locations tend to be very hinkey about being photographed or spyed upon. I would not be surprised to learn of counter measures being used. Perpaps for his next several flights, after repairs, he should go to a park several miles in the opposite direction of the towers.

 

[AirlineCaptain]

OMG.....are you guys serious ?
Anxiety about flying a toy which flies itself?
Anxiety about flying a small GA airplane?
How about painting or fishing instead?
No wait...the fumes might get to you or the slimy fish might pull you into the lake......

 

[LuvMyTJ]

OMG.....are you guys serious ?
Anxiety about flying a toy which flies itself?
Anxiety about flying a small GA airplane?
How about painting or fishing instead?
No wait...the fumes might get to you or the slimy fish might pull you into the lake......

Welcome to the forums AirlineCaptain. Lets remember to keep it friendly while your here.
Please review the guidelines here - Community Rules

 

[Baz Davies]

I guess a little bit of trepidation when flying over water is normal--But I don't let it spoil the flight.
I've lost a home made quad to water--luckily I never had the camera on board as it was a test flight.
Enjoy it--

Cheers.

 

[TheLightSpeedz]

It takes time... That's all. After I wrecked my P3 I was scared to death. Now I've all but forgotten about it.


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots mobile app

 

[AndreGtable]

OMG.....are you guys serious ?
Anxiety about flying a toy which flies itself?
Anxiety about flying a small GA airplane?
How about painting or fishing instead?
No wait...the fumes might get to you or the slimy fish might pull you into the lake......

Imagine taking 2-3 thousand dollars and tossing it quickly through a fire a bunch of times. Eventually it might fall in and be gone. Thats why we are nervous especially me who only recently turned 18 and saved a while for the drone it a huge deal to lose all that hard work.


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots

 

[AgentOrange2015]

First Phantom I bought was a regular Phantom 2 and used my GoPro camera with it. Took it to my neighbors field and it flipped over and upside down twice, each time it then crashed in the ground and I eventually had to send it in for evaluation and they told me nothing was wrong but I finally figured out the IMU was totally screwed and causing my problems. This was January of 2015 and the big thing back then was how high you could fly and how far away you could fly. This was because the P3 had not come out yet with it's flight limits. What I like is that the P2 does not have any flight limits on height of distance, but you need to still install a Gimbal and Camera if you want to be able to see in FPV. You really hear almost nothing about P2's any more so that is why I bought a second one. Just a plain jane P2.