TX on while Phantom is on?

[Tripnman]

Brand new Phantom (Vision) pilot here - received my machine yesterday and had the first flight today. So far, so good - found the PV to be very responsive and enjoyable to fly.

Question - I've always had a policy of not powering up a RC aircraft without first turning on the TX. Risk of errant signals, random motor activity, etc. So how does this apply when updating or adjusting options on the PV when it is connected to a desktop via USB?
Should I have the TX on and linked with the PV for safety or is there no risk of it launching off my desk and into the studio ceiling?

Might be a silly question, but I don't want to make any Darwin moments here... I did have the TX on while I did the firmware update on the aircraft last night, but now I want to go back in and tweak camera settings in the Phantom Assistant app and not sure if I need to have all the hardware out.

Any insights would be appreciated. Cheers!

 

[Nazag]

Take the props off when servicing.

Good luck.

 

[ZonComGMZ]

Best to take props off just in case. That being said I haven't had any motor startups while doing any updates.

 

[LeoS]

You're right, it's recommended to have the tx on anytime you power up your PV.

I've never heard any stories about it though, just an anecdotal report that someone has left his phantom powered up (But in idle mode\motor not rotating at all). He left it for a few minutes only to come back to a missing phantom (it ended up at his neighbour's or something).

It could be that his Phantom initiated RTH (return to home) procedure after a certain timeout after he left.

 

[EMCSQUAR]

You mean like this Darwin experience -> http://www.youtube.com/watch?annota...&feature=iv&src_vid=QKArKTcp37s&v=6Tpzz54xaIY

 

[Tripnman]

Thanks all - my past experience is with much simpler RC copters which do not require firmware updates. The only time the main rotors came off those was when I had uncontrolled landings! It hadn't sunk in yet how simple it is to simply remove the rotors on the P2V before servicing. Will now be part of my work flow. I appreciate your responses.