WHAT HAPPENED? Lost P4

[bamajay]

I bought a refurbished Phantom 4 from the DJI website. Just a few flights in it lost GPS and never came back. Below is my flight record. Can anybody tell me if this was a drone error or pilot error? Thanks in advance!

-Jay

 

[msinger]

Please upload your TXT flight log here and post a link back here. You'll find instructions for locating your TXT flight log at that link.

 

[bamajay]

DJI Flight Log Viewer - PhantomHelp.com

Thanks-

 

[msinger]

Can you give us more details about any parts of your flight where your Phantom was not performing as expected? Please be as detailed as possible.

Have you flown since that flight to see if the same errors would occur again?

 

[nwcove]

Can you give us more details about any parts of your flight where your Phantom was not performing as expected? Please be as detailed as possible.

Have you flown since that flight to see if the same errors would occur again?

just curious about how to read/analyze flight logs, is there something in that log that shows it wasnt the birds flyaway flight ?

 

[msinger]

just curious about how to read/analyze flight logs, is there something in that log that shows it wasnt the birds flyaway flight ?

Let's wait and see what the OP can tell us about the flight. Then we can dig into the flight log and try to make some sense of it.

 

[bamajay]

There isn't much to tell. I flew the drone over some houses. It got out of sight due to the houses. The video started to get crazy and I got an error message and that was it. Never found it. Followed the gps track to no avail.

Can you give us more details about any parts of your flight where your Phantom was not performing as expected? Please be as detailed as possible.

Have you flown since that flight to see if the same errors would occur again?

 

[msinger]

Are you sure this is the correct flight record? It's from April 2nd.

If it's the correct flight record, I'm assuming there was some kind of hardware failure. The end of the flight looks pretty erratic and the data doesn't make much sense. Try looking for your Phantom around this area:

If you're able to track it down, you can get the DAT flight log from your Phantom (or send it into DJI to have them look at it).

 

[bamajay]

Yeah, that's where I looked. That is the the correct date. It wasn't there. Never recovered.

Do I have any recourse with DJI?

 

[msinger]

Contact DJI Support and see what they say.

 

[sar104]

Looks to me like it lost a prop or motor at around 348 seconds. The pitch and roll oscillations after that are typical of the loss of propulsion from one motor.

 

[bamajay]

Thanks everybody! They sent me a replacement.

 

[blushute]

Bamajay

What did they figure out that made them send you one back? The same thing happened to mine and wouldn't return home. Thanks

 

[Meta4]

What did they figure out that made them send you one back? The same thing happened to mine and wouldn't return home. Thanks

There are many possible causes for a Phantom not returning home.
To find out what happened in your case, you need to look at the recorded flight data.
Go to DJI Flight Log Viewer
Follow the instructions there to upload your flight record from your phone or tablet.
Come back and post a link to the report it provides

 

[blushute]

Thanks everybody! They sent me a replacement.

Under what basis did they give you a replacement. I thought they didn't cover lost. thank you for your input

 

[Meta4]

Under what basis did they give you a replacement. I thought they didn't cover lost. thank you for your input

If the cause of the loss can be shown to be a DJI problem, they cover it.

 

[Dbarrasse]

In a similiar situation. Only had 99 flights under my belt so still a newbie. Flying in previouly flown-in area when my P4 flew away. Had wireless interference warning, high wind warning, and then all hell broke loose, compass error, IMU error, weak signal, when the bird switxhed to ATTI mode, understnading that I was now flying without GPS signals since it went from 18 satelites to 0 and RC said switxh to ATTI mode, at which point it drifted with the wind and climbed to max altitude of 385 ft without me controlling anything. I had no influence on the bird.
Lost my P4. After uploading the history to DJI, I was contacted the following day and informed it would take three days for their evaluation. Four days letter I received an email back that after their review it would be covered under warranty. No argument, no delay. Great company response. Just received my bird back and can’t figure out how to connect with my RC and DJ Go. Any help there would be agreat help.

 

[With The Birds]

In a similiar situation. Only had 99 flights under my belt so still a newbie. Flying in previouly flown-in area when my P4 flew away. Had wireless interference warning, high wind warning, and then all hell broke loose, compass error, IMU error, weak signal, when the bird switxhed to ATTI mode, understnading that I was now flying without GPS signals since it went from 18 satelites to 0 and RC said switxh to ATTI mode, at which point it drifted with the wind and climbed to max altitude of 385 ft without me controlling anything. I had no influence on the bird.
Lost my P4. After uploading the history to DJI, I was contacted the following day and informed it would take three days for their evaluation. Four days letter I received an email back that after their review it would be covered under warranty. No argument, no delay. Great company response. Just received my bird back and can’t figure out how to connect with my RC and DJ Go. Any help there would be agreat help.

Look under linking in the manual- the instructions are good.

 

[bamajay]

This is the email I got after they reviewed the flight logs:

For the unfortunate incident happened to your drone, we have confirmed it as a warranty case according to our analysis. We would like to offer you a 100% off for Phantom 4 (Refurbished Unit) without charger and remote.

 

[Dbarrasse]

In a similiar situation. Only had 99 flights under my belt so still a newbie. Flying in previouly flown-in area when my P4 flew away. Had wireless interference warning, high wind warning, and then all hell broke loose, compass error, IMU error, weak signal, when the bird switxhed to ATTI mode, understnading that I was now flying without GPS signals since it went from 18 satelites to 0 and RC said switxh to ATTI mode, at which point it drifted with the wind and climbed to max altitude of 385 ft without me controlling anything. I had no influence on the bird.
Lost my P4. After uploading the history to DJI, I was contacted the following day and informed it would take three days for their evaluation. Four days letter I received an email back that after their review it would be covered under warranty. No argument, no delay. Great company response. Just received my bird back and can’t figure out how to connect with my RC and DJ Go. Any help there would be agreat help.