A few questions about flying far away

[jeffrg270]

Hi, I've taken my P2V up for a few flights and I'm loving it... I've also read and learned a lot from this forum, so all of your collective experience is greatly appreciated.

I think I know the answer to most of these questions, but I really just want to verify because flying the phantom far away (when it is just a speck in the sky) is still pretty nerve wracking for me. I don't like the idea of losing control of it, but losing control of it when I can't even see it because it's far away is a little scary.

1) As in Colin's video, is the FPV signal connection always broken before the remote control signal? In the video he was able to fly it back until FPV signal was reestablished.

2) In the event that FPV signal is lost, will the compass function on the Vision App still work? For example, say it's out about a 1000 feet, and I lose video signal, and I want to fly it back like Colin did in the video, but I'm not sure which way it is pointed. Can I use the compass button to make sure that I am flying it back towards me, and not further away? I understand that even if I am flying it further away, I will eventually lose all control and the RTH function will kick in, but I'd rather avoid that altogether if possible.

3) I think this has been asked before, but if it is high in the sky, several hundred feet and I want to bring it down, is it ok to just hold the left stick down all the way for a while, or will that cause the motors to shut off the same way it would when the P2V is landed?

Thanks in advance for your time and responses - any tips you have for building confidence while flying the phantom out of visual range are much appreciated. Maybe I just need to take it out more and trust the RTH function!

Thanks!
-Jeff.

 

[Great Pumpkin]

I can't answer Q #1, but as for #2 and #3, fly within the limits of the system. Keep the Phantom within sight both vertically and horizontally. Don't fly "far away". Lower the Phantom by toggling the down switch, slowly and smoothly - too fast and it gets caught in its own downdraft and may wobble out of control, too far, and maybe the motors will stop. I wouldn't chance it. And rather than fiddle with things you aren't sure of when you want it to come home, just turn off the controller. The Phantom will return home without you doing anything more.

 

[Great Pumpkin]

I can't answer Q #1, but as for #2 and #3, fly within the limits of the system. Keep the Phantom within sight both vertically and horizontally. Don't fly "far away". Lower the Phantom by toggling the down switch, slowly and smoothly - too fast and it gets caught in its own downdraft and may wobble out of control, too far, and maybe the motors will stop. I wouldn't chance it. And rather than fiddle with things you aren't sure of when you want it to come home, just turn off the controller. The Phantom will return home without you doing anything more.

 

[Pull_Up]

Re 1. It depends. Usually, yes. In my case I was losing control before or at the same point as fpv: about 1000ft which is early, but then I fly in fairly cluttered countryside with lots of trees (and wet ground with all the floods lately!), etc, so plenty of things to mess with a 5.8 signal. But generally you should lose WiFi first. If you lose fpv you might keep telemetry data a bit further as its much less bandwidth. You can turn your preview resolution right down to squeeze a bit more out as well.

But in general I concur, keep it close enough that you always know how to bring it back if you need to, whether you've got WiFi or not. Experience and eyesight will dictate what that distance is.