Aerial footage of Meteor Crater in Arizona (plus some drama)

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Just got back from a trip to Arizona's Meteor Crater! I've been amazed by this impact crater since I was a kid and I knew it would be one of my Phantom destinations. There are very few good videos of it so I thought I'd give it a go.

I planned my launch point weeks in advance using Google Maps. There was a public dirt road about 2000 feet from the crater rim at the closest tangent. Nobody would notice me there. I was wrong.

Here's a view of my takeoff spot. You can see how isolated it is. The crater is offscreen to the right.

middle-of-nowhere.jpg


During my first flight I noticed a large 4x4 kicking up dirt and coming straight for me. He slowed when he drove by. He was wearing what looked like a security uniform. He went about 300 feet further, turned around, and stopped. He just sat there watching me. I landed and put the Phantom on the trunk to change batteries. Then he slowly made his way back to me. He said "You're not going to fly that here, are you?". This led to some discussion but I held my ground since I wasn't violating any laws. He left but then came back with his manager about 8 minutes later when I was in mid flight:

visit.jpg


She was not happy either. Her opening comment to me was, "Hi. You need to go fly somewhere else." Again, more discussion about rules, authority, and what not. She was concerned about what I would do if I landed on private property (the crater is privately owned as is the land around it). Basically she was doing her job providing security for the area and the crater itself. I told her I had just come from the visitor's center and showed her my ticket stub. Once she realized I was a crater-geek and not a freeloaded or troublemaker her demeanor changed completely. Apparently yahoos come through here and try to climb the lip and get in trouble. Everyone left on good terms and I was able to complete a third flight which I used for this video. Hope it conveys the awesomeness of the site!

I highly recommend a trip to this historic impact crater if you get a chance!

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtgzBLNQplk[/youtube]
 
Re: Aerial footage of Meteor Crater in Arizona (plus some dr

Nicely done. BTW, make sure not to launch from your car (in case you did).
 
Re: Aerial footage of Meteor Crater in Arizona (plus some dr

ianwood said:
Nicely done. BTW, make sure not to launch from your car (in case you did).


I'm just curious to know why, so I don't do it...!

Also, awesome video man!
 
Re: Aerial footage of Meteor Crater in Arizona (plus some dr

:D
Very cool.

MHL
 
Re: Aerial footage of Meteor Crater in Arizona (plus some dr

DJIClint said:
ianwood said:
Nicely done. BTW, make sure not to launch from your car (in case you did).
I'm just curious to know why, so I don't do it...!
You'll get a Compass Error message from the steel in the car.
Same if you try to launch from a manhole cover etc.
 
Re: Aerial footage of Meteor Crater in Arizona (plus some dr

:lol: Was just looking for the topic where ya was talking about that Meta and you posted before I got back but here's the link Clint viewtopic.php?f=4&t=27613
 
Re: Aerial footage of Meteor Crater in Arizona (plus some dr

Meta4 said:
DJIClint said:
ianwood said:
Nicely done. BTW, make sure not to launch from your car (in case you did).
I'm just curious to know why, so I don't do it...!
You'll get a Compass Error message from the steel in the car.
Same if you try to launch from a manhole cover etc.

Ok, thanks! Good to know!
 
Re: Aerial footage of Meteor Crater in Arizona (plus some dr

very nice. I really never knew the size of the hole it left. Totally Awesome.
 
Re: Aerial footage of Meteor Crater in Arizona (plus some dr

ianwood said:
Nicely done. BTW, make sure not to launch from your car (in case you did).

Ian, after calibrating the compass I set the Phantom on the car's trunk, powered up, and launched from there. There would be too much fine dirt kicked up if I launched from the road. I didn't have any issues, but then again I took care not to calibrate the compass near the car.

BTW, I've been flying with a P2 V2 (w/H3-3D), with the unlabeled ESCs. Many flights, hand-catch always, no burned out ESCs so far <knock on wood>.
 
Re: Aerial footage of Meteor Crater in Arizona (plus some dr

jflyer3 said:
ianwood said:
Nicely done. BTW, make sure not to launch from your car (in case you did).

Ian, after calibrating the compass I set the Phantom on the car's trunk, powered up, and launched from there. There would be too much fine dirt kicked up if I launched from the road. I didn't have any issues, but then again I took care not to calibrate the compass near the car.

BTW, I've been flying with a P2 V2 (w/H3-3D), with the unlabeled ESCs. Many flights, hand-catch always, no burned out ESCs so far <knock on wood>.
You know the 2'x2' signs the politicians use during elections ? well I always go around and get a bunch of those and keep one in my truck and just throw it on the ground to keep the dust down and they work great !
wait till after the election though before ya get em ;)
 
Re: Aerial footage of Meteor Crater in Arizona (plus some dr

MadMitch88 said:
Nice footage.

Didnt this meteor wipe out the dinos?
This one that hit about 50,000 years ago was a very small baby compared to the one 65 million years ago that hit in the Yucatan that got the dinos.
.
Nice video. I sure enjoyed my visit there in 2005. Interesting place.
 
Re: Aerial footage of Meteor Crater in Arizona (plus some dr

Happyflyer said:
This one that hit about 50,000 years ago was a very small baby compared to the one 65 million years ago that hit in the Yucatan that got the dinos.
I wanna see somebody fly a Phantom over the K-T crater.

Might need some high-capacity batteries for that one.
 

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