Re: 'Skyfalls' of Phantoms
I've had at least 4 episodes of my Phantom Vision 2 suddenly dropping out of the sky. (Skyfall)
Seems no help coming from DJI on the subject as far as my researches go.
My 'present' thoughts on the subject after doing my best to come to grips with the cause and having
actually predicted the last fall from grace I'm thinking it is fundamentally a battery problem.
I my 4 cases it happens at about the 12 min mark and about 40% battery left indication. The battery
to me appears to have decided it can no longer quite give enough power to stay aloft, accompanied by loss of connection,
and the craft can only go into skyfall.
While things happen suddenly I have been able to observe that there is an indication of a recovery
automatically and I have also managed a partial recovery with the joystick which has slowed the
drop I think and I've only had minor damage, blade tips/protectors.
The battery only needs to shut down or loose most of it's power for a fraction of a second to cause
a skyfall. I guess if that occurs it makes sense that one would loose communication.
Is the battery auto shutting down, overheating or what?
It also could be that the Phantom is not getting the battery condition right?
After my last skyfall we took off again with 40% battery and as we predicted the flight would be short
if we were half right in that the battery was incapable at less than 40% indicated charge. We took of OK and after about
a minute the controls, especially the 'UP' stick became sluggish to gain altitude and shortly after impossible
to maintain flight so we had a 'soft' hard landing. We think the battery had recovered somewhat after
the recent skyfall enough for our predicted short flight which by then indicated 35% battery available.
I have two batteries, obtained when I purchased my Phantom and they have only been recharged 8 times
so the Assistant tells me. Both have been involved in the skyfalls following the same senario.
Another local Phantom flyer lost his craft exactly the same way and it is at the bottom of the the local
harbour having just missed landfall when it dropped out of the sky. Not funny, but the silence from
DJI on any solution is deafening to say the least.
At this time, when I get some confidence back, I'll limit any flying to 10 mins on any one full battery charge.
INDIGO