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Distance chasers, how does this work???
- Thread starter TCW
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In my opinion 1 mile is no different than 3 miles. If you're comfortable at 1 then you can go to 3 pretty safely as far as the battery is concerned.
Get a feel for your battery life as it relates to the wind. Test max speed, always against a headwind when going for distance, and test tail wind speed coming back. Use the first battery to test that out and also ensure on that given day your RC and Video signals are good.
Be ready to cancel the battery low auto RTH when you go for the distance attempt as that doesn't know anything about head or tail winds and it'll popup before you actually need to turn around.
Test your RTH in general to make sure it's working.
Don't freak out when you lose the Video feed but still have RC and telemetry. You can fly the P3 by using just the RC and the Map display on your tablet irregardless of the live video feed being down or garbled. Just make sure your compass is accurate (P3's pointed in the direction the Map shows its pointed) and make sure you're high enough to clear everything on the way back.
If you do lose RC there's nothing you can do. Your P3 should RTH on its own. But keep an eye on your controller as most of the time you'll regain RC as it gets closer on its way home. Sometimes you might have to close the GO App and re-open it though. If your battery is absolutely critical and you regain control cancel RTH and look for a safe landing spot. If you're not quite critical on the battery and you want to get home ASAP then cancel RTH and fly it home manually as your be able to push it faster manually. RTH speed isn't max speed.
Get a feel for your battery life as it relates to the wind. Test max speed, always against a headwind when going for distance, and test tail wind speed coming back. Use the first battery to test that out and also ensure on that given day your RC and Video signals are good.
Be ready to cancel the battery low auto RTH when you go for the distance attempt as that doesn't know anything about head or tail winds and it'll popup before you actually need to turn around.
Test your RTH in general to make sure it's working.
Don't freak out when you lose the Video feed but still have RC and telemetry. You can fly the P3 by using just the RC and the Map display on your tablet irregardless of the live video feed being down or garbled. Just make sure your compass is accurate (P3's pointed in the direction the Map shows its pointed) and make sure you're high enough to clear everything on the way back.
If you do lose RC there's nothing you can do. Your P3 should RTH on its own. But keep an eye on your controller as most of the time you'll regain RC as it gets closer on its way home. Sometimes you might have to close the GO App and re-open it though. If your battery is absolutely critical and you regain control cancel RTH and look for a safe landing spot. If you're not quite critical on the battery and you want to get home ASAP then cancel RTH and fly it home manually as your be able to push it faster manually. RTH speed isn't max speed.
Great advice in your post. Just one thing:
You don't have to cancel RTH to go faster. If you push the right stick all the way forward during RTH you can increase the airspeed up to the maximum, which is about 31 mph in GPS mode.
I've tested this. It might have changed since 1.1.9. Probably not, although Dji has a tendency to change speed limits in firmware updates.
This. For the price DJI want for just the drone you can buy a complete phantom from a reputable reseller.
My advice is when flying for distance is:
When flying out make sure to fly into any wind. That way when you turn around you should have plenty of battery to make it back.
When flying out make sure to fly into any wind. That way when you turn around you should have plenty of battery to make it back.
My long distance flight planning is pretty simple.
If I am planning a flight beyond 1 mile I want the outbound leg to be upwind. I also know my flight route and have made mental notes of land marks and height obstacles that might need to be navigated.
I then make a determination about what battery level I will use for my turn around point.
I started with a very conservative 65%, then 60% , etc. I think that I will keep my minimum at no less than 55% but I need more experience to make that an absolute.
(A flying buddy of mine with both an I1 and a P3P claims that even at 10% capacity showing you still have up to an additional 10% capacity in hidden reserve. Can't confirm this with any personal authority.)
You are likely to encounter some video signal break up or loss. I usually try to fly through the video signal loss to see it things improve. If not, then I'm headed home.
I've never experienced any significant signal degradation on the controller side, just the video link.
I agree with the comment that said, in effect, there's no difference between 1 mile out and 2 miles out. Once you're beyond LOS it's pretty much all the same.
:harry
If I am planning a flight beyond 1 mile I want the outbound leg to be upwind. I also know my flight route and have made mental notes of land marks and height obstacles that might need to be navigated.
I then make a determination about what battery level I will use for my turn around point.
I started with a very conservative 65%, then 60% , etc. I think that I will keep my minimum at no less than 55% but I need more experience to make that an absolute.
(A flying buddy of mine with both an I1 and a P3P claims that even at 10% capacity showing you still have up to an additional 10% capacity in hidden reserve. Can't confirm this with any personal authority.)
You are likely to encounter some video signal break up or loss. I usually try to fly through the video signal loss to see it things improve. If not, then I'm headed home.
I've never experienced any significant signal degradation on the controller side, just the video link.
I agree with the comment that said, in effect, there's no difference between 1 mile out and 2 miles out. Once you're beyond LOS it's pretty much all the same.
:harry
P3P with Windsurfer out over St. John's River flats (i.e. no trees) 12,520 ft away (2 1/2 miles) with NO loss of signal (full bars all the way).
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