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Hi everyone,


I'm new to this forum and very shortly I will have my hands on my first drone which will be the Mavic.
For those experienced fliers, what as a new user user should I be worried about handling an expensive bit of kit like this?

I'm from Australia and I will be taking it on island trips and hunting adventures. I feel it in my waters that I'm going to have a nasty bird encounter of the eagle or kite type. Has anyone had a dice with the feathered type out there?

Cheers.
 
what as a new user user should I be worried about handling an expensive bit of kit like this?
Start by reading and understanding the Mavic manual and Quick Start Guide. When you're ready to fly, try to find a location that is free of all obstacles.
 
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I'm new to this forum and very shortly I will have my hands on my first drone which will be the Mavic.
For those experienced fliers, what as a new user user should I be worried about handling an expensive bit of kit like this?

I'm from Australia and I will be taking it on island trips and hunting adventures. I feel it in my waters that I'm going to have a nasty bird encounter of the eagle or kite type. Has anyone had a dice with the feathered type out there?
Your Mavic will be much easier to fly than you imagine.
It takes about 5 minutes to learn - but a lot of practice and experience to become proficient.

But for learning, the critical thing is to practise in a large clear open area, well away from trees and buildings.
Flying close to obstacles is by far, the largest killer of Phantoms.
Obstacles are the number one enemy of quadcopters.
Read and understand the manual, particularly the section on RTH

Although there have been bird encounters where the drone came off second best, they are fairly unconnon.
 
Some general advice I can give, both specific to multirotors with some common sense thrown in for good measure:

  • Read the manual, several times.
  • Try out each mode in a controlled environment first, before deciding to do it "live" in the field.
  • earn about Course Lock and Home Lock. Try these out in a controlled environment. Learn how to use them in both fun and in emergency situations (you may not need it with the GPS readout available with the Mavic, but Home Lock can be a godsend if you ever get disoriented).
  • Don't panic! There are many safeguards on the Mavic, but you still need to be able to maintain control of the craft if those safeguards don't work as intended. Staying calm and confident is a large part of getting yourself out of any precarious situation.
  • Be cognizant of your environment, including people, buildings, wildlife. You say you may be near eagles. Stay away from their nests, lest they perceive your relatively small bird as a threat. If you do see one attacking it, try to fly it back to you as quickly as possible, as they should avoid you.
  • Read the manual again!
  • Be prepared for curious folk. If you fly in an area where other people might be present, try to have someone with you to both field questions (distracted flying is unsafe flying) and protect you from the occasional anti-drone nutter (extremely few and far between, but there have been a few recorded incidents).
  • Practice flying often, even if just in your backyard without recording. Cameras are only half of it - just flying these things is pure joy on a stick (or two).
  • Take the gimbal cover off before taking important footage. ;) It can remain on if you're only flying (especially in Sport Mode), but there is also a second gimbal clamp that you will have to remove. Remember that one.
  • Have a blast!
 
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All of the above AND try and find an experienced operator who can show you the ropes and give you a few tips in the early days.
 
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Thanks for the quick responses! The general consensus seems to be to practice in clear wide areas and read that manual, rinse and repeat.
 
Thanks for the quick responses! The general consensus seems to be to practice in clear wide areas and read that manual, rinse and repeat.
For sure. There's no substitute for experience and knowledge; it's the only way you can guarantee the safety of your bird and everything it gets near (including yourself). Best of luck - I hope you're as excited for the Mavic Pro as I am!
 
Great advice so far. Another piece of advice.

Start practicing slow controlled movements and working on your hand to eye coordination. Essentially knowing how far your fingers are moving in any direction and at what speed. Also, fight the panic reaction and remember that if you pull both fingers off the sticks then the Mavic will just hover.

I fly my P3A right up to trees and then pull my fingers off just to watch it nearly stop on a dime! With this practice it helps in situations where I may unintentionally fly too close to something.

It typically won't fall from the sky unless obstacles are involved!
 
If you get chased by birds, try and throttle up and away from nest. Fly away far as you can and then land. The phantom/mavics are faster at ascending than descending. Also, descending exposes the props and give the bird an opportunity to increase dive speed and attack the props.
 
I DEFINITELY AGREE WITH OVYYUS! YOU MUST LEARN WHAT THE TACTILE FEELING IS LIKE! YOU WILL CRASH THIS MAVIC IF YOU ARE NOT FAMILIAR WITH FLYING ALREADY. YES IT IS AND WILL BE A CONFIDENCE BUILDER, BUT BARE IN MIND THAT IT IS YOUR FIRST BIRD AND COST $1000 PLUS TAXES. A HUBSAN X4 IS THE WAY TO GO! GREAT QUAD AND FUN TO FLY, NOT AS EASY AS THE MAVIC BUT WILL GET YOU FAMILIAR WITH FLYING IN GENERAL!
 
The DJI GO app has a Simulator mode. I plan on using that to get familiar with the controls.
 
Sim is a good training tool, but try out a cheap inexpensive drone to give you a better feel of what it's like.


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots
 
Sim is a good training tool, but try out a cheap inexpensive drone to give you a better feel of what it's like.


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots

^^^ this. Do yourself a huge favor and add a cheap indoor quad to your shopping spree (call it "tuition") and fly the crap out of that. You need to build coordination skills so that the sticks are second nature regardless of aircraft orientation, which just takes practice. A little qx nano or the (amazingly) FPV-equipped inductrix will be perfect for just picking up any time, bouncing off a few walls, flying under the coffee table...all kinds of low-consequence fun so that your inevitable mistakes are more of a "aw dang let me try that again" rather than a "oh s•••"

Plus your friends can fly those...you won't want them anywhere near your $1k Mav
 
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I got a lot from this video when I got my Phantom:
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It's from Drone Camps RC, and of particular use was the suggestion about practicing some patterns that helped build my confidence with flying drones for the first time.
 
^^^ this. Do yourself a huge favor and add a cheap indoor quad to your shopping spree (call it "tuition") and fly the crap out of that. You need to build coordination skills so that the sticks are second nature regardless of aircraft orientation, which just takes practice. A little qx nano or the (amazingly) FPV-equipped inductrix will be perfect for just picking up any time, bouncing off a few walls, flying under the coffee table...all kinds of low-consequence fun so that your inevitable mistakes are more of a "aw dang let me try that again" rather than a "oh s•••"

Plus your friends can fly those...you won't want them anywhere near your $1k Mav
even though you wernt talking to me I took your advice and ordered a inductrix to practice with. the mavic will be my first drone, so I need the practice
 
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I never flew a drone until I got my P3P. You will be amazed how easy they are to fly.


Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots
 
even though you wernt talking to me I took your advice and ordered a inductrix to practice with. the mavic will be my first drone, so I need the practice

The Inductrix is a lot of fun! I'm using it to train for a racing quad. I have a P4 with a Mavic on the way. If you can get confident with the Inductrix and have repeatable success with it, I wager you will find the Mavic easy.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 

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