P3 performance in high winds.

[flyNfrank]

I would seriously like to see some of you attempt to fly into 25-30mph sustained headwinds. I fly in heavy winds as a hobby and know what effects the wind has on stock P3's. You will go into volt issues right away if the battery is not healthy.

The only way to progress forward in sustained heavy winds is if you fly the a/c in a downward angle.

In the video here those were not sustained winds. There were points where the trees next to the water were moving while the trees to the right some 20-30yrds was not moving or hardly moving.

 

[Avocet]

Anyone else experience onset vertigo watching that? I was nauseous for 5 minutes after killing that tube page.

 

[jb497]

I was standing on the beach trying to fly mine east of the pacific (away from the ocean). Drone was about 30-40 meters up to avoid trees on the beach. The wind was gusting so bad that I'd be full throttle east, and just watching it blow out over the pacific. I eventually got it in, but it was like reeling in a fish. It'd get close and gust back again. I'll never fly in high winds again.

 

[flyNfrank]

I was standing on the beach trying to fly mine east of the pacific (away from the ocean). Drone was about 30-40 meters up to avoid trees on the beach. The wind was gusting so bad that I'd be full throttle east, and just watching it blow out over the pacific. I eventually got it in, but it was like reeling in a fish. It'd get close and gust back again. I'll never fly in high winds again.

Depending on your location and the amount of near by surface structures, winds closer to the ground are not as violent and tend to have occasional dead spaces that will allow you to make up some much needed distance.

Also in some instances you can try to zig zag to gain overall forward movement.

 

[CCDD]

I took my Inspire 1 out in 25+ mph winds today. Although I know she could handle it, I couldn't stomach the thought of losing another one and just brought her back down and was finished for the day.

 

[flyNfrank]

I took my Inspire 1 out in 25+ mph winds today. Although I know she could handle it, I couldn't stomach the thought of losing another one and just brought her back down and was finished for the day.

There is really no comparison when it comes to a i1 and P3. Even if both had the same power to weight ratio, the i1's less bulky design far exceeds that of the P3.

Were you implying you have already lost a i1?

 

[CCDD]

There is really no comparison when it comes to a i1 and P3. Even if both had the same power to weight ratio, the i1's less bulky design far exceeds that of the P3.

Were you implying you have already lost a i1?

Lost my P3P and although I know the I1 will handle much more, I certainly don't wish to test it. I'm a big guy, 6'6" 260lbs, when the wind is blowing me around, I don't want to be piloting anything.

 

[flyNfrank]

At some point I plan to try and fly in heavier winds then what I have. I have had a few real good chances to do it earlier this spring but I chickened out and sat and watched the anemometer spin the wind reading all day.

 

[jb497]

Depending on your location and the amount of near by surface structures, winds closer to the ground are not as violent and tend to have occasional dead spaces that will allow you to make up some much needed distance.

Also in some instances you can try to zig zag to gain overall forward movement.

I ended up with a kind of zig zagging technique, but I did not know that about the ground winds. It makes sense in hindsight, and I really appreciate it should I get caught in that situation again.

 

[Meta4]

I ended up with a kind of zig zagging technique, but I did not know that about the ground winds. It makes sense in hindsight, and I really appreciate it should I get caught in that situation again.

The winds will generally be stronger up higher.
Down lower the friction from a rough ground surface slows things a little.
If you are ever stuck in a high wind situation up high, you are almost certain to reduce the wind problems by bringing the Phantom down lower.

 

[kcmusa]

check out this site, you can see winds at different heights.
www.windyty.com

 

[Garrie]

I was in Hawaii last week for my honeymoon and brought my P3 Pro to the top of a few mountains. The winds were very very strong but the P3 held on well. I just edited my short film of what i videoed.

You can see very clearly that when the drone was above the mountains, it did not seem as if there were strong winds. In fact the drone and gimbal performed so well it just looked like any other drone video.

P3 Pro Rocks!

 

[CCDD]

That's awesome!!

 

[Pappy44]

I was in Hawaii last week for my honeymoon and brought my P3 Pro to the top of a few mountains. The winds were very very strong but the P3 held on well. I just edited my short film of what i videoed.

You can see very clearly that when the drone was above the mountains, it did not seem as if there were strong winds. In fact the drone and gimbal performed so well it just looked like any other drone video.

P3 Pro Rocks!

awesome vid...subbed as well!

 

[dirtbird]

I was in Hawaii last week for my honeymoon and brought my P3 Pro to the top of a few mountains. The winds were very very strong but the P3 held on well. I just edited my short film of what i videoed.

You can see very clearly that when the drone was above the mountains, it did not seem as if there were strong winds. In fact the drone and gimbal performed so well it just looked like any other drone video.

P3 Pro Rocks!

That is really impressive footage! I am new to drones and very curious about one thing. You had a number of different landmarks reflected in your video. Were you specifically traveling to each one with a purpose and then filming it OR was the range of the P3P good enough that you could capture many of those landmarks while being centrally located somewhere.

 

[dirtbird]

This post around high winds really has me thinking. One of the main reasons I purchased a drone recently was because I have an upcoming family reunion in Destin, FL. I thought it might be great to get some beach footage of the reunion as well as do a little exploring with the drone along the beach and out toward the ocean. The one reservation I've had though is wind and how it can gust up in Destin, FL. My memories there are almost always of windy conditions.

So for those who experience, what is your process? Aren't beaches already inherently windy? I know it must be possible since I've seen footage before. Is there a certain time of day that drone fliers shoot for in windy locations like the beach? I'm just curious if there is any process or whether it is just more of an art than a science.

 

[BVC]

If it can fly up to 45mph, it seems to me that the very most it could do in 45mph wind would be to hold it's place. So, you could not fly it into the wind, and if you flew it with the wind, there would be no possible way for it to fly back.

Exactly! The only thing tho I noticed with heavy winds is that it makes my camera ever so slightly tilt with the wind. Sure it can all be corrected post edit but same time that's more work and is the shot really worth that computing time?


However my father did get a warning the other night with his custom built 80w LED bar - "Motors are at max propulsion". So indeed there are limits with whatever way the system operates! Not sure wind would trigger this warning but at least the system can sense and notify that!

 

[Garrie]

That is really impressive footage! I am new to drones and very curious about one thing. You had a number of different landmarks reflected in your video. Were you specifically traveling to each one with a purpose and then filming it OR was the range of the P3P good enough that you could capture many of those landmarks while being centrally located somewhere.

I was on my honeymoon so I brought my drone along whenever I know I was going somewhere nice. But I have done 5030m on my p3pro before. All stock. You can see that on my YouTube channel as well.

 

[mrcrane2u]

I would seriously like to see some of you attempt to fly into 25-30mph sustained headwinds. I fly in heavy winds as a hobby and know what effects the wind has on stock P3's. You will go into volt issues right away if the battery is not healthy.

The only way to progress forward in sustained heavy winds is if you fly the a/c in a downward angle.

In the video here those were not sustained winds. There were points where the trees next to the water were moving while the trees to the right some 20-30yrds was not moving or hardly moving.

I flew at drone days in tampa last weekend sustained winds @20 gusting to 25 mph with no problems with a p3p

 

[richardtomcat]

Each day, I shoot the same sequence of stills and video along this stretch of central Arizona's Verde River. These images will be used to test a new technique of monitoring changes in the River's flows and the health of its ecosystem.

Since it's important to get as complete a record as possible, I sometimes press the limits of good sense, as far as the safety of the aircraft is concerned.

On this day, April 25th, 2016, high winds threatened to make the day's record impossible, but I thought I'd try. Winds at the aircraft's altitude, according to mesurements on "Healthy Drones," hovered around 38 mph, sustained. The flight is programmed using Litchi, to fly this route at 30 mph, and you can see that the drone had a tough time maintaining that speed.

But the Phantom 3 did an amazing job of stabilizing the video in incredibly tough circumstances, don't you think?! See the video at:

Yeah .. you're pushing it. DJI recommends staying away from anything above 22MPH. The bird will do, I believe, 34MPH. I had a gust take mine out. I live in the Rockies and DJI recommends not flying in the mountains. The gust was over 34MPH as I had full throttle against the wind and it tossed it into a leafless deciduous tree. The bare branches snapped my yaw arm and ribbon cable. I love DJI warranty. I sent the bird to them in Culver City. They paid the ship. It was returned to me within a week with a new $500+ gimbal/camera at no charge.