Why do people think flying over water is scary?

Stealthmatt · Apr 13, 2016

Hi all,

I have been having a discussion with others, and feel I need to get more people weigh in on the issue.

Why do people feel that flying over water is more scary and people steer away from it?

I feel flying any more than 10-15 meters from the ground, if you crash your drone its going to be ruined regardless if it hits the ground or hits the water.

I mean sure you might be able to find it on the ground, but its the same as flying over a mountain range or trees or long distances, if its going to crash it will crash regardless wether over water or on land.

DJI record the flight log and video feed on your device now, so you can roll back where it crashed... so even trying to recover the video footage isn't necessary any more either.

I have faith in my P4, and I don't mind flying out 1km over water or more, if its going to go down its going to go down.

I guess the only concern might be a low battery condition. However, flying with full batteries then shouldn't have any problems.

Ramphex · Apr 13, 2016

Just a wild guess would be retrieval. There have been many ground crashes with salvageable conditions. Can't say the same for water.

Stealthmatt · Apr 13, 2016

Ramphex said:
Just a wild guess would be retrieval. There have been many ground crashes with salvageable conditions. Can't say the same for water.

Yeah, true - I have taken insurance out anyways so even if I can not retrieve it, I still get a new one

Ramphex · Apr 13, 2016

How does one prove that something cannot be retrieved to an insurance company?

chapsrlz · Apr 13, 2016

about a year ago i read, im pretty sure it was in phantompilots.com, that a drone has no idea if its flying over land, water, lava, etc... so it really makes no difference. if its gonna fall he will.

Ramphex · Apr 13, 2016

chapsrlz said:
about a year ago i read, im pretty sure it was in phantompilots.com, that a drone has no idea if its flying over land, water, lava, etc... so it really makes no difference. if its gonna fall he will.

That is true. My guess is just a matter of diving for retrieval to salvage or hiking through the woods.

dg8882 · Apr 13, 2016

A good reason to be scared is the ESC unit has the ability to fail any time without warning. Happened to me and mine landed in a neighbors tree, so with a really long stick I was able to get it down and send it in for warranty repair. If you are flying over water and have an ESC fail, it's gone.

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syotr · Apr 13, 2016

If you have a defect that causes the Phantom to drop out of the sky and it happens over water, you are screwed. DJI will not replace it under warranty. There have been many battery issues, failed ESC's, props coming off and just plain flyaways that should have been covered but without recovery, there is no chance.
I regularly fly over water but not with a Phantom.

Mikebike · Apr 13, 2016

Beats me..

Ohno16 · Apr 13, 2016

One of the better flights I've seen! Thanks for sharing

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tcope · Apr 13, 2016

Stealthmatt said:
Yeah, true - I have taken insurance out anyways so even if I can not retrieve it, I still get a new one

What insurance plan pays for a Phantom you can't prove was ever damaged?

TWP723 · Apr 13, 2016

tcope said:
What insurance plan pays for a Phantom you can't prove was ever damaged?

You'd be hard pressed proving it to an insurance company. Unless of course you have footage of it taking a dive.

tcope · Apr 13, 2016

TWP723 said:
You'd be hard pressed proving it to an insurance company. Unless of course you have footage of it taking a dive.

I don't know of any that provide coverage when the drone can't be produced. This is why I asked.

TWP723 · Apr 13, 2016

tcope said:
I don't know of any that provide coverage when the drone can't be produced. This is why I asked.

Yeah, I hear ya. I'm sure they'd ask for something as evidence. Not sure how that would play out to be honest.

ianwood · Apr 13, 2016

All DJI products love water! It's a known fact.

jason · Apr 13, 2016

Most aerial videos posted here and else where tend to be boring especially those over water.

soulphantomflyer · Apr 13, 2016

I like to fly over water whenever I do my attitude record run

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Phantom fool · Apr 13, 2016

Stealthmatt said:
Yeah, true - I have taken insurance out anyways so even if I can not retrieve it, I still get a new one

What insurance company do you use?

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mhuilker · Apr 13, 2016

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Stealthmatt · Apr 13, 2016

Phantom fool said:
What insurance company do you use?

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Just through home and contents insurance, I added portable electronic extra cover. The phantom is classified as "camera equipment" I asked and basically if it gets lost, stolen, damaged, etc then it will be replaced up to the extra cover cost. Of course I have to pay the $300 excess but thats a small price to pay.

Which I had taken out $4000 for the Inspire 1 when I purchased it, but its not dedicated to the inspire 1 - its any electronic portable device, laptop, phone, camera, phantom, ipad etc

I don't need to prove it, I just need to make a claim and explain what happened. Also I would be able to show on the ipad that it lost signal or ended its journey in the river.