Long time listener, first time caller.

Inspire 2 disconnect question. Relative newbie with UAS in general.

Flying with obstacle avoidance off.

The maneuver was going from under a shed and flying out into a field.

2 of these moves went without incident.

On the 3rd attempt I experienced a disconnect. Everything happened very fast but the sequence of events seemed to be:
-my VO/camera operator said "I'm disconnected."

-my RC emitted the audible message "Atti mode" (did this actually happen or false me memory?)

-The aircraft slowly started to drift towards the ceiling.

-I ran to it before it hit the ceiling, grabbed it by the gimbal and dragged it out into the grass where I released it and promptly flipped over and shut down. No damage except one dirty propeller. Whew!

TheInspire 2 is still in P flight mode on both RC units. The only thing I changed was turning obstacle avoidance off. Any thoughts or similar stories to share? Thanks!

Even when you in P mode, there is always chances that you lose satellite signal and switched to atti mode. You should review of your data to see what exactly happened.

I had 14 satalites. The only thing I can see is this bar at the right went red. Not sure what it represents

if you were under a shed, it's possible you lost gps signal - especially if it's a metal shed. GPS works line of sight.

You may notice that if you pick the Inspire up by having your hand over the top of the body then it will enter ATTI mode. This is because you have covered the GPS receiver which is likely what happened when you flew under the shed.

This can happen at any point that you loose GPS for a number of possible reasons, so it's a good idea to always be prepared in advance.

Practicing flying in ATTI regularly is a good way to be prepared when you have to take manual control of the AC. You may for instance need to exit a RTH or have an issue with GPS accuracy that causes the AC to behave erratically.

I had a P2 that had a failed GPS module mid flight and as I was in my early days of flying ( not that I'm saying the same is true of yourself ), I thought the AC was flying it's self when really it had entered ATTI mode. Naturally I brought it down hard and fast in the name of safety and caused a fair amount of damage. If I'd had more practice in ATTI then I would have taken more control and had a less expensive problem!

Glad to hear you didn't have too much damage though

Sorry Bodie, I have to ask this. When you say "The aircraft slowly started to drift towards the ceiling", why did you not slowly fly it back down again rather than run up to grab it then "drag" it outside? I have pictures in my mind and I must admit I am chuckling!  Was the camera operator the only one with an RC or was this a case of "Panic Stations/Catch the Pidgeon!" If you have a video of this, please post it!

Mark G.

I'm starting to get a bigger picture from your comments but I'm still confused.  Thanks for all the responses so far.

I've been keeping it in P mode due to my inexperience with the UAS. I now think I should only be flying in Atti mode and not relying on GPS, as it seems a fickle beast.

Mark, the upward drift definatley sent me into do or die mode as my RC was not receiving input from me the craft was moving upwards, albeit slowly. In that beat, I imagined the craft had entered RTH and was unaware of the roof overhead. I Jurrasic Parked that beast in the grass with one hand still holding the controller. It wasn't until it was in the grass that I thought to just kill the engine

Bodhi Posted at 2017-5-30 09:12
I'm starting to get a bigger picture from your comments but I'm still confused.  Thanks for all the responses so far.

I've been keeping it in P mode due to my inexperience with the UAS. I now think I should only be flying in Atti mode and not relying on GPS, as it seems a fickle beast.

I am getting a better picture too, although I still believe you would have got better results had you pulled down on the left stick. I think what happened was, you lost GPS due to the roof of the shed, you still (and should have) taken control of the sticks and brought the machine back into play. It seems like a learning curve issue to me and it looks like you have learnt something from this. Great post!

Sorry I chuckled.

PS. Practice the Atti mode.
Mark G.

Mark, I think you are absolutely right.

Everyone, thanks again for all the great feedback. I posted to several forums and this one was by far the most helpful and receptive.

Atti mode from here on out

Bodhi Posted at 2017-5-30 19:16
Mark, I think you are absolutely right.

Everyone, thanks again for all the great feedback. I posted to several forums and this one was by far the most helpful and receptive.

At least when flying near or under a huge chunk of metal like that. If you're in a clear, open area, then P mode would still be your friend. It's good to hear that the drone was able to get out unscathed, I'm sure you'll do well in your next run.