TheMann58
Second Officer
Flight distance : 18669501 ft
United States
Offline
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I personally don't plan to go out for a "fun" day of flying if the wind speeds are over 15 mph. However, I have been flying DJI aircraft for three years and the P4Pro, which I have been flying for a year, is an incredible aircraft. The P4Pro is capable of dealing with very high gusty winds when the situation requires it IF you are an experienced pilot and you plan your flight route accordingly, which includes having complete situational awareness and identifying emergency landing areas downwind, if needed.
Recently, in the Houston area after Hurricane Harvey came ashore, I was out on AUG 29 conducting aerial drone surveys of neighborhoods impacted by flooding. I measured wind speeds at ground level with an anemometer for 30 minutes before launching to understand what I was dealing with. Winds were 15-22 mph at ground level and I knew they would be higher aloft. After launching during a brief lull in the gusty winds, I climbed to 150 feet and confirmed that I was able to hold position in PGPS mode with no stick input. Then I intentionally switched to ATTI mode to accurately assess wind speeds aloft, which the DJI GO 4 app reported at 25-28 mph while I drifted 500 feet with the wind in 15 seconds! I then switched back to PGPS mode and proceeded to survey the neighborhood while closely monitoring my downwind distance from home point realizing it would take significantly longer than usual to fly back into the wind (in PGPS mode with collision detection turned OFF) at a net 4-8 mph. Ultimately, I had to switch to Sport mode to achieve 12+ mph ground speed into gusty headwinds to complete the survey of the upwind portion of the neighborhood and safely return home.
Launching in high winds also takes skill and knowledge. I have launched in 16 mph winds at ground level, but you must be aware that the aircraft will immediately drift about 5-8 feet in the direction of the wind before the GPS flight control system fully engages and the P4Pro maintains steady ground position.
One note here, I have been repeatedly impressed by the ability of the Precision Landing system, when activated in the menu system and the Precisely Record Takeoff Location check-box is checked before auto take-off, to accurately record takeoff location and return the P4Pro within 4-6 inches of precise home point EVEN THOUGH THE P4Pro IMMEDIATELY DRIFTS 4-8 FEET DOWNWIND IMMEDIATELY AFTER TAKEOFF AND WHILE THE P4Pro IS ASCENDING TO 19 FEET AGL, where the downward facing B&W VPS cameras record an image of the take-off point. Somehow, the P4Pro is using a combination of the GPS home point location, the 4-8 feet offset photographs taken from 19 feet AGL and knowledge of how far the aircraft drifted during takeoff to accurately determine the precise take-off home point even during take-offs AND landings in high winds. AMAZING! |
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