So,
I was just flying over the forest (no interferences, metal structures, radio towers...) and my Spark just suddenly stopped the motors and fell from ~100m to the ground like a brick. After it started falling, it sort-of booted up and started the engines again mid air, but as it was falling too fast. I was obviously able to recover it, as it smashed to ground few meters away from me.

When it shut down, I had no control over the craft, but when it crashed, I got the video feed after few seconds and aircraft was able to fly again immediately. I was lucky as it fell into grass/mud, so it sort-of bounced off the ground. The gimble is working but making very unusual noises, the whole drone when flying has a tough time to balance itself.

I flew over 67km total (in little over 8 hours) with Spark, had a lot of connection issues, but this is the first time this happened to me.

With all recent reports of falling Sparks, I lost all confidence about flying the Spark. The mere fact that it could happen anytime, regardless the environment is scary. If an almost 300g "brick" would fall onto someone from 100m, it would harm (maybe even kill) a person.

Here is Airdata log: http://app.airdata.com/main?share=kPQrbO

But as you can see - there is absolutely nothing. Log just ends when craft shuts down.

I was using Google Nexus 7 II (supported device), with DJI GO4 App 4.1.4.


Even if it gets repaired (and that's a big IF, as my other support tickets went pitch black), I will never be confident in flying it anywhere. After what happened, I no longer trust this product and want a refund.

I forgot to mention that all my batteries are "refreshed" with latest firmware.

These shut offs continue to occur, even with the new firmware.

Even on a SPARK that has many flights.

And ambient temp was at an optimal level of 78 degree F.

Like a drone game of Russian roulette....

Good luck with the repair. This should be covered under warranty due to aircraft defect.

Let us know how it goes.

Exactly i have the same problem my friend, I was flying my spark 91 meters high and the spark went out, seconds after I heard booted motors up again but nothing could stop the fall.

BriRi Posted at 2017-8-11 12:15
These shut offs continue to occur, even with the new firmware.

Even on a SPARK that has many flights.

We will see. As I wrote, my previous support tickets went pitch black.

The sad thing is that I love this device and having a blast with it but after what I saw today That just breaks my heart.

I just uploaded the log to PhantomHelp. But nothing is there

HoracioChavez Posted at 2017-8-11 12:13
Exactly i have the same problem my friend, I was flying my spark 91 meters high and the spark went out, seconds after I heard booted motors up again but nothing could stop the fall.

Sorry to hear that. A lot of people are having issues with this :/ I was only lucky that it fell to grass/mud and not stones or something super solid.

Bobesh Posted at 2017-8-11 12:30
Sorry to hear that. A lot of people are having issues with this :/ I was only lucky that it fell to grass/mud and not stones or something super solid.

I wasn´t lucky, it fell to a roof.. It was completely dysfunctional, just turned on.

HoracioChavez Posted at 2017-8-11 12:31
I wasn´t lucky, it fell to a roof.. It was completely dysfunctional, just turned on.

That just sucks :/

Bobesh Posted at 2017-8-11 12:20
I just uploaded the log to PhantomHelp. But nothing is there

There is a flight log showing

hallmark007 Posted at 2017-8-11 13:03
There is a flight log showing

By "nothing is there" I meant that no issues are there

I have same problem ! my new drone Spark  stopped working at about 30 meters and fell to the ground and now stop working

Robert12345 Posted at 2017-8-11 13:18
I have same problem ! my new drone Spark  stopped working at about 30 meters and fell to the ground and now stop working

This is spreading like wildfire :/

There are many cases, DJI needs to say that Spark can´t fly till the problem is solved...I will be waiting the Dji answer about my problem, the issue is very big, more we can see, it can kill people if the drone fall in a head to that velocity... It remembers me the Samsung Note7´s problem. Samsung picked up all the devices and gave money back or changed for another smartphone with similar prices... Really we need a solution, not only repair or replacement since nobody assures us that it will not happen again with the drones repaired or replaced.

HoracioChavez Posted at 2017-8-11 13:38
There are many cases, DJI needs to say that Spark can´t fly till the problem is solved...I will be waiting the Dji answer about my problem, the issue is very big, more we can see, it can kill people if the drone fall in a head to that velocity... It remembers me the Samsung Note7´s problem. Samsung picked up all the devices and gave money back or changed for another smartphone with similar prices... Really we need a solution, not only repair or replacement since nobody assures us that it will not happen again with the drones repaired or replaced.

That is the problem I have with it. Even if it gets repaired/replaced - I won't trust it anymore. People report this issue on a daily basis. Even online magazines started reporting on it. The comparison with Note7 is correct.

We feel so sorry for the accident you have with the drone. Have you contacted our Support Team via support.eu@dji.com to report the issue? If yes, please PM me your case number or ticket number. I'll look into it. Also, our engineers will proceed data analysis to check the exact reason.

Your situation sounds very similar to mine. Questions:

1.) What was the ambient temperature?

2.) Was this your first flight of the day or was it right after another one?

3.) Were you performing an ActiveTrack at the time it fell?

mmatos Posted at 2017-8-12 08:34
Your situation sounds very similar to mine. Questions:

1.) What was the ambient temperature?

I will answer you because also happened to me, but I also know that the owner of the post will respond.

1- on average 20 C on that day.

2- It was like my third flight that day, an hour after the last.

3. No, I was not using ActiveTrack, it was a height of 91 meters.

DId you have gesture control turned on? (not asking about using it, i am asking about turned on option in the menu)
When you bought it?

I am afraid its hardware issue and dji will never admit its a fault of design. They just improve production process and sparks will stop falling, but already sold devices will keep falling until all faulty will not fall.
I have hope its someting in battery, not copter.

mmatos Posted at 2017-8-12 08:34
Your situation sounds very similar to mine. Questions:

1.) What was the ambient temperature?

1) Around 30°C
2) Mid day, 4 hours after previous flight(s)
3) No

DJI Susan Posted at 2017-8-11 22:39
We feel so sorry for the accident you have with the drone. Have you contacted our Support Team via  to report the issue? If yes, please PM me your case number or ticket number. I'll look into it. Also, our engineers will proceed data analysis to check the exact reason.

I did use the web form, it created a support ticket, no word from DJI what so ever. The confirmation about ticket came from support.ge@dji.com. So I'll write an email now to the one you said.

DJI Susan Posted at 2017-8-11 22:39
We feel so sorry for the accident you have with the drone. Have you contacted our Support Team via  to report the issue? If yes, please PM me your case number or ticket number. I'll look into it. Also, our engineers will proceed data analysis to check the exact reason.

The ticket number is 683502 from ZenDesk.

Update: After I had done some cleaning of the mud, grass, etc. from the props, gimble and drone itself - it flies again as nothing happened. After blowing a bit onto the gimble, the noise stopped - There was probably some mud dust from the crash. The balance issue is mostly gone, once it grabs more satellites it stays in place.

The positive thing about this is that Spark is very sturdy, and apart from some scratches it looks ok. Unfortunately, the fact that it fell from the sky for no reason and multiple people are reporting the same issue (with various videos of it happening on YouTube) daily - It is just unacceptable.

Bobesh Posted at 2017-8-13 00:28
The ticket number is 683502 from ZenDesk.

Since it is weekend now, so it may be delayed. We'll escalate it for you, the email team will reply you with a case number soon, please provide me with your case number once you got it from the Support, then I can forward the info which you provide me to our engineers.

DJI Diana Posted at 2017-8-13 01:34
Since it is weekend now, so it may be delayed. We'll escalate it for you, the email team will reply you with a case number soon, please provide me with your case number once you got it from the Support, then I can forward the info which you provide me to our engineers.

Thank you.

Just to make sure and rule out the potential "additional battery" issue - I just checked and I flew on one of the batteries that came with Fly More Combo.

For curiosity, from where did it take off? From the hand or from the ground? Thanks

What was a production date of Your spark (http://djiserialdecoder.x10host.com)?

Pirikitto Posted at 2017-8-13 13:15
For curiosity, from where did it take off? From the hand or from the ground? Thanks

From ground (stones next to the woods)

Kyokushin Posted at 2017-8-13 17:54
What was a production date of Your spark (http://djiserialdecoder.x10host.com)?

Saturday, May, 20th 2017

DJI Diana Posted at 2017-8-13 01:34
Since it is weekend now, so it may be delayed. We'll escalate it for you, the email team will reply you with a case number soon, please provide me with your case number once you got it from the Support, then I can forward the info which you provide me to our engineers.

I'm confused a bit about the process of sending the drone. In the ticket, DJI is saying that I should send the aircraft, in the form it says I should send RC, Aircraft, and battery. I also have the option to use DJI Care (which I have paid for when ordering the Spark).

If I use the DJI Care Express - will this somehow affect my DJI Care?
What should I send? AC, RC, Propellers (busted a bit) & Battery?

I asked those questions in support, but got no reply yet :/

Bobesh Posted at 2017-8-14 02:09
I'm confused a bit about the process of sending the drone. In the ticket, DJI is saying that I should send the aircraft, in the form it says I should send RC, Aircraft, and battery. I also have the option to use DJI Care (which I have paid for when ordering the Spark).

If I use the DJI Care Express - will this somehow affect my DJI Care?

Do not use the DJI Care Express. If the RC is fine, no need to send it in. Just send the AC, battery and the propellers in.

DJI Diana Posted at 2017-8-14 02:26
Do not use the DJI Care Express. If the RC is fine, no need to send it in. Just send the AC, battery and the propellers in.

Thank you.

DJI Diana Posted at 2017-8-13 01:34
Since it is weekend now, so it may be delayed. We'll escalate it for you, the email team will reply you with a case number soon, please provide me with your case number once you got it from the Support, then I can forward the info which you provide me to our engineers.

Here is my case id CAS-891402-V1B7N1

as soon as the battery temperature reached 102F it crashed. you think this is a coincidence or is it a fail safe to auto shut down when battery gets hot?

Bobesh Posted at 2017-8-14 03:09
Here is my case id CAS-891402-V1B7N1

Got it, I've added the data to this case, we'll take care of it after it arrives, I'll keep an eye on it as well.

Thor1 Posted at 2017-8-14 03:22
as soon as the battery temperature reached 102F it crashed. you think this is a coincidence or is it a fail safe to auto shut down when battery gets hot?

I checked other logs and this temperature was nothing special compared to other flights where it was higher.

DJI Diana Posted at 2017-8-14 03:32
Got it, I've added the data to this case, we'll take care of it after it arrives, I'll keep an eye on it as well.

Thank you.

DJI Diana Posted at 2017-8-14 02:26
Do not use the DJI Care Express. If the RC is fine, no need to send it in. Just send the AC, battery and the propellers in.

I just got different instructions from the support that I should send AC, RC & propellers. I'm very thankful for your help, but you guys should align Guys from support are extremely slow to respond (couple hours between responses) so I'm writing here again. Should I create a new case with different things selected?

Bobesh Posted at 2017-8-14 06:05
I just got different instructions from the support that I should send AC, RC & propellers. I'm very thankful for your help, but you guys should align  Guys from support are extremely slow to respond (couple hours between responses) so I'm writing here again. Should I create a new case with different things selected?

As I mentioned before, if the RC is fine, no need to send it in.  But if you don't mind, you can also send it in for a diagnosis, we'll send the same RC back to you.