Hi guys! I just bought a mavic pro yesterday. I live in Chicago, IL. Would anyone be able to tell me how to get started? What do I need to know about registering it for FAA, insurance, etc? Is there a big difference between commercial and recreational in terms of flying rules, cost, etc?

Thank you,
Raag

Sounds like this may be your 1st time at the rodeo..so I would suggest you read the manual and go to you tube and watch some Mavic pro tutorials before flying.  I live in Chicago as well and good flying days will be limited.. take your time and practice getting a feel for your mavic in an open field to get started.  Also lookinto getting a PAP policy from StateFarm to cover your drone "JUST IN CASE SOMETHING CRAZY HAPPENS".  Good luck and welcome

Welcome,...you've got some homework to do. Best practice would be to start with those You Tube basic videos and build on that, get to an open field and practice, practice, practice.

FAA - no need to register at this point but do follow their basic flight rules. (go to their site for review).

First, no registration with FAA required.  The courts shot that down.  Second and most important is multiple steps.  As others have said, watch youtube videos until you've seen about everything you can find on the Mavic and basic flying.  Read the manual (download the latest one first) from front to back and understand it.  Ask questions here on the forum if you don't understand something.  Read the manual again to be sure you haven't missed something, and don't be afraid to go back to it at any time for refresher.  Before you start the motors for the first time and every time after, be sure your common sense mode is turned on and be very careful.  You are going to be handling a device that can, when mis-handled, actually kill someone and/or do great harm.  Think about it.  All that said, take small steps and learn to fly out in an open field away from people and be cognizant of the fact that not everyone will act friendly toward a drone flyer.  Don't give them anything to complain about.  Follow guidelines and not fly over people or vehicles, etc.  Stay completely away from airports and other aircraft.  If this seems harsh, I'm just trying to make you aware.  After that, go learn to fly and expand your horizons a little at a time.  You'll love flying and looking at the video.  Hint: Always start recording when you start the Mavic and let it run the entire time.  When/if you crash, you'll be able to go back over the video and try to figure out what you did wrong, or in the case of a failure, what may have caused it.  As M.C. Pilot said, practice, practice, practice!

ENJOY!

I'll add one more thing.  Be sure you don't take off with a battery that isn't fully charged.  Some people learn the hard way that you don't want to fly a battery down to 40% and then fly it again.  Unless you're just testing (not going anywhere with it), be sure it is (recently) fully charged before you fly.

Thank you so much for all of the kind responses!!! These are almost all things I wasn't aware of. Unfortunately I already purchased the FAA license because I know at one point it was required, I guess no harm in having it?

I've heard a lot about statefarm's PAP. Is there a deductible on it? Thank you so much once again and really excited to join the community!

rshah921 Posted at 2017-10-27 13:42
Thank you so much for all of the kind responses!!! These are almost all things I wasn't aware of. Unfortunately I already purchased the FAA license because I know at one point it was required, I guess no harm in having it?

I've heard a lot about statefarm's PAP. Is there a deductible on it? Thank you so much once again and really excited to join the community!

No deductible, policy is $60 buck for a year.  You can also put other items on the policy, there is a $ limit that $60 will cover

My #1 tip is DO NOT EVER NEVER launch on, around or near metal surfaces. It throws the compass off and you will most likely crash or hurt someone. ~ ie: small bridges have metal beams, concrete (older) has rebar, picnic tables have metal bars .. etc. No Metal surfaces... like a car hood launch. bad idea!

Have fun! I started with a P3S and now own P3P, Mavic and P4P. I am hooked and can't look back! It is so fun.

Yes and YouTube is the place to go like I read below.  I have watched for more hours than I like to admit but you will learn a lot.

Welcome to join Mavic group! Practice makes perfect, I believe that you will enjoy it! Happy flying!

Bob Brown Posted at 2017-10-27 16:44
My #1 tip is DO NOT EVER NEVER launch on, around or near metal surfaces. It throws the compass off and you will most likely crash or hurt someone. ~ ie: small bridges have metal beams, concrete (older) has rebar, picnic tables have metal bars .. etc. No Metal surfaces... like a car hood launch. bad idea!

Wow thanks! Is the issue only with launching near metal or also with flying around metal even if it was launched on non-metal ground?

No need to register it to FAA and no insurance necessary, just fly  and have fun and follow all rules.

Basic rules:
Fly 400 ft or under
Stay away from the airport
Fly within LOS (line of sight)
Do not fly over people
and use common sense when flying

AG0N-Gary Posted at 2017-10-27 10:28
I'll add one more thing.  Be sure you don't take off with a battery that isn't fully charged.  Some people learn the hard way that you don't want to fly a battery down to 40% and then fly it again.  Unless you're just testing (not going anywhere with it), be sure it is (recently) fully charged before you fly.

I'm curious why you say this.  Is it because a pilot might forget that his flight time will be less?  Or is there some change - like there being even less than 40% the 2nd time around -  that might take place if you stop flying and then use that same battery later?

StanfordWebbie Posted at 2017-10-28 09:51
I'm curious why you say this.  Is it because a pilot might forget that his flight time will be less?  Or is there some change - like there being even less than 40% the 2nd time around -  that might take place if you stop flying and then use that same battery later?

There have been many "unexplained" flights that ended with disaster of a crashed drone because people think that a partially charged battery is as good as whatever percentage it says it has left.  First, the percentage is simply a voltage reference.  The true capacity of the battery involves more than that, and it has been proven that a 40 or 50% battery can sometimes deliver much less than that in flying time.  Maybe a cell may go down prematurely or something else.  It states right in the manual, ALWAYS take off with a recently fully charged battery.  Fully charged a month ago and not flown since is an invitation to a disaster.  YMMV.

Another very important tip, check RTH(return to home altitude) and set at least 210 ft, also set behavour when lost connection into return to home.
So check settings every time of flying especially when updating new firmware( some settings revert to default)