Hi,

so just completed my first flights on the mavic air ... and it was fantastic fun, very stable, yet very nimble - going to be lots of fun.

a couple of questions came up whilst flying though, some of which related to where my home/flying site is.

Im at 1300m, and living on a kind of headland in southern spain in the mountains, on one side rises up a gentle slope, and on the others sides falls off quickly


a) Altitude and RTH etc

so I take off, and the Air records a RTH point - I assume this is consider level 0 ?
so when its says height on the screen, this is height above RTH point NOT height above the ground.
correct? so if Im going up a slope, and say need 10 meters clearance on trees - then I need to take care of the slope change.

Ive all sensors turned on, will at some point the Air notify me if its getting close to the ground?

I assume for RTH altitude I set it at slope + tree height for safety.
(though obstacle avoidance might stop it running into a tree/ground?!)

b) RTH oddity whilst landing
so on one occasion, I got it to RTH from a distance... with a altitude of 40m.
it flew back fine,

but then it seemed like it was having difficulties descending ... almost losing height then gaining it again. (it wasn't particulary windy)
I ended up pulling down the stick, and it came straight down - but I was a little confused why this was needed.

(as I said, first flights so, it may be it was just 'going thru the motions' that i was unaware of)

c) RTH accuracy
how accuately does it usually land on a RTH spot, it seemed to be within a few meters.  (I had abotu 18 sats locked so seemed good reception)
is this correct?

d) can i reset a RTH point some how? will this reset the altitude lvl?

e) do birds strike drones ?  
after abotu 30 mins, I had quite a number of swifts (or perhaps martins) appear , definitely the drone had 'interested' them, as they'd come from nowhere and went away when I landed it... they swooped around a bit, but didn't seem to want to attack it...
also we have eagles and vultures around, so wondering if I need to take care.
(Obviously not only do I not want the drone downed, but also I dont want to hurt any birds!)

f) wind  / thermal effects?
this is kind of related to (b) , im wondering at 1300m in a warm climate, do I have to be particularly careful of any kind of thermal effects, or wind being higher relative to my ground point than (e.g.) if i was at sea level?
will the drone warn me if it detects high winds.

as a newbie, Im guess Im a bit concerned at what constitutes higher winds, even at 30-40 above my level where it is calm,
Im sure I will get used to this, but wondered if some might be able to advise me a bit on what to expect / be careful of !


as i said a thoroughly enjoyable first few flights, and looking forward to going out again tomorrow and gaining some more experience  

wow! you are very inquisitive, so much so, i bear good news, you're here with greatest help esp experienced folks.
1st advisory get familiarized at close radii, say 50 to 100 feet?
Do this trying the default setup, and prudently steer drone cautiously to accustom your understanding what drone does, say fly it toward you.
Don't yaw drone into you as it cant see you on its sides.
other than that, drone sees obstructs and will avert and if avert upwards, it  is blind of the canopy above if existent, so guard against autonomous ascends during obstacle avoidance.
Choose big obstacles to check autonomous guarding features, not tiny obstacles e.g., trapeze wire

Thanks for the advice.  
Yeah, taking it slow initially, getting familiar with handle the drone handles and how I ‘see’ it.  
I’m trying to also work out the right balance of watching the drone and the screen - don’t want to fall into the bad habit of flying by only watch the phone!

Avoidance etc I’ll definitely experiment with it, so I know how it reacts, but don’t want to rely on it.  

Anywa, day 2 today, hope to get out twice (each with 3 batteries) , as weather is excellent -  so lots more practice time

Usually, birds of prey attack drones.  I've had seagulls check out the drone from a good distance.  Crows are super inquisitive and fly close to check out my drone, but they aren't aggressive.  I have seen hawks, falcons and eagles attack drones though, so be mindful of them.

Neo Supreme Posted at 7-3 03:42
Usually, birds of prey attack drones.  I've had seagulls check out the drone from a good distance.  Crows are super inquisitive and fly close to check out my drone, but they aren't aggressive.  I have seen hawks, falcons and eagles attack drones though, so be mindful of them.

thanks...

k, I wont bother eagles then

had 2 sessions of 45 mins each today, so getting a lot more confident, and starting to be able to better visualise and keep  track of where the drone is, and where its pointing - also using the kind of radar view is useful.
also started to get a better handle on the video side, but that's going to take a while to get smooth I think, but its improving.



so, the rest ive found answers too:
a) yup its all relative to home altitude - so take care on slopes.
b) Ive noticed on RTH the drone pauses when it gets to the home, and before it starts landing - to give you the chance to cancel/ do it manually - so I think this is what was happening
c) actually seems pretty accurate now ive tested it a few more times
d) yup, you reset to either controller or drone position in settings mid-flight.
(BUT make sure your phone has clear GPS reception if you want to do to the controller otherwise it fails)
e)  see above, seems I'll need to take care
f) im still experimenting, but it does appear the Air is more capable in winds than I give it credit for.
and apparently you will get high wind warnings, and ive not seen this yet - so perhaps im being a bit overly cautious - but will take care whilst im still getting used to the drone.

thanks for your help

I don't use RTH.
I'd rather fly back manually.
Many crashed have happend in the RTH procedure!

e)  I have not had this, although swallows have great interest in the drone.
f) Yes it will warn you, but it can hold up pretty good in high winds