Last weekend it was an unexpected failsafe RTH while landing under a tree that spooked me (entirely my fault, attempting manual landing away from my 'safe' home point and letting the battery get too low in the process).

Today, it was wind that caught me out.

I had about 11 minutes left on my second battery of the day and was flying about 250m away along a river.

I had VLOS, though I was having to be careful because of the position of the sun.

All afternoon all had been OK. You could see the Mini 2 battling the wind a bit to keep position, but it was managing to fly fine 8n any direction I pointed it.

Then it was time to come home...

I headed back to my control location from where I had taken off about 10 minutes earlier. I was watching as the aircraftade its way back towards me, but then it seemed to stop or at least slow. I didn't know if was the angle I was looking from but it also seemed to be drifting to port side. And sure enough I lost sight because of the glare of the sun...

I had full stick forward so expected to see the aircraft emerge from the glare any second... But no, 10 seconds later and it was not visible and was therefore not heading towards me! Looking at the Fly app I could see it hadn't just slowed down - it was moving backwards at about 0.5m/s, with full right stick forward.

I tried descending, but was very wary as I couldn't actually see the aircraft at this point. I knew where it should be, hidden by the sun's glare, but what if it had moved unexpectedly and descending wasn't safe?

Then it started moving again and I could see it heading towards me on the map, just to the right of where I expected it to be from my viewpoint.

I tried to move to the starboard side to bring it into view, but that didn't seem to work. It could have been that move that prompted the second instance of the aircraft moving backwards!

At this point I had 11 minutes of battery remaining, but the aircraft wasn't coming home.

It was probably less than 30 seconds away from landing under normal circumstances, but spending most of its time stationary or going backwards with full forward stick.

And over a river!

The I realised I was still in cine mode.

Flicked to sport, a second later the drone flew into view as expected. I checked the battery level - just 3 minutes remaining in sports mode, a much bigger drop in time than I expected, still more than enough to get back now.

10 seconds later, lining up.

10 second ls later, on the ground, relieved.

That wind was stronger than I expected at 50-70m. It was still string at 20-30m as I came in to land. And it came out of nowhere. The drone had coped for a battery and a half in that location and the wind was supposed to be dropping.

Still, no panic, check settings, no rash manoeuvres, and flicking to sport mode brought it back safely - with about two and half minutes of battery to spare (ouch, a bit close!).

A really exciting experience, which ended well in the end. Congratulations for your prudent behavior and high concentration.

''Cine mode'' well spotted, I have been caught out by that myself and it took me a bit of time to realise the problem.

Also do remember that there have been threads about near vertical gimbal tilts limiting speed, I have seen that my self but I think it was addressed in one of the up dates.

Hello there N.O.T. I am sorry for the trouble this has caused and thank you for sharing your previous DJI Mini 2 flight experience. Have a safe and a happy flying always.

Nice you made it back OK.    Im trying to land with 20-25% battery left to maximise the life of the batteries these days.

As a relative newbie to drones, I too was caught out by the winds in one of my first flights.

It didn't feel windy at the time and I never received any strong wind warnings.  But when I decided to return the drone to home, all hell broke loose as the drone was flying into the wind and I never realised this at first, until I got a wind warning on my phone.  The drone was 75% complete on it's return journey back to me, but then it forced a landing.  20 minutes of fencing hopping later, I found my drone!

A sobering experience, no doubt.  I, and many others no doubt, have had similar heart-stopping moments.  If we learn something along the way, AND get away with it as you did in this instance, we can chalk it up to experience and thank our lucky stars

Pinarek Posted at 3-26 16:25
A really exciting experience, which ended well in the end. Congratulations for your prudent behavior and high concentration.

Thanks, the heart was starting to race a bit!

Sean-bumble-bee Posted at 3-26 17:33
''Cine mode'' well spotted, I have been caught out by that myself and it took me a bit of time to realise the problem.

Also do remember that there have been threads about near vertical gimbal tilts limiting speed, I have seen that my self but I think it was addressed in one of the up dates.

That's interesting, the gimble was pointing directly down as I was filming the river, but I am on fw 01.03.0000 so if the problem has been fixed maybe I was just really unlucky with the wind.

DJI Stephen Posted at 3-26 20:15
Hello there N.O.T. I am sorry for the trouble this has caused and thank you for sharing your previous DJI Mini 2 flight experience. Have a safe and a happy flying always.

Thanks Stephen. Every flight is more experience and another lesson learned.

DAFlys Posted at 3-27 00:16
Nice you made it back OK.    Im trying to land with 20-25% battery left to maximise the life of the batteries these days.

Yup, I generally aim for about 20% to be safe and to preserve battery life... Nature was against need this time, though.

neoborg Posted at 3-27 02:00
As a relative newbie to drones, I too was caught out by the winds in one of my first flights.

It didn't feel windy at the time and I never received any strong wind warnings.  But when I decided to return the drone to home, all hell broke loose as the drone was flying into the wind and I never realised this at first, until I got a wind warning on my phone.  The drone was 75% complete on it's return journey back to me, but then it forced a landing.  20 minutes of fencing hopping later, I found my drone!

One option would have been to blind land in one of the gardens of the big houses along the river and then go being at the door.

I didn't fancy that as even monitoring with the camera you can't be sure that there is no-one around that you could injure.

Ditching in the river would have been a certain loss, begging with a home owner to get the done back that you just landed in their garden... Not sure the odds would have been that much better.

Blériot53 Posted at 3-27 02:51
A sobering experience, no doubt.  I, and many others no doubt, have had similar heart-stopping moments.  If we learn something along the way, AND get away with it as you did in this instance, we can chalk it up to experience and thank our lucky stars

It would have been really frustrating to have lost the drone I this flight as I very nearly didn't fly it.

I'd already flown a lot that afternoon and this was "just over last sortie" as the wind seemed to be easing...

No Original Thought Posted at 3-27 04:20
That's interesting, the gimble was pointing directly down as I was filming the river, but I am on fw 01.03.0000 so if the problem has been fixed maybe I was just really unlucky with the wind.

As I have several mini's and do not  update firmware it's something I check if a drone is experiencing difficulty fighting wind, a useful something to carry in the back of one's mind. It might have even been a problem with one of the MA's but that's a very vague rattle in my mind.

No Original Thought Posted at 3-27 04:31
It would have been really frustrating to have lost the drone I this flight as I very nearly didn't fly it.

I'd already flown a lot that afternoon and this was "just over last sortie" as the wind seemed to be easing...

The wind is often the hidden factor,even when it seems perfectly calm at ground level.

Sean-bumble-bee Posted at 3-27 05:10
As I have several mini's and do not  update firmware it's something I check if a drone is experiencing difficulty fighting wind, a useful something to carry in the back of one's mind. It might have even been a problem with one of the MA's but that's a very vague rattle in my mind.

Certainly worth keeping in mind.

In all honesty, is probably have managed to get home in normal mode, but rather than trying and failing while using battery I just went straight for sport and got it on the ground asap.

No Original Thought Posted at 3-27 07:28
Certainly worth keeping in mind.

In all honesty, is probably have managed to get home in normal mode, but rather than trying and failing while using battery I just went straight for sport and got it on the ground asap.

If you are concerned about battery/distance, Sport Mode is like driving your car at 80 mph - it's not very economical.
You'll get max miles/battery at full speed in Normal Mode, with obstacle avoidance disabled.

Blériot53 Posted at 3-27 06:32
The wind is often the hidden factor,even when it seems perfectly calm at ground level.

What was odd was that of flown height both earlier in the afternoon and shortly before this happened and the wind at ground level has just about dropped right off.

Even UAV forecast was saying that the wind had dropped.

But I guess the wind doesn't check UAV forecast before it blows

Labroides Posted at 3-27 07:34
If you are concerned about battery/distance, Sport Mode is like driving your car at 80 mph - it's not very economical.
You'll get max miles/battery at full speed in Normal Mode, with obstacle avoidance disabled.

The MIni 2 doesn't have obstacle avoidance .

My point was that if I had switched to normal mode and attempted to fly home for a minute or two the  found that the power in normal mode was insufficient to counter the wind, then I would have wasted a minute or two of battery.

By switching straight to sport mode I gave myself the best chance of beating the wind. I knew I was only 130m from home, so when I saw I had just over three minutes of battery remaining in sport mode decided that was my best option.

I understand that Normal mode is the best performance to battery ratio - hence being normal mode, but I didn't want to risk the drone remaining stationary any longer while the battery was running down.

No Original Thought Posted at 3-27 07:37
What was odd was that of flown height both earlier in the afternoon and shortly before this happened and the wind at ground level has just about dropped right off.

Even UAV forecast was saying that the wind had dropped.

Lucky you spotted the drone was in Cinematic mode and were able to correct its speed in time

I was getting a bit worried as I was reading your experience.  Just glad that you spotted the RC was in Cine mode and were still able to get the drone home safely.  Just another lesson learned.  

Well you got home that’s the battle won, and you obviously gained much experience.

Just a preflight hint: wherever your flying , before take off check out two places you could use to safely land if you are going to run short unexpectedly  of battery or get into unforeseen trouble. It can be a field car park or any area you choose that suits you and is safe. This will help if you have made the choice that you are not getting home. Most at this stage panic trying to find somewhere. But if you know where you can land safely you will instinctively go to one of these areas with some confidence its safe and you can retrieve your drone.

Not something to get over stressed with but try it and keep it in the back of your mind. Its a good redundancy hopefully you’ll never have to use. Good luck

No Original Thought Posted at 3-27 04:22
Yup, I generally aim for about 20% to be safe and to preserve battery life... Nature was against need this time, though.

Happens to us all,   I ditched in a field the other week for exactly the same reason.    Always better to land and walk to it than risk it.

Blériot53 Posted at 3-27 08:13
Lucky you spotted the drone was in Cinematic mode and were able to correct its speed in time

I actually thought I was in Normal mode, so yes, a bit of an oversight - I'd forgotten I'd switched down to cine for a couple of the shots. Stupid of me, really, as it was only a few minutes before.

hallmark007 Posted at 3-27 15:18
Well you got home that’s the battle won, and you obviously gained much experience.

Just a preflight hint: wherever your flying , before take off check out two places you could use to safely land if you are going to run short unexpectedly  of battery or get into unforeseen trouble. It can be a field car park or any area you choose that suits you and is safe. This will help if you have made the choice that you are not getting home. Most at this stage panic trying to find somewhere. But if you know where you can land safely you will instinctively go to one of these areas with some confidence its safe and you can retrieve your drone.

Good advice, hallmark.

Part of flight planning when flying manned is to have alternate airfields en route.

Unfortunately in this case there wasn't anywhere other than people's gardens or places that would be inaccessible to me anyway (people's boats moored on the river, etc) and places I'd have to land blind because if high walls etc.

Definitely good advice, though... Given what happened, considering emergency landing spots might have had me reconsidering flying from this spot when the wind was so variable.

DAFlys Posted at 3-27 22:33
Happens to us all,   I ditched in a field the other week for exactly the same reason.    Always better to land and walk to it than risk it.

Agreed, maybe this wasn't my best choice of take off and control spot given that the wind had been fairly strong at times earlier in the day.

No Original Thought Posted at 3-27 23:19
I actually thought I was in Normal mode, so yes, a bit of an oversight - I'd forgotten I'd switched down to cine for a couple of the shots. Stupid of me, really, as it was only a few minutes before.

Fortunately no drama ensued

No Original Thought Posted at 3-27 23:24
Agreed, maybe this wasn't my best choice of take off and control spot given that the wind had been fairly strong at times earlier in the day.

Do you use UAV forecast to check the wind?

No Original Thought Posted at 3-27 23:22
Good advice, hallmark.

Part of flight planning when flying manned is to have alternate airfields en route.

No problem, its something I try to remember particularly flying in new locations.

DAFlys Posted at 3-27 23:52
Do you use UAV forecast to check the wind?

I do. And according to that the wind had dropped right off since I started flying earlier that afternoon.

Half an hour later it was dead calm - no wind whatsoever to speak of.

I guess I fell victim to the last blows - it was too sustained to be called a gust - and it must have been stronger than the gusts had been earlier in the day.

(It wasn't just a direction thing, either, as I'd been flying up and down the line of the river for the whole session).

No Original Thought Posted at 3-28 01:58
I do. And according to that the wind had dropped right off since I started flying earlier that afternoon.

Half an hour later it was dead calm - no wind whatsoever to speak of.

Sometimes it can he height related,   in UAV forecast you can set the height for the forecast.

DAFlys Posted at 3-28 22:58
Sometimes it can he height related,   in UAV forecast you can set the height for the forecast.

So you can!

I thought that was a premium only feature.

Have now moved it from 0m to 50m and will see how I get in with that.

Thanks for the pointer.

No Original Thought Posted at 3-28 23:08
So you can!

I thought that was a premium only feature.

No worries,   its quite interesting to scroll it up and see how the wind is changing on the day.

So even if you had left it in cine mode and was out of battery.  Would it have been smart enough to engage sport mode or get itself out of cine mode to land home?





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TWStories Posted at 3-31 11:17
So even if you had left it in cine mode and was out of battery.  Would it have been smart enough to engage sport mode or get itself out of cine mode to land home?

Good question. The low battery RTH should attempt to bring it home within whatever battery is left, and I think it flies back pretty fast when it performs any RTH, but I'm guessing it probably can't account for winds in its remaining battery calculations and I would imagine it would use the equivalent of normal mode for the RTH as that gives best performance vs battery drain.

That said, I don't actually know whether the flight modes are even relevent during an RTH.

I'm sure someone like @JJB would probably have a bit more insight into that, though....

The automated RTH speed in 10.5m/s, page 15 of the manual, and independent of the flight mode when the RTH was initiated. HOWEVR, with my Mavic Mini and in early experiments I was able to increase the RTH speed by giving forward stick. I would need to check but I think that probably only worked when the drone was in sports mode when the RTH was initiated. With the Mavic Mini the RTH speed was/is the same as the  P mode speed limit. 10.5m/s is near enough the Mini 2's "Normal" mode speed limit (10m/s).

No Original Thought Posted at 3-27 04:21
Thanks Stephen. Every flight is more experience and another lesson learned.

Hi there N.O.T. You are very much welcome and you are definitely correct. Have a safe and a happy flying always. .