Got my Mavic today.... ordered 4th Oct.. arrived today in Australia... pretty happy really only a 6 week wait.

However...   This is my first drone... so I knew I would need to take it easy.... and do plenty of practising before I got to tricky with it.

1st Flight - did a few practice takeoffs and landings... hovered at 1.2 meters and did some left/right forward back movements ... all good....  Then before I know it, it shot off to the left crashed into a fence and plummted to the ground.

It happened so fast, but I suspect it is most likely operator error

A few scratches on the props... but no damage... i thought.... However, the Gimbal has snapped off it's mounting plate.  I doubt there is any way I can fix this so looks like it is straight back to DJI for repair.... after about 20 seconds fliying time... Oh dear.

So... a cautionary tale for newbies (like me).

I always suspected the gimbal was the most likely weak point.... and I had intened to do my practice flights with the Gimbal cover on... but in the excitement I forgot.

I suggest that whenever you are doing practice filghts that you leave the Gimbal cover in place.

Really sorry for your crash.
You could also practice in the flight simulator.
Hopefully you'll be back in the air very soon.

Were you at GPS mode and have plenty of satellite signals?
Or were you at OPTI mode and what was the light conditions and the surroundings?
As for your gimbal, if it just got off the mounting plate and no physical damage to the structure or the cable, you may try to put it back yourself.

Nomadic Posted at 2016-11-14 20:09
Were you at GPS mode and have plenty of satellite signals?
Or were you at OPTI mode and what was th ...

Light and conditions were OK... but I think I was flying sideways at the time... so collision avoidance would not have been active

I am pretty sure it has snapped right off the plate, not just popped off.  It is hanging lby the cable but no obvious way just to "clip" it back in....

I don't think it was the initial collision that caused the damage...there is no prop damage - justr a few scratches... I suspect when it fell down (from just 1.2m) the gimbal itslef hit something and just snapped off...

I'm a newbie and waiting for my Mavic, but to keep me occupied and productive, I've bought a Husban X4 (H107C) (cheap as chips) and practiced hovering and minor movements inside but now I've moved outside. The cheap Husban's have no GPS/Altitude-hold and it's all really ATTI/manual flying so it's great in terms of learning to fly. I've dropped it (throttle off) several times when i've got disoriented and just re-position and start again. Only thing I would recommend to anyone is.. get extra batteries. I'm suffering with 5 mins flying, hour charging.. :-)

So, @WebCo, keep flying even whilst your Mavic is in for repair..

"1st Flight - did a few practice takeoffs and landings... hovered at 1.2 meters and did some left/right forward back movements ... all good....  Then before I know it, it shot off to the left crashed into a fence and plummted to the ground."

I take it you did not make a control input to cause it to go left?

This product is not ready.

XDfh2UKILeWX Posted at 2016-11-14 21:43
"1st Flight - did a few practice takeoffs and landings... hovered at 1.2 meters and did some left/ri ...

I can't honestly say.... I don't think I did a control left... but I didn't actually see it hit the fence as I think I was looking at the display... as I said it all happened so fast... i guess i can download and look at the flight log.... but not sure how to do that, and a little nervous to power up the drone again with the Gimbal swinging free.

I thouhgt I would wait to hear back from support for my next steps...

Do I download the flight log from the controller or the drone ?

It sounds to me like its a warranty repair if it just shot off to the left without you telling it to. As long as you are in GPS mode then it shouldn't do anything like you described. Read up on how to sync your flight logs to DJI if you don't already know. It's also a good idea to read up on uploading logs to https://healthydrones.com/ and http://www.phantomhelp.com/LogViewer/Upload/ because you can post the findings on this forum and the clever, not me, folks can have a more detailed look at what happened. You can view the basic flight logs stored on the tablet/smartphone you use as a display through the DJI Go app home screen by clicking the paper plane in the top left if the screen. and on a final thought, I would have hoped that the gimbal wouldn't just fall off from a 1.2 meter fall but im only flying a P4 atm till my mavic comes so dont know.

I'm a fairly new flyer, some time with cheap quads and now p3p. I've found with learning it's so easy to lose orientation, over correct and slam into something. I went with practicing figure eights and circles a lot which helps. We have tennis courts in our complex and I practice in there with my p3p. In there I use my prop guards just in case. Easy, lazy type of flying. Wide open areas also. If anyone is new or fairly new take it easy and learn orientation before you try and zip around. Learn it well.

If you haven't done so - Consider paying the $169 and buy DJI Care.  This will cap your repair bill at the $169 PLUS first time replacement fee is AUD $139 or $310.   OTOH maybe you can get it repaired for less than that. Either way you have to decide within 48 hours of activation if you want to buy the Plan.

Bummer for you though. Hindsight I know but my advice for first flighter would be a clear open site like a park with no obstacles in the beginners cone.   Also ordered mine to Aus same day Oct 04. Had it for a week or so. 40 flights already and no issues.   Hope you are back up and running quickly.

Logger Posted at 2016-11-14 22:30
If you haven't done so - Consider paying the $169 and buy DJI Care.  This will cap your repair bill  ...

Yeah yeah.... rub it in.... 40 flights ...  damn you....

Yes... I already have DJI Care... one of the first things I did ... along with upgrading firmware and charging batteries.....

and yes... I would certainly agree (in hindsight) - wide open spaces would have been a very good idea....

spalding1968 Posted at 2016-11-14 22:22
It sounds to me like its a warranty repair if it just shot off to the left without you telling it to ...

Yeah I can't swear that I wasn't using the left control... it was all very fast.   It was also pretty windy, but I wouldn't expect a gust of wind to have such a dramatic effect either.

Will certainly look into the flight logs and see what that tells me...

WebCo Posted at 2016-11-14 14:40
Yeah yeah.... rub it in.... 40 flights ...  damn you....

Yes... I already have DJI Care... one  ...

I dont like the idea being forced to buy DJI Care if all we experience are BETA bugs.
(well not really forced upon us but the implicit urge to get it is very much communicated here)

Thats not good and not fair.
Damages because of DJI's faults should be handled fast and generous by DJI.

"in dubio pro reo".

The indicted in this case would be the pilot implicitely accused of pilot errors.

Dont get me wrong they have to look at the logs and i had my share of stupid accidents as well but with the Mavic in BETA stage they HAVE to be generous and NOT try selling DJI Care because of the Bugs.

Nils

WebCo Posted at 2016-11-14 18:38
Light and conditions were OK... but I think I was flying sideways at the time... so collision avoi ...

Then you should upload your log file as they suggest :-)

I have read other stories of new Mavic's shooting off to the side like that... And I believe the logs showed there was input causing that behavior although the users stated that they were not providing input? Something to do with a controller issue?

Was it in atti mode? Mine Mavic won't hover still if it is in atti mode, it keep moving forward without me touching the remote.  

This guy had a similar problem and fixed it by recalibrating his controller.. Maybe it might help some...

WebCo Posted at 2016-11-14 18:38
Light and conditions were OK... but I think I was flying sideways at the time... so collision avoi ...

Sorry for your crash.
Have you contacted support to send it in for repair.
Sync your flight records and provide your email and I will review your flight.
Also,if it was not pilot error then download the DAT and VSS file from the flight and upload them to Dropbox and add the link to your case as well as posting it here.

Fly higher. Spending less time at treetop height or below decreases these crash problems drastically. Fly low, crash hard.

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-11-14 18:23
Sorry for your crash.
Have you contacted support to send it in for repair.
Sync your flight record ...

hello Ken,
how would the log guys ever discern a user Input "full left" from a stick problem that results in "full left" ?
I know that case where the movements were simply to erratic and too fast to be human but in a simple case like this it seems not possible, right ?

Probably we all need to buy a GoPro Helmet cam showing our hands for our flights to have some proof :-)

Dont let it come to this...

Nils

"but I didn't actually see it hit the fence as I think I was looking at the display"

1) Sorry for your crash.

2) Lots of good suggestions have already been made.  One more I would strongly recommend.  Until you are more experienced, I'd only fly while looking directly at the Mavic and with it pointed away from you (so left is always left and right is always right.)  FPV (First Person Video, flying while looking through the display) in close space with a 3-axis gimbal (like the one on the Mavic) can be VERY deceiving and even more difficult to master.  It's one thing to fly FPV in the wide open sky but completely different in close quarters.  The gimbal (as designed) will hide movement.  Lateral (side to side) movement is especially difficult to sense with the gimbal.  In other words, you input to move left and while the Mavic is in fact moving left, it may not appear to be doing it (at least not as much as you expect).  Also, as someone already said, if the Mavic drops into ATTI (loses GPS) in close quarters and you are not looking right at it (and it is not pointed away from you so that left is left) even moderate experience operators are likely to crash.  It only takes a moment and momentum will take it much further than you expected (compared to GPS mode).

Good luck

WebCo Posted at 2016-11-14 07:43
Yeah I can't swear that I wasn't using the left control... it was all very fast.   It was also pre ...

The wind shouldn't have had all that much affect. You should look at your flight log in the app, you can see your stick movements the entire time and will be able to tell if it was your fault.

fans63feb791 Posted at 2016-11-14 20:24
I'm a fairly new flyer, some time with cheap quads and now p3p. I've found with learning it's so eas ...

practicing is always good, but I think P3P comes too assisted although your 8 circle routine pushes it a bit

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-11-15 03:23
Sorry for your crash.
Have you contacted support to send it in for repair.
Sync your flight record ...

Thanks Ken,

Yes... I have put in a request for support.... seems to be an issue with Support i9n Australia at the moment so I couldn't submit an online request... I had to email... and have had an initial response - "Your request (337445) has been received and is being reviewed by our technical support representatives. We will contact you soon"... but still waiting (17hrs now) for a follow up.

I still need to download the logs - was waiting to see what support needed... but will investigate this

themosttoys Posted at 2016-11-15 04:32
"but I didn't actually see it hit the fence as I think I was looking at the display"

1) Sorry for y ...

"I'd only fly while looking directly at the Mavic and with it pointed away from you"

Yes... I definitely agree... I wasn't piloting from the screen (FPV) but I had glanced/looked at the screen (but don't recall whether the drone was moving at the time)...and being a newbie it probably took me longer to work out what was what than it should... in the time I did this the crash occurred.

WebCo Posted at 2016-11-15 05:16
Thanks Ken,

Yes... I have put in a request for support.... seems to be an issue with Support i9n  ...

I have someone sending a message to the AU facility.
Also, is the email in your ticket the same one you use with the GO app?
It's saying their is no flight records. Can you re-sync them?
And if you use a different email for the Go app, what is that email.

WebCo Posted at 2016-11-14 22:21
"I'd only fly while looking directly at the Mavic and with it pointed away from you"

Yes... I def ...

Sorry to hear of your crash, I can tell you from experience dji repair service is top notch, and you might have a case with warranty just wait and see, they are very fair about cost of repair and labour.
Main thing is you've probably learned a lot from the experience, and I'm sure you'll be up in the air soon.
Thanks for posting it will help others, good luck..

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-11-15 07:30
I have someone sending a message to the AU facility.
Also, is the email in your ticket the same on ...

Thanks Ken,

Yes same email address for GO app and ticket.

I've managed to download a DAT file (bt not sure what to do with it)... not sure how to "sync" flight records ??

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-11-15 07:30
I have someone sending a message to the AU facility.
Also, is the email in your ticket the same on ...

Ahhhh... found the flight records on DJI Go and have synced.....  there doesn't seem to be very much info though ...

you should be able to replay the flight from the same page you synced your data from.

WebCo Posted at 2016-11-15 06:51
Thanks Ken,

Yes same email address for GO app and ticket.

The DAT file is from the aircraft that you download with the Assistant2 software.
The flight log from the GO app that you sync is in the flight records section.
Make sure you are logged into your account and from the home page tap the top left icon (paper airplane) Then tap the top right icon (cloud) and that brings up the sync menu. Then sync the records.

WebCo Posted at 2016-11-15 06:58
Ahhhh... found the flight records on DJI Go and have synced.....  there doesn't seem to be very mu ...

Sorry, I just saw this post and explained the procedure in the last post.

After a couple of days silence (since reporting the issue to DJI Support) I was starting to get concerned.... My drone is not going to get fixed sitting on my desk...

Finally today I got notification that DJI have arranged a parcel pickup (through TNT) for delivery to their Support centre in Burwood (Victoria).

Relieved to know that it seems to be staying in Australia for repair... so hoping for a quick fix and a fast turnaround.... I will update this post on progress so other Aussie Pilots will get a sense for what they might be in for if they have the misfortune to break their drones

(Thanks again to DJI-Ken for advice and assistance with downloading and syncing flight logs... was also a comfort to know that at least someone from DJI was listening...)

WebCo Posted at 2016-11-17 05:35
After a couple of days silence (since reporting the issue to DJI Support) I was starting to get conc ...

No problem at all, and yes your aircraft will stay in AU as there's a repair facility there.
I'm sorry it took a few days to get things moving.

Just picked up by TNT for return to DJI for repair....

For everyones interest of the procress/timing involved,, Here is a timescale of events :

     Mon 14th Nov 10:00 - Drone delivered (6 week wait from order on 4th Oct)
                                         Updated Firmware and Charged Batteries
     Mon 14th Nov  13:00 - First flight
           .... 15 seconds later....                                    
     Mon 14th Nov  13:00 - First Crash - Gimbal snapped off mounting plate
     Mon 14th Nov  14:57 - Discovered could not do Online Support Request (not valid in Australia) so email sent to support@dji.com
     Mon 14th Nov  14:59 - Automated support response - along with request # - "Your request (3****5) has been received and is being reviewed by our technical support representatives. We will contact you soon. "
     Tue 15th Nov  23:10 - email response from DJI support requesting Analysis form to be completed and additional information
      Wed 16th Nov  07:15 -  I sent all requested information and Flight Log data to DJI
      Wed 16th Nov  23:20 -  Notification from DJI that TNT would pickup drone on 17th Nov - for return to DJI Repair Center in Australia
      Thu 17th Nov  00:02 -  Confirmation from TNT of pickup details
      Thu 17th Nov  13:00 -  TNT Pickup

Just arrived at TNTs depot in Melbourne this morning... Seriously !! I could have ridden it there on my pushbike faster .... Grrrrrrr.

Out for Delivery to DJI Repair Centre at Burwood... so hopefully they will get it today and I will get some feedback within the next couple of days as to repair/fix process.

WebCo Posted at 2016-11-21 08:24
Out for Delivery to DJI Repair Centre at Burwood... so hopefully they will get it today and I will g ...

Mate, I saw your post last week and had been keeping an eye to see how everything is tracking.
Hopefully you get it back soon!

I'm glad DJI has a repair centre in Victoria (Burwood), not too far from my place.
- Which means less transit time, less chance of it getting damaged during transit, etc.

PS: I don't get mine till mid December now... order my fly more on 27th Oct and was told it will be shipped between 7th and 11th Nov... then been pushed back and back, now my reseller was informed that they will get their first batch on 1st Dec... lol this could be 1st batch of 3, of 1st batch of 10 mavic only... so good to know some of us Aussies got theirs.

Tadaa... Delivered to DJI Repair at 11:30 am

almost exactly a week since the crash....

cluc Posted at 2016-11-21 11:20
Mate, I saw your post last week and had been keeping an eye to see how everything is tracking.
Hope ...

Cheers Cluc....

Yes... a great relief to me too that they seem able to do repairs "locally"

Hope you get your Mavic soon (and I get mine back even sooner )... and If I have encouraged some other newbies to take it VERY easy and do practice flights with the gimbal cover that has to be a good thing right...

I will keep this thread updated with repair/fix process as it occurs