I don't know how to call this as I was going to title this thread using the words "disorder", "syndrome", but I opted on using "Fear".  Maybe I'm not the only one feeling the same way so here it goes.

I've been flying my Phantom 3 4k for two years now and I had my fair share of "operator" mistakes that yielded in 2 crashes.  I had replaced the Yaw arm and  a few propellers, but that's about it.  Both times crashing against trees, so the branches and the grass have cushioned the falls.

Back in November 2017 i got my Phantom 4 Pro.  Great bird and i couldn't be happier.  Of course after 2 years, i got more proficient in flying and I feel more comfortable flying.  This past January 13th my Phantom 4 Pro fell out of the sky without any warning, power at 84% and no wind.  I checked the logs and there was nothing wrong.  When it fell, i ran to it and i found the drone in pieces, camera ripped off the gimbal, all propellers obliterated, and bent arms.  I was shaking and just confused on what had happened.  I put it back in the foam case and as i was driving home I was wondering:  What would have happened if it fell on somebody?  What if it fell on somebody's roof?  I fly at this large park, where there is no airports close by, there are no restrictions, and not many people around the area.  I still fly on top of roofs once i get out of the park boundaries.  I kept on thinking, if this was a system's failure and if it would have fallen on somebody, what could have happen to me?  I had all this questions.

I sent it out to DJI Repair on the 15th and by the 25th I had received a new Phantom 4 Pro because my drone was still under warranty, and after reviewing the LOGS they concluded that it was a system failure.  Believe me, I'm happy to have a fully tested Phantom 4 Pro in my hands.

After giving you the backstory, let's fast forward to this past Saturday the 27th.  I went for a test flight and for as much as i wanted to fly higher than 150ft i couldn't .  My legs were shaking, and i had this really eerie feeling that the drone was going to fall off the sky again.  I don't seem to shake that feeling and I hate it.  I have not try flying my Phantom 3 4k, so i might do so and see if this would ease that feeling.

Is this the end of my flying days?  Can the fear be so overwhelming that i won't gain the comfort of flying again?  Of course if I share this with people who never fly, i would hear the following, "you are over-reacting",  "what's the big deal", "Oh, c'mon - it's just a drone", but my main concern is the fear of having the drone falling out of the sky and hurting somebody, or just the uneasy feeling that it might happen again.

Any honest comments, words of wisdom, advice would be apprecited.  Please refrain from replying with sarcastic comments or "deal with it fool", "take it like a man".  I'm just sharing because it might be that out there, there might be some other people who feel the same way.

Thanks for reading.

I imagine what you're feeling is normal. Take it easy for a few flights. You'll just have to accept the fact it could happen again although unlikely. I'm sure a very small percentage of these just fall out the sky. The odds it happens to the same person twice are astronomical! All that said, it almost makes me wonder if DJI should develop some sort of parachute that deploys from sudden/extreme inertia? Or maybe someone else is?

You just need to get your confidence back in your equipment.  Just keep flying safely and what will be will be.

Don't fly over people and then the risk is very very low.

Definitely don't fly over crowds.

Even if it did hit someone, it is unlikely to cause serious damage, we don't often see posts about people getting hurt, and the few we do see are normally the pilot getting hurt through doing something stupid like grabbing the aircraft while it is flying.

Take your time to get back into it, and maybe find somewhere different to fly with new challenges to concentrate on rather than doing something that will remind you of the accident.

There are risks in everything we do, even getting out of bed.

Nigel_ Posted at 2018-1-30 14:25
Don't fly over people and then the risk is very very low.

Definitely don't fly over crowds.

Nigel, I really appreciate your insight specially, "Take your time to get back into it, and maybe find somewhere different to fly with new challenges to concentrate on rather than doing something that will remind you of the accident."  

I think going back to the same location where this happened is what "takes me back" to the moment, so I will look for other places while I shake the feeling.

In regards of not flying over people, it's been my standard practice to keep away from people.  Even when I take off, I do it at a location where there is nobody around, and I always stay away from the drone because you never know if the "take off" is a freak accident waiting to happen.  It's just that when you are on the air, you are bound to cross a street, a field, a parking lot, and its that fear that i have to conquer.

Thank you.

You will get over it in time. Keep flying in the park and avoid flying over people. The risk involved in catastrophic failure are minimal.

Have you considered public liability insurance?


In the UK - £20 per annum gives us £5 million insurance cover in the UK and Europe.

http://www.fpvuk.org/
Might be an idea to see if there is similar for using your drone in North America.

I’ve not had a brush with system failure, but even having two other drones I feel that same feeling every time I fly my P4P+. I’m absolutely terrified it’s going to just fly away, or fall from the sky. After I’ve flown and I have it safely back in the case I question my fear, but it’s the same every time. I’ve decided that if it happens I’m just gonna get another one and keep going.

Jeff

Flew my phantom 4 standard last winter all went well for a while until I got a warning that the battery went from 45% to 5% in a matter of split second... the drone called for immediate  landing  I was 100 ft up and about 200 ft away , what I did was stop all operations and let it hover , then gently landed... it was the first time it had ever happened during my drone hobby , but it scared the crap out of me... now I am also very worry to fly far, the battery had only 15 charges on it and I flew my previous p3p in the winter at -15 and never had a problem.
Since getting P4 and now p4p I am a bit worry to fly far as I am not sure if I ever see my drone again..., I have been thinking about selling my P4 but I think I will keep it as a back up...
I am in the same situation as the op, my confidence is far off from where it used to be, I remember times flying P3P over 4 kilometers distance and feeling at ease...

This situation has filled us with regret, and I'm sincerely sorry for the trouble you’ve been suffered. I'd suggest to take the drone to some places where sparsely populated and pick up the confidence slowly. It might be a long way, but I believe that time will cure everything finally.

I have to agree with everything mentioned so far.
I have in the past had a drone (non DJI) fall out of the sky and disintergrate near people luckily noone got hurt.
The gut wrenching feeling of watching it come down like that was truely terrifying.
What i did to get my confidence back is exactly what has been mentioned here so far.
Good luck and fly safe

I do not have a fear of it dropping from the sky, i have a fear of irretrievably losing it in to water.
I do not fear of it dropping on someone or roof because i do not fly other either

Bashy Posted at 2018-1-30 21:20
I do not have a fear of it dropping from the sky, i have a fear of irretrievably losing it in to water.
I do not fear of it dropping on someone or roof because i do not fly other either

I wasnt flying over people at the time. The drone in question it decided to have a mind of its own and completly ignored any input from the rc it did a few flips started flying off in one direction turned 90° mid flight then flew off in another direction then stopped suddenly and fell from the sky crashed about 3 meters from a group of people i was working with at the time.Thats one of the reasons i chose to buy a dji drone after trying 2 others after that one with no real success.

This is why i try to fly hundreds of meters from anyone, I have liability insurance but i should never have to use it.

First off, I am very sorry to hear that happen to you. That must have been really scary. My advice like most of everyone is - start slow. Go to a big park, with little to no people. Start out at a small altitude - then slowly increase. Do this until you reach an altitude you feel confident in. I have a P4P as well, and when I fly it, I always have the thought of "What if my drone just dropped out of now where." It's a very real thought, and you are not the only person to think of these things. Don't let the incident which happened, stop you from flying all together. Flying drones is an awesome hobby, but it does come with some risks. This is why you should always fly in a safe area. Never fly above anyone, or above houses. Hope some of this makes you feel better. Anyways happy flying!

-Pasta10         

By the rule of thumb I'm avoiding flying above residential or populated areas. If I rarely must (i.e. testing the performance of new equipment in a city park nearby) I always have symptoms of "white knuckles" effect. However, further I fly gaining confidence and trust in equipment, less of discomfort I feel. Usually one or two maiden test flights above populated places is enough to me. Really challenging range tests and practicing are all done above rural farmlands beyond suburbs. Finally, all "productive" (aerial landscape imagery) or strictly recreational flights are made in remote wilderness, where chances of harming any humanoid below are next to zero.

Do just this for a while and your fear will go away ...

VR6OOM Posted at 2018-1-30 12:18
I imagine what you're feeling is normal. Take it easy for a few flights. You'll just have to accept the fact it could happen again although unlikely. I'm sure a very small percentage of these just fall out the sky. The odds it happens to the same person twice are astronomical! All that said, it almost makes me wonder if DJI should develop some sort of parachute that deploys from sudden/extreme inertia? Or maybe someone else is?

I think if the chances were astronomical then we would all be very nervous indeed.

I can fully follow your concern but what i suggest is that you find a place with plenty of space and do some extreme flying. See the video in this thread from MC/SD Pilot.
First of all to get it tested carefully while under warranty, second to get comfortable with flying it again.

Happy flying.

Thank you for sharing your "fears", incredibly brave of you in a public forum. Equally also very responsible of you too. I would suspect that if all the pilots here, certified or not, were asked about nerves flying their  craft, most, if they were honest, would admit to at least some. Your confidence will return I am sure, very much as it did with us all when we first put a drone into the sky. But from your description it appears that you fly sensibly, safely and according to the rules and as such the chances of injuring anyone because of your actions are almost none existent.
Please do not give up flying, I am sure you would regret doing so in short order. Continue flying safely and sensibly and you will soon feel that buzz once again.

embayweather Posted at 2018-1-31 04:54
Thank you for sharing your "fears", incredibly brave of you in a public forum. Equally also very responsible of you too. I would suspect that if all the pilots here, certified or not, were asked about nerves flying their  craft, most, if they were honest, would admit to at least some. Your confidence will return I am sure, very much as it did with us all when we first put a drone into the sky. But from your description it appears that you fly sensibly, safely and according to the rules and as such the chances of injuring anyone because of your actions are almost none existent.
Please do not give up flying, I am sure you would regret doing so in short order. Continue flying safely and sensibly and you will soon feel that buzz once again.

Embayweather,

Your response has been very encouraging, as well as some of the others I've read, but you touched an important subject that we all fail to acknowledge, and that is "fear".  As i said in my original post, I've been flying for about 2 years now, and with time you build confidence and i believe to some extent some "pride" or at times it could become "arrogance", to the point we don't want to succumb to the fact that we still have that 'fear' of flying our new birds.  I've flown my Phantom 3 over the ocean, over rivers, over lakes, off a cliff, off a mountain, and it builds that confidence to the point you feel an "expert", but my second crash with my Phantom 3 was because of my 'over-confidence'.  We tend to think we can do it all, when the reality is that we are all in the learning curve with a little more experience every time.  

Even before my Phantom 4 fell off the sky, i always have respect for the hobby, remember, it is $1800 on the sky and it's great responsibility.  You nailed the subject and as you said it takes guts to express the 'fear', but i know I'm not the only one, so i want to learn from others.  I love to fly my drone, i feel like a kid, i feel the freedom...it's like when you have those dreams that you can fly...

Thanks.

Is there any clubs around so you can join up with others. I had a fear of flying over the water until I flew with others over water. I still have a respect for water but I know that the risk is minimal if you don’t fly silly.

AlanHd Posted at 2018-1-31 09:02
Is there any clubs around so you can join up with others. I had a fear of flying over the water until I flew with others over water. I still have a respect for water but I know that the risk is minimal if you don’t fly silly.

AlanHd,

I've flown over water too.  You can check my YouTube channel by following one of the videos I've posted in my other threads.  I've thought about joining a club, but nowdays everything is just to get a profit.  Some clubs charge you a fee for this, a fee for that, and you end up flying by yourself (a friend who joined a club experience).  So, i guess for me is better to hear comments from people in this forum.

I might though, find some people here that might share good locations in the San Gabriel Valley, CA area.  

I know the fear will go away little by little following the advise of people on this thread, i just wanted to hear people's stories and confirm I'm not the only one going through this.

VR6OOM Posted at 2018-1-30 12:18
I imagine what you're feeling is normal. Take it easy for a few flights. You'll just have to accept the fact it could happen again although unlikely. I'm sure a very small percentage of these just fall out the sky. The odds it happens to the same person twice are astronomical! All that said, it almost makes me wonder if DJI should develop some sort of parachute that deploys from sudden/extreme inertia? Or maybe someone else is?

It happens to me to and your idea is simply brilliant

I went through the same thing a while back only I didn't bother sending it back although it was only a month old and it was a P4P Obsidian. Just fell out of the sky and the flight records indicate no issues at all, just stopped. I bought another one but I do not enjoy flying like I use to. That thought is always on my mind.

Rodger8 Posted at 2018-5-3 04:12
I went through the same thing a while back only I didn't bother sending it back although it was only a month old and it was a P4P Obsidian. Just fell out of the sky and the flight records indicate no issues at all, just stopped. I bought another one but I do not enjoy flying like I use to. That thought is always on my mind.

I can't figure out why you would not send it in, there has been several reports like yours, i think we don't hear of the all. You would risk nothing creating a case and send it to DJI, if nothing else they might find something that need improvement to ensure this won't happen again.
If they don't accept the case and offer a replacement you should be able to get it back so you can use or sell the functional spares.

Back in the saddle.

KedDK Posted at 2018-5-3 19:57
I can't figure out why you would not send it in, there has been several reports like yours, i think we don't hear of the all. You would risk nothing creating a case and send it to DJI, if nothing else they might find something that need improvement to ensure this won't happen again.
If they don't accept the case and offer a replacement you should be able to get it back so you can use or sell the functional spares.

The Obsidian is not the point. The point is that it just fell out of the air and now that thought is on my mind every time I put it up. What if it hit someone or damaged someone else's property. The lawsuits, law enforcement, etc. What enjoyment is all of that ?

Rodger8 Posted at 2018-5-6 01:58
The Obsidian is not the point. The point is that it just fell out of the air and now that thought is on my mind every time I put it up. What if it hit someone or damaged someone else's property. The lawsuits, law enforcement, etc. What enjoyment is all of that ?

I can all the way understand your feelings, freight and concern in this regard but i think it is bad to look at it this way everything we do, we do in a risk of something going wrong but we still have to live and enjoy doing it.
Just going up a stair would be risky in that we could stumble fall down and take others with during the fall, during a bicycle the tire could explode with result someone else get bumped to the ground, If you drive a car something could break causing an accident and harm someone, even just stopping/breaking involve a risk.
I think the only thing you could do to feel somehow safe is to avoid flying directly over and with a distance to people and other things you fear could get harmed, you still would be able to get some great time and nice shots from your Phantom.

Still, as i wrote above, i don't understand why you would not send it in, if not for getting it fixed then to have DJI figure out why it did fall down and hopefully get an explanation (i know you might not get that). if nothing else upload/send the flight log from the AC to them, if there is a general problem it hopefully will be solved and the more reports/material they got the better the chances for finding the red thread common for the issues.

Heads up

KedDK Posted at 2018-5-6 02:30
I can all the way understand your feelings, freight and concern in this regard but i think it is bad to look at it this way everything we do, we do in a risk of something going wrong but we still have to live and enjoy doing it.
Just going up a stair would be risky in that we could stumble fall down and take others with during the fall, during a bicycle the tire could explode with result someone else get bumped to the ground, If you drive a car something could break causing an accident and harm someone, even just stopping/breaking involve a risk.
I think the only thing you could do to feel somehow safe is to avoid flying directly over and with a distance to people and other things you fear could get harmed, you still would be able to get some great time and nice shots from your Phantom.

Fortunately it happened at my regular flying spot which is a 50 Acre open field with no obstructions or people. I always avoid people in my flying as I am supposed to do. I did not send it in because I felt that it was pointless.

Hi Sky Flyer. Consider the statistical likelihood of your unfortunate mishap. I surf often in places with sharks, and it's always on my mind, but I remind myself statistically the odds are less than that of anything else I do in life. The chance of another one dropping out the sky, and finding someone to hit, and causing real damage, would have to be very slim, hence why you can get public liability insurance for ~$250AUD per year, for up to $20,000,000 which says to me there's less chance than crashing your car, by a factor of 3, and I've never crashed..

I had a different brand drone which fell out of the sky too. Never got a satisfactory explanation why it happened. That was more than one year ago and I have still no closure. I got a replacement but never regained confidence with that brand. I bought then a P4P and felt quite secure with a new start. Some days ago there was a glitch with the RTH function and even though the drone returned safely after all I am again shaken. I can fully relate to the fear described. I do not think that this fear can or shall ever be overcome. Fear is not a weakness. It is a primeval instinctive core emotion and it would be wrong to "conquer" this fear. After all we are personally not equipped to fly like birds do. The best mountaineers have fears but will not try to overcome them but regard them as indispensable survival canary.
I take my fear very serious and it motivates me to go with greatest attention through the pre flight checklist and do my best to be prepared for whatever I can imagine. I never try to talk me out of fear because this would only add another layer of stress. The art is to accept fear without cultivating it.
Once the innocence is gone everything is different and there is no going back. It is futile to try to get to the same mindset we had before the trauma.   
The fundamental question I am asking myself when I feel fear is: do I want to fly. When I am uncertain I allow me the freedom to say no and pack up with fully charged drone and go home.

Flying the drone always has me on edge.  I am never comfortable doing it.  It is risky and the the thing that makes it risky is that the system has demonstrated poor reliability and the results of a failure are many times catastrophic.  The thing that really bothers me is when DJI comes back with a root cause analysis and the results are "system failure".  WTF  Thats like saying "it broke".  Thats the best you can do??  Poor reliability + bad explanation = high risk.   Thats my math anyway.

oldhasbeen Posted at 2018-8-1 03:57
I had a different brand drone which fell out of the sky too. Never got a satisfactory explanation why it happened. That was more than one year ago and I have still no closure. I got a replacement but never regained confidence with that brand. I bought then a P4P and felt quite secure with a new start. Some days ago there was a glitch with the RTH function and even though the drone returned safely after all I am again shaken. I can fully relate to the fear described. I do not think that this fear can or shall ever be overcome. Fear is not a weakness. It is a primeval instinctive core emotion and it would be wrong to "conquer" this fear. After all we are personally not equipped to fly like birds do. The best mountaineers have fears but will not try to overcome them but regard them as indispensable survival canary.
I take my fear very serious and it motivates me to go with greatest attention through the pre flight checklist and do my best to be prepared for whatever I can imagine. I never try to talk me out of fear because this would only add another layer of stress. The art is to accept fear without cultivating it.
Once the innocence is gone everything is different and there is no going back. It is futile to try to get to the same mindset we had before the trauma.   

You speak wisely oldhasbeen.  

oldhasbeen Posted at 2018-8-1 03:57
I had a different brand drone which fell out of the sky too. Never got a satisfactory explanation why it happened. That was more than one year ago and I have still no closure. I got a replacement but never regained confidence with that brand. I bought then a P4P and felt quite secure with a new start. Some days ago there was a glitch with the RTH function and even though the drone returned safely after all I am again shaken. I can fully relate to the fear described. I do not think that this fear can or shall ever be overcome. Fear is not a weakness. It is a primeval instinctive core emotion and it would be wrong to "conquer" this fear. After all we are personally not equipped to fly like birds do. The best mountaineers have fears but will not try to overcome them but regard them as indispensable survival canary.
I take my fear very serious and it motivates me to go with greatest attention through the pre flight checklist and do my best to be prepared for whatever I can imagine. I never try to talk me out of fear because this would only add another layer of stress. The art is to accept fear without cultivating it.
Once the innocence is gone everything is different and there is no going back. It is futile to try to get to the same mindset we had before the trauma.   

This is great advise, and I"m please to tell you that I've been flying often.  The fear is there, the shaky feeling still there, but it's exactly the way you describe it.  The feeling allows you to be more cautious, pay attention to the surroundings, not be a "kid" with an expensive toy, but be an adult with an amazing flying machine that can give me hours of enjoyment.

Sky Flyer Posted at 2018-8-1 08:08
This is great advise, and I"m please to tell you that I've been flying often.  The fear is there, the shaky feeling still there, but it's exactly the way you describe it.  The feeling allows you to be more cautious, pay attention to the surroundings, not be a "kid" with an expensive toy, but be an adult with an amazing flying machine that can give me hours of enjoyment.

Glad to see you didn’t stop. Yesterday I flew over a lake that has a very popular jogging track around it. There was no one on the lake, but there were at least a hundred or so people using the tracks. I ran the length of the lake, about a mile, and the entire time I couldn’t wait for it to be over. It’s just a gloomy feeling that goes away as soon as the bird is within 100 feet or so. I don’t get it at all when I’m in the wilderness and no one is around. So, it’s obv about people and property. Another part about that proximity to people, they’re curious. When I’m trying to get a nice smooth video of some scenery, I don’t want to chat with someone interested in what I paid for my drone. Sometimes the wife runs block, but most times I have to search and search for a place that’s isolated.

Jeff

Jeff Millard Posted at 2018-8-1 11:16
Glad to see you didn’t stop. Yesterday I flew over a lake that has a very popular jogging track around it. There was no one on the lake, but there were at least a hundred or so people using the tracks. I ran the length of the lake, about a mile, and the entire time I couldn’t wait for it to be over. It’s just a gloomy feeling that goes away as soon as the bird is within 100 feet or so. I don’t get it at all when I’m in the wilderness and no one is around. So, it’s obv about people and property. Another part about that proximity to people, they’re curious. When I’m trying to get a nice smooth video of some scenery, I don’t want to chat with someone interested in what I paid for my drone. Sometimes the wife runs block, but most times I have to search and search for a place that’s isolated.

Jeff

"When I’m trying to get a nice smooth video of some scenery, I don’t want to chat with someone interested in what I paid for my drone. Sometimes the wife runs block, but most times I have to search and search for a place that’s isolated."


qft

It is the most relevant topic opened in this thread because it addresses the core feelings of all responsible drone flyers.
And it is normal!
You can't get that great feeling when you finished the flight and have the drone near you again without a little adrenaline activity. This is an extra value of our drone hobby. It's a humoristic approach but have a bit of true in it. (This do not apply to professionals.)
My feelings are the same as are written in this thread. When I'm going to put the drone in the air I always assure myself that the chances of such 'system failure' are much less likely than the chances to hit the drone into a tree. And as I'm flying carefully even this chances are very small (it happened twice haha ... but that was years ago).
Then I assure myself that thousands of drones flying every day do not fall off the sky just like that. So if this happened than you have really bad luck and such can happened at everything you are doing in your life.
So go on and fly. The feeling is really great.     

Flying my drones has become an important part of my life.  I'm now more confident than right after the crash.  I'm more cautious now, and as i mentioned before, I still have that shaky feeling when I'm about to take off.  I've found myself looking at my drone more than I look at the screen, but i think this is a good thing.  I look at the screen when i'm far away and i'm clearing some trees.  It gives me such a great feeling of freedom, peace, joy.  I also get one or two people approach me when I'm flying, but instead of talking and flying, i bring my bird down and show it to them.  This gives me a chance to show them what a drone looks like up close and personal.  I would have loved it if somebody would have done that with me when I didn't have a drone.  I explain to them the misconceptions about drones, spying on people, and other thinks people think about drones.  It gives me the chance to meet people and make acquaintances.  Bottom line, I'm enyoying flying my drone more than ever, and so many beautiful places where to fly in Sunny Southern CA.

I also have a little fear of my Mavic air falling out of the sky, but I guess the risks are minimal.