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Spark fly away on the pool
1630 36 2018-8-12
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wrssousa
lvl.1
Flight distance : 3789 ft
Brazil
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Hello Guys,

Please help me understand what happened to my drone, I have the drone only for a few days.
I tried to take off last night and after getting into the air some error messages related to the compass and gps on the screen, the drone started drift without command to the left and accelerated hitting a wall and falling into a pool, I managed to get the Drone very fast and shut off.


I upload the flight records on: http://www.phantomhelp.com/LogViewer/LVM5KE79U0C75AUN2439/

And the flight video on:

Best Regards.

2018-8-12
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DJI Tony
Administrator

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Hi, sorry on what happened to your drone. I would like to ask if you manage to retrieve the drone? If yes, please sync your flight records using the DJI GO 4 app and contact our support for further help. Kindly see the link below.

www.dji.com/support
2018-8-13
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SirLurksalot
lvl.4
Flight distance : 137487 ft
United States
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I'm pretty much a newbie here, but it looks to me like you took off with only 6 sats locked and your drone then went in to Atti mode and crashed.
2018-8-13
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wrssousa
lvl.1
Flight distance : 3789 ft
Brazil
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DJI Tony Posted at 2018-8-13 14:37
Hi, sorry on what happened to your drone. I would like to ask if you manage to retrieve the drone? If yes, please sync your flight records using the DJI GO 4 app and contact our support for further help. Kindly see the link below.

www.dji.com/support

I opened a repair case, CAS-2115407-Y4X7T2.

Thank you, I will appreciate any help to understand what gone wrong.
2018-8-13
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Oscarfer30
lvl.1
Flight distance : 7756 ft

Chile
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Hard to look, will try to explain

1- No GPS mode to fly, drone did not pick up enough sats to lock his position, therefore goes to ATTI mode.
2- ATTI Mode uses the drone "belly" cam to take ref pics of the floor and, with this, avoid the drone drifting. In this case, this does not work as you are flying AT NIGHT
3- Drone are not able to locate himself using GPS, switched to ATTI mode to avoid drifting and no luck because probably was too dark ...
4- Last thing is the issue with the compass. Before take off you receive the error "calibrate compass" .. so with all those errors and flaws prior to taking off, you where never take off this day.
5- Seems like no knowledge to fly, since you take the shortcut to all of those "details" and take off ignoring those warnings and best practices.
Sorry to be a jerk, but those machines are very complex and surely there are not toys. Ignoring the basic facts on how to operate your drone would for sure ends in a crash.

2018-8-13
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wrssousa
lvl.1
Flight distance : 3789 ft
Brazil
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Oscarfer30 Posted at 2018-8-13 17:21
Hard to look, will try to explain

1- No GPS mode to fly, drone did not pick up enough sats to lock his position, therefore goes to ATTI mode.

Ok, but just to explain, all the error occur after the take off command, and even without any command the drone accelerate until 9,8 km/h and crash, everything happens in 3 seconds.
2018-8-13
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Oscarfer30
lvl.1
Flight distance : 7756 ft

Chile
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sadly this happens when you had a compass error, the drone just can fly in any direction ... this means the drone does not know were is heading or pointing ..
Why Calibrate?
Compass calibration is important to safe, controlled flight. It compensates for changing background magnetic "noise", a.k.a. magnetic deviation (not to be confused with declination). Deviation that isn't corrected through compass calibration will cause inconsistencies between GPS and compass that can result in "toilet bowl effect", a swirling motion that can cause the Phantom to fly out of control.

In your case, no compass, no GPS and ATTI mode at night, the drone has no chance to stay in position or stable hoover before you take control ....
2018-8-13
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Blellow
Captain
Flight distance : 1311056 ft
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United States
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It is illegal to fly at night unless it is a half an hour after sunset.  Plus, the drone needs anti collision lights which the spark does not have.  Sorry about your crash.
2018-8-13
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Blellow
Captain
Flight distance : 1311056 ft
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United States
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Before sunset, my mistake.
2018-8-13
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Greg F
Captain
Flight distance : 944308 ft
Australia
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Always need to make sure you have enough Satelites to have a good GPS Signal..   In ATTI mode things can get a bit hairy.  Sometimes in that mode you can lose control and the drone drifts off on it's own.    Usually if it's not a fault with the drone it's outside Interference that causes you to lose the signal.    Good practice  to re calibrate everything again.   If the Drone is wrecked then you need to send it into DJI for repair or replacement.   

Edit:  Also if you see Compass or IMU Errors it's not a good idea to fly..
2018-8-13
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Carmenvail
First Officer
Flight distance : 1521201 ft
United States
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Sorry to hear that you lost your drone, Proper Prior Planning Prevents Pi$$ Poor Performance.

6- never take off at night during a pool party  after a 6 pack of beer.
2018-8-13
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Lucas775
Captain
Flight distance : 50642090 ft
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United States
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Pilot error!
2018-8-13
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Wolferl
Captain
Flight distance : 23793 ft
Austria
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Exactly.
That's the problem, everybody can buy these relatively cheap and toy-like looking small drones, and thinking they are boss pilots now
Of course, reading (and understanding) the manual or at least watching some of DJIs YT videos is not necessary...we try to fly at night....without knowing about the rules. Great.

Come on boys, really?
2018-8-14
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DJI Tony
Administrator

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wrssousa Posted at 2018-8-13 17:03
I opened a repair case, CAS-2115407-Y4X7T2.

Thank you, I will appreciate any help to understand what gone wrong.

Hi, thanks for the updates. You will be receiving an update with your case once it's received by our team. Please let us know if you need our help.
2018-8-14
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joachim25
lvl.1

United States
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is a case like this covered by DJI Refresh?
2018-8-14
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Northwood
Captain
Flight distance : 2148596 ft
Canada
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joachim25 Posted at 2018-8-14 10:06
is a case like this covered by DJI Refresh?

Probably not very well.  It is completely user error.
2018-8-14
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Junior SBC
Captain
Flight distance : 476483 ft
Brazil
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Hello everyone
I've had my Spark for more than eight months and I confess, there were two or three times that, because of my fault I almost lost the aircraft. The last one was to try to fly on a lake at 7m without turning off the sensors, which led the Spark to a drop of 5m and luckily flew again: it was a mistake for my total ignorance.
So the need to practice, read the manuals (even if they are small) and watch videos, has a lot of great content, such as:

Kloo Gee - https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=kloo+gee+spark

Tiago Drones4you - https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=drone4you+spark

As well as official DJI readings, for example: https://store.dji.com/guides/dji-go-4-manual/

Hugs for all
2018-8-14
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Carmenvail
First Officer
Flight distance : 1521201 ft
United States
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joachim25 Posted at 2018-8-14 10:06
is a case like this covered by DJI Refresh?

Refresh covers Pilot Error, but you pay for the privilege.
2018-8-14
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KlooGee
Captain
Flight distance : 16641309 ft
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United States
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Northwood Posted at 2018-8-14 11:26
Probably not very well.  It is completely user error.

DJI Care Refresh will replace your aircraft for any reason including pilot errors as long as you can retrieve the aircraft and send it back to DJI.  Warranty replacement will not cover user error related damages.
2018-8-14
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Artur Macau
lvl.4
Flight distance : 256549 ft
Macao
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You should have at least 12 satellites locked, i never fly with less than 12, they don't just fly away, usually theres always a good explainable reason for it ...
As other said, read the manual, and educate urself about every system and how they work, it can save your drone.
2018-8-15
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nixuspix
Captain
Flight distance : 2864974 ft
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Latvia
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Sorry for your problem Pal, but looks this is pilot error and your only chance for replacement is if you possess DJI Care Refresh
2018-8-15
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Greg F
Captain
Flight distance : 944308 ft
Australia
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Carmenvail Posted at 2018-8-13 19:27
Sorry to hear that you lost your drone, Proper Prior Planning Prevents Pi$$ Poor Performance.

6- never take off at night during a pool party  after a 6 pack of beer.

PI$$ED PILOT PERFORMS POORLY...
2018-8-15
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jacksonnai
Captain
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sorry for that
2018-8-15
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Northwood
Captain
Flight distance : 2148596 ft
Canada
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KlooGee Posted at 2018-8-14 12:43
DJI Care Refresh will replace your aircraft for any reason including pilot errors as long as you can retrieve the aircraft and send it back to DJI.  Warranty replacement will not cover user error related damages.

Thanks for the clarification, and all your great videos too.
2018-8-22
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KlooGee
Captain
Flight distance : 16641309 ft
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United States
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Northwood Posted at 2018-8-22 07:37
Thanks for the clarification, and all your great videos too.

Thanks for the kind words!
2018-8-22
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wrssousa
lvl.1
Flight distance : 3789 ft
Brazil
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Hello Guys, just to update, I have sent the drone to repair, DJI cover all the repair into warranty. Alsome customer service from DJI, thank you.
2018-9-12
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marlowe
Second Officer
Flight distance : 300932 ft
United States
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wrssousa Posted at 2018-9-12 15:03
Hello Guys, just to update, I have sent the drone to repair, DJI cover all the repair into warranty. Alsome customer service from DJI, thank you.

While you are waiting to get it back, you should very carefully read the manual.
2018-9-12
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Tentoes
Captain
Flight distance : 6018255 ft
United States
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Ow... Into the pool.

Read, and watch lots of youtubes about droning till you get it back from repair.

I watch for at least 10 satellites before takeoff. Look close for errors like compass.  Flew under a roof with only 9. It worked, but wobbled about quite a bit.
2018-9-12
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Junior SBC
Captain
Flight distance : 476483 ft
Brazil
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wrssousa Posted at 2018-9-12 15:03
Hello Guys, just to update, I have sent the drone to repair, DJI cover all the repair into warranty. Alsome customer service from DJI, thank you.

Muito boa notícia. Uma questão: onde adquiriu seu Spark e como conseguiu reparo na garantia? Pergunto, pois muita gente aqui no Brasil não consegue, pois a DJI informa que não possui "repair center" no país. E como desejo fazer upgrade do Spark para algo um pouco acima, seria interessante ter esse pós venda.
Muito obrigado!

Very good news. One question: where did you get your Spark and how did you get a warranty repair? I ask, because a lot of people here in Brazil can not, because DJI informs that it does not have "repair center" in the country. And since I want to upgrade from Spark to something a little above, it would be interesting to have this after-sale.
Thank you!

2018-9-12
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Flighty
Captain
Flight distance : 1977175 ft
Croatia
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I read many times on this forum about beginners asking if they should get a Spark as a beginners Drone,, I think the above situation advisers the answer quite clearly.. get a cheap non GPS Drone and learn to fly, then upgrade!!! read the manuals clearly and watch many tutorial videos,,,,
2018-9-12
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wrssousa
lvl.1
Flight distance : 3789 ft
Brazil
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Junior SBC Posted at 2018-9-12 19:10
Muito boa notícia. Uma questão: onde adquiriu seu Spark e como conseguiu reparo na garantia? Pergunto, pois muita gente aqui no Brasil não consegue, pois a DJI informa que não possui "repair center" no país. E como desejo fazer upgrade do Spark para algo um pouco acima, seria interessante ter esse pós venda.
Muito obrigado!

Junior, meu drone foi comprado nos EUA, e felizmente meu chefe mora lá e então ele levou o drone para que o serviço fosse feito no centro de reparos de lá.

Junior, my drone was bought in the US, and luckily my boss lives there and then he took the drone to have the service done at the repair center there.
2018-9-13
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Tentoes
Captain
Flight distance : 6018255 ft
United States
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Oh. Just thought of this:

Was your spark facing you when you took off? If so, your right is its left and vice versa. It may have run away to its right while you tried to get it back by moving it to your right, or the other way around. When starting out, keep the spark facing away from you until you get used to this.
2018-9-13
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Datree
lvl.1
Flight distance : 21371 ft
United States
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I had the same exact problem minus it going into the pool. This taught me to always check the sensor status before taking off. I had just gotten the drone and was so anxious to fly I ignored all warnings and drone flew right into a tree. In this scenario if you had some more experience you would have known to put the drone in sports mode to get cotrol of the drone. Sports mode disables sensors of the drone which would have let you control it problem is if you are not use to sports mode you might have still ran it into something because its pretty fast.
2018-9-13
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Junior SBC
Captain
Flight distance : 476483 ft
Brazil
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wrssousa Posted at 2018-9-13 06:31
Junior, meu drone foi comprado nos EUA, e felizmente meu chefe mora lá e então ele levou o drone para que o serviço fosse feito no centro de reparos de lá.

Junior, my drone was bought in the US, and luckily my boss lives there and then he took the drone to have the service done at the repair center there.

Excelente que foi resolvido da melhor maneira , fico feliz por você. Obrigado pelo retorno.
Abraços

Excellent that was solved in the best way, I'm happy for you. Thanks for the feedback.
Hugs


2018-9-13
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Junior SBC
Captain
Flight distance : 476483 ft
Brazil
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DJI Tony Posted at 2018-8-14 08:28
Hi, thanks for the updates. You will be receiving an update with your case once it's received by our team. Please let us know if you need our help.

What is missing to have here in Brazil, a post-sale service similar to the USA and Europe?
Many people are giving up the hobby and even selling their equipment for not having an official repair center.
If you want, I can ask several friends who are in this situation to post here in the forum their disappointment with the DJI brand.

Thanks for listening.
2018-9-13
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H. Arif - 6IX
First Officer
Flight distance : 430364 ft
Canada
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Junior SBC Posted at 2018-8-14 12:02
Hello everyone
I've had my Spark for more than eight months and I confess, there were two or three times that, because of my fault I almost lost the aircraft. The last one was to try to fly on a lake at 7m without turning off the sensors, which led the Spark to a drop of 5m and luckily flew again: it was a mistake for my total ignorance.
So the need to practice, read the manuals (even if they are small) and watch videos, has a lot of great content, such as:

Thanks, will loks into it.
2018-9-13
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H. Arif - 6IX
First Officer
Flight distance : 430364 ft
Canada
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wrssousa Posted at 2018-9-13 06:31
Junior, meu drone foi comprado nos EUA, e felizmente meu chefe mora lá e então ele levou o drone para que o serviço fosse feito no centro de reparos de lá.

Junior, my drone was bought in the US, and luckily my boss lives there and then he took the drone to have the service done at the repair center there.

Lucky you, good luch with the repairs.
2018-9-13
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