I'm an expat in a desert country. Average day temperature 45C, Night 40C.

A few days ago my Mavic Air failed to RTH and initiated landing a few 100m of my location.

I bought another drone and found it, but its been in the heat for 5 days now. The location is difficult to reach.
so...

Is a recovery worth it? Does anybody have experience with drone survival in extreme heat?

Thanks,
B

That's not THAT extreme.  The drone itself will likely to be fine (as its dry).  Possibility of the battery being damaged but even thats unlikely.  Definitely worth recovery.

In my opinion,  the drone itself should be fine since it turned off when the battery ran out of power. However the battery itself might be damaged due to the sun heat.

l0cut15 Posted at 2018-8-23 02:34
Thanks all,

I agree the battery will be done for.

Ive had my mavic and batteries out in 40c direct sun for hours on end multiple times.  It doesn't catch fire.
Humidity is your enemy and in the UAE you arent going to have a lot of it to do any damage.

Sorry to hear that. In my own opinion, the drone would likely survive but, can you clarify why it is difficult to reach? May I know if the drone is in a restricted area or in a dangerous location? You can email our support team and start up a case: (support@dji.com). We have the professional data analysis team who would do their best to find out the reason of the incident and then the corresponding resolution would be provided. Thanks for your support.

DJI Paladin Posted at 2018-8-23 02:55
Sorry to hear that. In my own opinion, the drone would likely survive but, can you clarify why it is difficult to reach? May I know if the drone is in a restricted area or in a dangerous location? You can contact our support team and start up a case: (https://www.dji.com/support?site=brandsite&from=nav). We have the professional data analysis team who would do their best to find out the reason of the incident and then the corresponding resolution would be provided. Thanks for your support.

Hi Paladin,

Thank you, that's really great to know going forward.

Here in the Middle East laws are a little ambiguous. My area of operation was in a green zone according to the Official UAE Fly Zone App and over open desert, however, my drone crossed a residential area during the emergency RTH and landed short on the roof of a residential property which is not allowed here. I'd rather not cause any unnecessary problems.

I've just spoken to the owner, he is amiable and will assist me with recovery on Sunday.

Thanks
B

l0cut15 Posted at 2018-8-23 03:22
Hi Paladin,

Thank you, that's really great to know going forward.

That's good to hear, please keep us posted. Good luck!

Wow, I'm amazed.


Mavic Air was here in the heat and humidity for 7 days.

I retrieved it today, gently charged the battery and blew the dust off. Flys perfectly! Gimbal works, I expected those tiny little silicone mounts to melt through. I'm going to dispose of the battery. I can only guess what those cells look like inside.

The first drone DJI drone I experienced was a Phantom 1 while helping a friend. Unbelievably sensitive, walked around with a magnet in my hand for days. This is my first personal purchase and I'm amazed how the technology had evolved and how helpful this community has been.

Side Note, I think I understand what went wrong after reviewing footage and logs. I was taking a 360 Pano some distance away when the 30% low battery warning sounded. I waited for the pano to finish rather than hitting RTH immediately. The drone initiated landing on 9% battery. I didn't leave enough headroom, operator error! Total flight time was 14m45s which seems reasonable given the conditions.

Anyway thanks again.
Brett

l0cut15 Posted at 2018-8-26 08:09
Wow, I'm amazed.

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What a great story, thank you very much for sharing it and I am happy that you could recover your Mavic Air in good condition! I can also confirm that starting a 360 Pano at low battery is a risky thing because it takes some time and also juice from the battery.