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Spark went bye-bye
1760 15 2018-10-15
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Stshack
lvl.1
Flight distance : 67001 ft
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RIP Spark #1 Aka “The Bug” - after a good flight on a nice clear day I decided to grab some extra footage of my friends cabin from further out on the water. Everything was going great when my low battery warning prompted a return to home. (So fat all normal) - then three warnings on my screen - The IMU heading exception, Compass Error and the Battery Low returning to home. Screen shot is attached. At this point, I could not control the Spark at all and it started to land...in 40 feet of salt water. I attempted every stick manouver I could to get it to lift up and get it home.  I watched it sink  For days afterwards I attempted to decipher  what happened just for my own knowledge- but could not find a real answer. DJI  tech dept asked me to forward the flight records which I did. I told them I just want to know what I did wrong - I wasn’t asking for warranty, just an answer. After they received all the information, I was told out of warranty, we cannot talk to you about this, thank you for buying DJI - my new Spark has arrived but I’m very nervous. IDEAS ANYONE?

ST Shack
0D2EC8D8-D454-4018-B086-1506280F2756.png
F5DA3352-3ECE-4E9C-A00D-63338D3BB296.png
2018-10-15
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msinger
Captain
Flight distance : 228255 ft
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United States
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Check out your TXT flight log to see if it explains what happened. You can upload and view it online here. If you'd like other people to review and comment on your flight log, then please post a link back here after you upload it.
2018-10-15
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Gunship9
Captain
United States
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19% battery is pretty low for a lithium powered aircraft 1000 feet from home.  The aircraft will try to obey commands as long as it has radio signal and power.  It looks like you failed to race straight home before failing battery caused it to land near you.  Landing near enough to see it sink.

Errors is flying over water.  And, flying far away without enough battery to arrest ATTI mode/IMU problems and still get home.

When flying over water,...be nervous.  People who fly over water should have a spare Spark ready on hand due to the hazards of the terrain below the drone.
2018-10-15
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Carmenvail
First Officer
Flight distance : 1521201 ft
United States
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Gunship9 Posted at 2018-10-15 16:54
19% battery is pretty low for a lithium powered aircraft 1000 feet from home.  The aircraft will try to obey commands as long as it has radio signal and power.  It looks like you failed to race straight home before failing battery caused it to land near you.  Landing near enough to see it sink.

Errors is flying over water.  And, flying far away without enough battery to arrest ATTI mode/IMU problems and still get home.

I'm always nervous flying over water and always have a spare spark on hand for just such an occasion.
2018-10-15
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Warriewoodlad
First Officer
Flight distance : 625230 ft
Australia
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I have lost 2 cheaper drones and one Spark to salt water. Unfortunately, there are some great pictures waiting to be taken from over water, so I too have a backup drone.
2018-10-15
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62+
Captain
Flight distance : 1321991 ft
South Africa
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Sorry about your loss. Please share your fight log.
2018-10-15
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Stshack
lvl.1
Flight distance : 67001 ft
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I had uploaded the flight record and I got a number confirming but how do I recover the data now ?
When I setup my new Spark yesterday, I erased old records so I hope it’s still wherever it got uploaded to - Flight records have been synced
SN – OASDE5P1A10030
Date of incident – September 9, 2018
2018-10-16
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msinger
Captain
Flight distance : 228255 ft
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United States
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Stshack Posted at 2018-10-16 03:55
I had uploaded the flight record and I got a number confirming but how do I recover the data now ?

See post #2 above.
2018-10-16
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Stshack
lvl.1
Flight distance : 67001 ft
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OK I was able to re-sync and get the flight records back up my phone now trying to update using the browser now I can’t find the actual flight record file on my phone I will keep working on this until I figured out be patient with me
2018-10-16
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fans812df717
lvl.4
Flight distance : 1092280 ft
United States
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Sorry to hear, I had the same experience a few month back. The Spark seems to have a deficiency that DJI will most likely never address/admit. What basically is happening that sometimes during flights, the IMU falls out of valid ranges (parameters) and triggers numerous error messages, i.e. compass errors, speed errors, etc. When that happens, Spark falls out of GPS mode into ATTI mode but often times you lose connection to the drone. This does NOT only happen when you are close to metal structures, this can happen at any altitude. When Spark loses connection it usually does an RTH but only when in GPS mode, since it knows where to go. If you are in ATTI mode (during the forementioned error states) then the Spark will slowly descent/land in current location due to safety reasons. You absolutely did the right thing by pushing up the controller stick to gain altitude but unfortunately you ran out of time before Spark could re-inizialize its IMU and re-connect to your controller. I would just caution not to fly too far, (VLOS), fly only with a strong connection and be careful flying over terrain you don't have access to if something goes wrong. Good Luck!
2018-10-16
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DJI Mindy
Administrator
Flight distance : 7 ft
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Hi ST Shack, we are so sorry for the crash accident, unfortunately, the data analysis will not be processed when the drone has been out of warranty per the After-Sales Policy, we are very sorry for this and hope other users here can give you some advice of what happened to your drone.
2018-10-18
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DJI Mindy
Administrator
Flight distance : 7 ft
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Warriewoodlad Posted at 2018-10-15 22:43
I have lost 2 cheaper drones and one Spark to salt water. Unfortunately, there are some great pictures waiting to be taken from over water, so I too have a backup drone.

Hi Warriewoodlad, sorry for your loss, please contact our support team www.dji.com/support to start a ticket for the data analysis if any accident happens as long as the drone is still in the warranty period, we will provide the proper resolution.
2018-10-18
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DJI Mindy
Administrator
Flight distance : 7 ft
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fans812df717 Posted at 2018-10-16 10:36
Sorry to hear, I had the same experience a few month back. The Spark seems to have a deficiency that DJI will most likely never address/admit. What basically is happening that sometimes during flights, the IMU falls out of valid ranges (parameters) and triggers numerous error messages, i.e. compass errors, speed errors, etc. When that happens, Spark falls out of GPS mode into ATTI mode but often times you lose connection to the drone. This does NOT only happen when you are close to metal structures, this can happen at any altitude. When Spark loses connection it usually does an RTH but only when in GPS mode, since it knows where to go. If you are in ATTI mode (during the forementioned error states) then the Spark will slowly descent/land in current location due to safety reasons. You absolutely did the right thing by pushing up the controller stick to gain altitude but unfortunately you ran out of time before Spark could re-inizialize its IMU and re-connect to your controller. I would just caution not to fly too far, (VLOS), fly only with a strong connection and be careful flying over terrain you don't have access to if something goes wrong. Good Luck!

Hello there, sorry for your unpleasant experience with our product, I managed to get your previous case number and it was a warranty case, the drone will enter ATTI mode when the GPS signal is weak, we recommend to land the drone when it enters into ATTI mode to avoid the flight hazard, if you have any concern of the drone, please don't hesitate to let us know, fly safely.
2018-10-18
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Warriewoodlad
First Officer
Flight distance : 625230 ft
Australia
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DJI Mindy Posted at 2018-10-18 00:22
Hi Warriewoodlad, sorry for your loss, please contact our support team www.dji.com/support to start a ticket for the data analysis if any accident happens as long as the drone is still in the warranty period, we will provide the proper resolution.

Thanks for your concern. The Spark I managed to land in saltwater was replaced via Care Refresh and its replacement is working very well.
2018-10-21
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Warriewoodlad
First Officer
Flight distance : 625230 ft
Australia
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DJI Mindy Posted at 2018-10-18 00:22
Hi Warriewoodlad, sorry for your loss, please contact our support team www.dji.com/support to start a ticket for the data analysis if any accident happens as long as the drone is still in the warranty period, we will provide the proper resolution.

Thanks for your concern. The Spark I managed to land in saltwater was replaced via Care Refresh and its replacement is working very well.
2018-10-21
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DJI Mindy
Administrator
Flight distance : 7 ft
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Warriewoodlad Posted at 2018-10-21 00:10
Thanks for your concern. The Spark I managed to land in saltwater was replaced via Care Refresh and its replacement is working very well.

Glad to hear that, fly safely.
2018-10-21
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