Hi all.

I had an unusual issue the other day. It was my first night flight. A couple of things occured.
1. When setting up/preflight checks, it took longer than usual to aqquire the satelite lock.
2. Also during pre-flight, I had an `RC-Disconnect' warning, with total loss of signal (this should have given me a heads-up).
3. When I did take off, I took the drone vertically only, to a height of approx 60m. I did not move it around, due to the LED light being switched off during video/max weight issue (can't fit a strobe).
4. When I reached that height, I turned the drone & took a few test photos.
5. After taking the photos, I did a 360 degree video.
6. When I completed the video, I had another `RC-Disconnect' warning with a complete loss of video on my phone (I have the RC-N1 controlller).
7. This is when I panicked. I had no control of my drone. After a few seconds, the video came back on the phone. I swiftly brought the drone back down & landed.
The drone seemed ok.

I did do a check of the flight logs. This is where it gets strange. There are two logs for the flight, but one seems to be in the middle of the other.
The main log has the drone starting to take off, reaches a height of 1m (after 6 seconds) with `home point updated'. Then jumps to 4m 31s at a height of 60.6m. It says that downlink data is lost for 131 seconds.
The second log starts at 2m 23s, at a height of 60.5m, with the mode changed to P-GPS. The next notification is at 2m 24s, same height, saying `setting new return to home altitude of 102m (I had set this height in the settings previously). There is a notification in the second log which says `Mode changed to Tripod', which I can not find anything about. The second log finishes at 2m 35s saying ambient light too low. The main log is just the drone returning to the ground & landing. Now I must add that the temperature at the time was around -2 degrees.

My questions really are:
1. Is there a way of holding or pointing the controller at the drone, to minimise a loss of signal?
2. Was the low ambient temperature a factor?
3. Is `RC-disconnect' something I need to be wary of & is it a common occurence?4. What is tripod mode?

I am in the UK & fly the drone under VLOS rules.

With the drone going straight up, its above your head so to speak, therefore, the RC needs to be pointing straight up, i.e. the screen needs to be vertical as the antennas are at the top of the RC

Disconnect shouldn't be a common occurrence as long as the RC is pointed at the drone, but that close on the ground it shouldn't have done it.

Tripod mode on the Mini 3 (Pro) is Cine mode

Unlikely the temp being a factor.

Hi, Jurasik. Thank you for reaching out and we're sorry for the inconvenience. Let me answer your questions one by one.

1. Is there a way of holding or pointing the controller at the drone, to minimize a loss of signal?
Please refer to the best positions of the remote controller antenna below to ensure that the remote controller and aircraft are in the best positions.


2. Was the low ambient temperature a factor?
If it's within the operating temperating which is: -10° to 40° C (14° to 104° F) then it should not be an issue.

Image Transmission might get disconnected because of the following:
• Signal attenuation and signal obstruction
• Electromagnetic interference

3. Is `RC-disconnect' something I need to be wary of & is it a common occurence?
Yes, you need to be wary but Mini 3 Pro has a Failsafe RTH function. This is the action the aircraft performs once it loses the remote controller signal can be set as Return to Home, Land, or Hover in DJI Fly. If the action was set as Return to Home in advance, and where the Home Point has been recorded, the GNSS signal is good, and the compass is functioning normally, Failsafe RTH will automatically activate once the remote controller signal is lost for more than three seconds.

It should not be a common occurrence not unless there are reasons why it's being disconnected like the ones mentioned above.

4. What is tripod mode?
The "tripod mode " is a DJI intelligent flight mode, which actually works like the normal P mode. All sensors are used and the drone reacts normally if you change this setting. ​ However, the speed of the DJI drones is reduced in the tripod mode. Tripod Mode is equivalent to Cine Mode on other drones.

Hope this helps. Thank you for your support.

DJI Gamora Posted at 1-25 00:48
Hi, Jurasik. Thank you for reaching out and we're sorry for the inconvenience. Let me answer your questions one by one.

1. Is there a way of holding or pointing the controller at the drone, to minimize a loss of signal?

Thanks for your reply.
It looks like holding the controller so that it was flat (horizontal) may have been the issue, as the drone was directly overhead.

I'll give it another try soon to see if it makes any difference.

Jurasik Posted at 1-25 12:05
Thanks for your reply.
It looks like holding the controller so that it was flat (horizontal) may have been the issue, as the drone was directly overhead.

Hi, Jurasik. You're most welcome. Have a safe flight always!

I would strongly recommend mounting strobe lights when flying at night. This is for security, not only for you, especially for other aircraft, that might approach (e.g. rescue helicopters ...). Forget the 250g weight limit. You may fly as 250g or above, just do not fly over uninvolved people. And even if you do, it's much more important for the drone to be visible, avoiding unwanted collisions.
Flying without lights is an offence by itself.
So what do you want to comply over that concerning the >250g issue?
IF you fly without compliance, you may at least put lights onto your drone.

SeehawerB Posted at 1-28 06:13
I would strongly recommend mounting strobe lights when flying at night. This is for security, not only for you, especially for other aircraft, that might approach (e.g. rescue helicopters ...). Forget the 250g weight limit. You may fly as 250g or above, just do not fly over uninvolved people. And even if you do, it's much more important for the drone to be visible, avoiding unwanted collisions.
Flying without lights is an offence by itself.
So what do you want to comply over that concerning the >250g issue?

There is a thread on here about the inbuilt lights on the M3P. They should be made to be switched on when videoing. In the UK we have to fly VLOS. As the drobe weighs 249g (I've weighed it) I cannot add strobes without exceeding the 250g weight limit. The CAA rules are different for drones 250g or above. The inbuilt lights are good enough to fly VLOS at night. You can fly over people in the UK with a sub 250g drone.

Jurasik Posted at 1-28 08:18
There is a thread on here about the inbuilt lights on the M3P. They should be made to be switched on when videoing. In the UK we have to fly VLOS. As the drobe weighs 249g (I've weighed it) I cannot add strobes without exceeding the 250g weight limit. The CAA rules are different for drones 250g or above. The inbuilt lights are good enough to fly VLOS at night. You can fly over people in the UK with a sub 250g drone.

You can fly it with extra strobes on, it just means that it falls under the sub 500g category, the only restriction that is added is (as said above) "No intentional flight over uninvolved persons"

Bashy Posted at 1-28 20:29
You can fly it with extra strobes on, it just means that it falls under the sub 500g category, the only restriction that is added is (as said above) "No intentional flight over uninvolved persons"

There are quite a few differences between 250g and below, & 251g and above. You can see here https://register-drones.caa.co.uk/drone-code/where-you-can-fly#:~:text=Drones%20and%20model%20aircraft%20below,you%20can%20fly%20over%20them.

I want to keepthe drone in the sub 250g category. This means no strobes.

Jurasik Posted at 1-29 02:38
There are quite a few differences between 250g and below, & 251g and above. You can see here https://register-drones.caa.co.uk/drone-code/where-you-can-fly#:~:text=Drones%20and%20model%20aircraft%20below,you%20can%20fly%20over%20them.

I want to keepthe drone in the sub 250g category. This means no strobes.

I know the restrictions quite well, had you read the next section on that same page you would have seen this...

Drones and model aircraft that weigh 250g to 500g
If you’re flying a drone or model aircraft that’s between 250g and 500g, you can fly closer to people than 50m, but you must not intentionally fly over them.

That right there is the only difference, youre just being picky when you really do not have to be, stick some strobes on it, the law for sub 500g is the exact same except for that excerpt above, that you clearly missed from the link you posted.

Bashy Posted at 1-29 04:42
I know the restrictions quite well, had you read the next section on that same page you would have seen this...

Drones and model aircraft that weigh 250g to 500g

There is also the provision for sub 250g drones at residential, recreational,commercial & industrial sites. Add a strobe to the M3P and you can't.
https://register-drones.caa.co.u ... raft%20below%20250g,you%20must%20always%20fly%20safely.

Flew the drone today and had a much more alarming time. The video link just refused to work. looking at the flight logs for it, there was a notification "Downlink data connection lost for nnn seconds" every few seconds. On viewing the downloaded footage, it appears that the drone was receiving commands, I just could not see anything on the screen. I did three flights at that location, all with the same issue

I then took it home & tried it out of the back garden. It flew with absolutely no issues. Now I am throughly confused.

Jurasik Posted at 1-29 07:51
There is also the provision for sub 250g drones at residential, recreational,commercial & industrial sites. Add a strobe to the M3P and you can't.
https://register-drones.caa.co.uk/drone-code/where-you-can-fly#:~:text=Small%20drones%20and%20model%20aircraft%20below%20250g,you%20must%20always%20fly%20safely.

My apologies, i was confusing what I can do with my A2 CofC certification, it is I that can fly a sub 500g under the 250g restrictions except for the intentional flight over people, that's only until Jan 2026 mind, then A2 CofC is scrapped, but it's worth it for now, I can even fly up to 50m of built-up areas with my P4P