I was flying my M30T as a First Responder for overwatch on a structure fire three days ago, providing thermal imaging for the on scene commander and aerial lighting via a PSDK connected JZ T60 Spotlight. There was no active flames, smoke, or steam in the area at this time. About 7 minutes into my flight it began giving me error codes, at which point I began trying to safely land the aircraft. I lost all video feed from all cameras and the red and green lights on the arms turned off. I attempted to land the aircraft using the flashing navigational beacon. About 30 feet above the ground the drone emitted two popping noises and flipped out of control, smashing into the ground near a fire engine and several other firefighters.

The aircraft is still under warranty and has an active Care/Refresh subscription and I have already shipped it back. Before packaging it all up I reviewed the flight log and wrote down every error code that popped up during the flight in chronological order.

1. Flight Control System Error. Land Promptly

2. Lost Control of Payload 1. Multi Gimbal Connection System Disabled.

3. Approaching evening. Setting RTH altitude reccomended.

4. Sensor System Error. Land promptly or fly with caution.

5. Sensor system error. Land promptly

6. Unknown Error. Unable to takeoff. (0X161000C5)

7. Speaker resonates with the aircraft. Power supply disconnected. Wait for power supply to recover

The first and second error code happened in rapid succession. As soon as the first error code popped up I began to bring the aircraft back, then as the 2nd popped up I lost all video feed and the green and red lights went out. I had to carefully fly to my landing zone using the bottom nav beacon.

The third error code, more of a message really, happened on the flight back. This message generally pops up when beginning a night flight, but I have never seen it pop up after 5+ minutes of flight.

The 4th and 5th also happened in rapid succession during my descent. At some point between error 4 and 7 is when the popping sound was heard but I couldn't tell you when exactly because I was frantically trying to keep the aircraft from crashing into emergency equipment and personnel. Needless to say the aircraft was destroyed.

My best educated guess is something shorted out in the aircraft which caused multi system failure and the popping sounds were one or more motors burning out. The aircraft still had power while falling as it was spiraling erratically trying to right itself.

I had updated the controller firmware that afternoon and had been flying it recreationally that evening witg no issue. I actually had to quickly land and pack up the aircraft to respond to the fire incident.

I have found nothing online about the last two error codes so hopefully some light can be shed on what happened. I am looking to procure an M30T for my County Search and Rescue organization where I am the Drone Team Leader, as well as for my Fire Department. My SAR partners in the next county over are also looking into getting an M30T. All of these procurements have been put on hold until we can find out what happened with this aircraft incident because we can't have large drones falling out of the sky especially in urban settings.

I'm happy to answer any questions and look forward to a response. Thank you.

A very similar scenario happened to me with an M300.


What I can say:
-Send it for repair by opening a case on Support - DJI and request analysis of the causes of the crash. It's important otherwise you risk receiving only the fee bill for the care refresh and that's it.
-Do not hesitate to contact DJI via enterprise@dji.com, mentioning the CAS Number and again emphasizing the fact that you want to know the causes of the crash.


After doing this I received an invoice for zero euros, DJI took care of everything as it was in the warranty period. About the Causes, i received a semblance of an explanation which did not convince me at all, but we have to live with it.

"According to the data analysis result, the disconnection might be the  antenna issue which caused short distance disconnection, and the  obstacle sensing system abnormality may cause the error message  "Infrared sensor blocked"."

LV_Forestry Posted at 11-2 10:30
A very similar scenario happened to me with an M300.

Thanks for the heads up, I'm pretty sure i already opened a case with support but I'll double check. I'll definitely send an email as well because i truly do want to know the cause from an official source. My teammates believe me when i say it wasnt pilot error due to my experience flying everything from an Avata to an Agras T40 as well as the list of error codes painting a pretty clear picture of something going wrong internally, but my ego is still pretty bruised and having an official explanation will help a lot. I sent the broken spotlight in as well even though I know they don't want non DJI products just in case that was the cause and they need to alert their 3rd party partners about potential defects.

NorthWindAerial Posted at 11-2 10:42
Thanks for the heads up, I'm pretty sure i already opened a case with support but I'll double check. I'll definitely send an email as well because i truly do want to know the cause from an official source. My teammates believe me when i say it wasnt pilot error due to my experience flying everything from an Avata to an Agras T40 as well as the list of error codes painting a pretty clear picture of something going wrong internally, but my ego is still pretty bruised and having an official explanation will help a lot. I sent the broken spotlight in as well even though I know they don't want non DJI products just in case that was the cause and they need to alert their 3rd party partners about potential defects.

Well, you can post the flight log, it may be interesting to see it. DJI drones are generally very reliable. But it remains electronics, the components do not have an eternal or pre-established lifespan. We base lifespan estimation on averages of uptime, there are some which go well beyond, but also well below.

LV_Forestry Posted at 11-2 10:47
Well, you can post the flight log, it may be interesting to see it. DJI drones are generally very reliable. But it remains electronics, the components do not have an eternal or pre-established lifespan. We base lifespan estimation on averages of uptime, there are some which go well beyond, but also well below.

I would happily post the flight logs, but the logs from both my M30 and T40 do not show up on the Fly app. The total flight hours will sync but I am unable to find any actual logs.

Hello, there. We're sorry to hear about this unfortunate event that happened. Please send your aircraft directly via this link: https://repair.dji.com/us/repair/repair-apply Rest assured that as long as the unit is within the warranty, we will provide data analysis to determine the cause of the incident and possible warranty coverage. Thank you for your support.

DJI Diana Posted at 11-2 14:55
Hello, there. We're sorry to hear about this unfortunate event that happened. Please send your aircraft directly via this link: https://repair.dji.com/us/repair/repair-apply Rest assured that as long as the unit is within the warranty, we will provide data analysis to determine the cause of the incident and possible warranty coverage. Thank you for your support.

Hey Diana, thanks for reaching out. I've already sent my drone in for repairs/replacement and was informed it arrived at the center today. I have the case number on hand if you'd like it.

NorthWindAerial Posted at 11-2 15:16
Hey Diana, thanks for reaching out. I've already sent my drone in for repairs/replacement and was informed it arrived at the center today. I have the case number on hand if you'd like it.

Thank you for your update. Please feel free to let us know your case number if you have any queries about it. We're always here to help!

DJI Diana Posted at 11-3 14:43
Thank you for your update. Please feel free to let us know your case number if you have any queries about it. We're always here to help!

Of course, and thank you again! Case number is:

CAS-14700700-K4F0J4

It is currently in the damage assessment phase.

NorthWindAerial Posted at 11-3 15:07
Of course, and thank you again! Case number is:

CAS-14700700-K4F0J4

Appreciate your swift response. I will keep an eye on your case and communicate with the team for any updates. Also, kindly check your email from time to time for important notifications. As always, you may check the progress of your case on our official website. Thank you.